Most Improved council

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Bath & North East Somerset Council


Like most councils, with increasing demands and squeezed budgets we need to change- delivering more for less. So we adopted a new purpose- improving people’s lives- and set up a Business Change Hub to provide pace and focus. We started by transforming our Keynsham civic centre into a collaborative workspace that promotes hybrid working. We’ve also made big improvements to the customer experience in highways as well as launching a new cross-council Customer Experience Framework. Now we’re bringing our “agile” approach to bear on “big ticket” items such as corporate estate, children’s services and home to school transport.

Harlow Council


Nine months on from the corporate peer challenge, it is clear that there has been profound change achieved in many aspects of how the council operates and what it is delivering." This quote from the LGA Progress Review report issued in December 2023 demonstrates how far the council has come in a short space of time. Issues of poor Member-Officer relationships have been overcome with more productive working resulting in significant performance improvement, clarity of decision making, clear strategic direction and a new four year Corporate Plan setting the longer term direction of the Council.

Lichfield DC

Our submission for the LGC Awards 2024, under Most Improved Council, narrates our transformative journey. Focusing on the pivotal role of staff engagement, we embarked on this path in October 2021. By October 2023, our efforts yielded remarkable results – staff satisfaction surged from 68% to 81%, while confidence in leadership significantly improved. Employee testimonials underscore our inclusive culture and receptive leadership. Our transparent and feedback-driven leadership style fostered trust. This transformation stands as a sector-leading model, demonstrating that, with the right leadership and a focus on staff well-being, positive change is attainable. 

Walsall Council

Walsall Council has transformed itself as an organisation over the last five years. From fundamentally overhauling its approach to leadership and service delivery to ushering in innovative ways to engage communities and partners, the council’s Proud Programme has exceeded ambitious goals. It’s opened up access to digital services while delivering better outcomes for residents and delivered substantial savings, putting the council on a more sustainable financial footing. The end result is a confident and agile organisation that’s at the helm of £1.5bn regeneration plans and is leading efforts to turn a co-produced vision for the borough’s future into reality. 

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