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Corporate plan.
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134.—(1) In this section, except where the context otherwise requires—
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“local authority” means a county council or a city council;
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“specified period” means a period not longer than 6 months from—
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(a) in a local election year, the date of the annual meeting,
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(b) in the case of a review, the date of a resolution or the date of a request under subsection (8).
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(2) Within the specified period and in accordance with this section, every local authority shall prepare a statement of strategy for the local authority (in this section referred to as a “corporate plan”).
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(3) The manager shall—
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(a) prepare the corporate plan in consultation with the policy group,
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(b) fix a schedule of meetings for that purpose, and
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(c) provide such assistance (including assistance by way of consultancy or otherwise) as may be practicable to assist in the preparation of the corporate plan and in its consideration by the policy group.
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(4) (a) It is the responsibility and the duty of the policy group and of the manager to take all such steps as are necessary to ensure that the corporate plan is submitted to the elected council for approval within the specified period.
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(b) Where the corporate plan is not submitted in accordance with paragraph (a)—
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(i) the Cathaoirleach shall convene a special meeting within 14 days of the expiration of such period, and
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(ii) the Cathaoirleach and the manager shall make a joint submission to the elected council at the special meeting outlining the steps to be taken to ensure its completion and when it is proposed to submit the corporate plan to the elected council.
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(5) (a) The elected council shall consider the corporate plan submitted in accordance with subsection (4) and may make such amendments as it considers appropriate and shall approve it with or without amendments.
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(b) Where the corporate plan is not approved in accordance with paragraph (a) within the period of 2 months from the date of its submission to the elected council, it shall be deemed to be approved on the expiration of that period, subject to any amendments—
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(i) made to it under paragraph (a) within that period, or
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(ii) which are otherwise necessary or consequential and which the manager may make within 2 weeks after the expiration of that period.
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(6) The corporate plan shall be prepared on the basis of an organisational wide strategic approach encompassing the various activities of the local authority concerned and shall include—
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(a) a statement of the principal activities of the local authority,
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(b) the objectives and priorities for each of the principal activities and strategies for achieving those objectives,
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(c) the manner in which the authority proposes to assess its performance in respect of each such activity, taking account of relevant service indicators and of the need to work towards best practice in service delivery and in the general operation of the local authority,
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(d) human resources activities (including training and development) to be undertaken for the staff of the local authority and, where appropriate for the elected council,
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(e) the organisational structure of the local authority, both elected council and staff, including corporate support and information technology and the improvements proposed to promote efficiency of operation and customer service and in general to support the corporate plan,
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(f) such other matters as may be set out in guidelines issued under subsection (10) for the purposes of this section.
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(7) In preparing its corporate plan a local authority shall take account of such policies and objectives in relation to any of its functional programmes as are set out in any other plan, statement, strategy or other document prepared by it under any other provision of this or of any other enactment and shall comply with sections 69, 71 and 129.
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(8) (a) A local authority may at any time decide by resolution to review its corporate plan and subsections (3) to (7) shall apply in relation to any such review.
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(b) If requested by the Minister, a local authority shall carry out a review and following such review may make any amendments or a new corporate plan and subsections (3) to (7) shall apply in relation to any such review.
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(9) The approval of the corporate plan, with or without amendments, is a reserved function.
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(10) (a) From time to time the Minister may issue guidelines in connection with the preparation of corporate plans by local authorities for the purposes of this section and local authorities shall have regard to such guidelines.
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(b) Guidelines may also provide, where relevant, for a corporate plan of a local authority to take account of and to reflect the principal activities of any town councils within its administrative area and for necessary consultation for that purpose.
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(c) Any guidelines issued by the Minister in relation to the preparation of corporate plans by local authorities which are current on the date of the commencement of this provision shall be deemed to have issued in accordance with this section.
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(d) Any corporate plan which is in the process of being adopted by a local authority immediately before the issue of guidelines referred to in paragraph (c) shall be deemed to have been adopted with due regard to those guidelines.
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(11) (a) The manager shall prepare an annual progress report in respect of the local authority's corporate plan and such report shall be submitted to the elected council—
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(i) at the same time as the authority's draft budget, or
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(ii) at such other time as the elected council may by resolution decide.
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(b) Details of the annual progress report shall be recorded in the local authority's annual report.
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