Welsh councils continue to perform well in comparison to the rest of the UK, and have won a number honours at the national APSE benchmarking awards.
Working with over 250 councils throughout the UK, the APSE performance network is the UK’s largest voluntary benchmarking club for frontline council services, and its annual award ceremony recognises the best and most improved councils in the UK.
At the recent awards ceremony, 13 Welsh councils were shortlisted across a range of service areas, with Welsh councils winning in 4 categories.
‘Best Performer’ status was achieved by Conwy (Parks, Open Spaces and Horticultural Services), Neath Port Talbot (Civic, Cultural and Community Venues) and Denbighshire in two categories (Street Lighting and Education Catering).
Commenting on the awards, Councillor Hugh Evans (Denbighshire), WLGA Spokesperson for Improvement and Performance said:
“Congratulations must go to all of the winning and shortlisted authorities from Wales. These awards cover many key front-line services and demonstrate that the performance of Welsh councils continues to compare well against that of councils across the UK. While the awards are certainly no reason for complacency, they do demonstrate the commitment that exists within Welsh local government to continually improve services, even at a time of significant demand and financial pressure.
“Recent data from Wales shows that performance indicators continue to improve, as does the level of public satisfaction with council services. The challenge now will be to maintain this during what is quickly becoming the most difficult period that local government in Wales has faced in its history. Councils will be expected to make increasingly tough decisions around what services can realistically be offered, and they will have to work closely with their residents to identify what front-line services their communities value the most.”
The purpose of APSE’s performance awards is to encourage benchmarking and the sharing of best practice throughout local government frontline services.
