Our Council Plan
1 April 2025
to 31 March 2026
Introductions
This Council Plan sets out our commitment to continue to serve the people of Kirklees, make things better where needed, and enable thriving communities across Kirklees, now and over the longer-term.
Every day, we deliver a large variety of services to people across Kirklees, doing brilliant things for people in need. But we know that sometimes it is difficult for people interacting with us, and there is always room to do better.
That's why this year, the Council will focus on getting the basics right for our residents and customers. Our commitment is to ensure that, as much as possible, residents have a positive experience when interacting with us. It might be small things, like keeping people informed about an issue they've reported, having easily accessible information on our website, or making sure people are clear about what they can expect from us. But it's also about larger change and transformation, ensuring we have the technology, processes, culture, and skills to make improvements where needed. This is better for our residents and service-users, and it's also better for our committed staff, who need the right support to continue to do the brilliant things we see across services every day.
Carole Pattison, Leader of the Council
Recent years have been extremely challenging for council finances, both in Kirklees and across the country. We have already made significant strides towards putting our council on a sustainable footing, and this journey must continue. Our budget for the coming year does include new savings, but at a lower level than in previous years.
This is not just about reducing services. Where needed, we have put additional resources into budgets that need it to cope with demand, inflation, and shortfalls. We have also ensured there is funding available to facilitate further service transformation. Throughout our budget planning process we have asked ourselves not just about where we need to do less, but how we can do it differently.
This Council Plan sets out our direction for this ongoing transformation. We know there is always room to do better. It's essential that we work more closely with communities and listen to them about what is needed. This will require changing the way we work across all council services, building a customer focussed culture, and developing a shared understanding with partners and communities about the services they can expect from us.
We don't always have the powers and resources that our residents expect, and sometimes the best way to meet our communities' needs is for the council to get out of the way. Partners and communities - with the right support - can often be better placed to deliver. That's why engagement and partnership working runs throughout this plan. We will only be able to deliver our shared aspirations together.
It won't be easy, but I have complete faith in our ability to make the changes required. Our recent Local Government Association Corporate Peer Challenge confirmed what I have seen every day at every level of the organisation: the strength of our workforce. Our workforce's pride in serving the people of Kirklees continues to shine through, and I've seen this confirmed in the visits I make to teams across the district. It's this pride that will provide the springboard to the transformation we need to make and to deliver a sustainable, positive future for people in Kirklees.
Steve Mawson, Chief Executive
Focus areas
Our Council Plan Summary
Our vision
For Kirklees to be a district that combines a strong, sustainable economy with a great quality of life - leading to thriving communities, growing businesses, high prosperity and low inequality where people enjoy better health throughout their lives.
Shared outcomes
Our Shared Outcomes are:
- Shaped by People - We make our places what they are.
- Best Start - Children have the best start in life.
- Well - People in Kirklees are as well as possible for as long as possible.
- Independent - People in Kirklees live independently and have control over their lives.
- Aspire and Achieve - People in Kirklees have aspiration to achieve their ambitions through education, training, employment, and lifelong learning.
- Sustainable Economy - Kirklees has sustainable economic growth and provides good employment for and with communities and businesses.
- Safe and Cohesive - People in Kirklees live in cohesive communities, feel safe, and are protected from harm.
- Clean and Green - People in Kirklees experience a high quality, clean, sustainable, and green environment.
Kirklees Council Plan
The Council Plan is about:
- Working smart and delivering efficiently and effectively
- Working with people and partners using a place-based approach
- Our values and behaviours
- Our priorities
- Our day-to-day services
Our partnership strategies
Our partnership strategies are:
- Environment Strategy
- Inclusive Economy Strategy
- Health and Wellbeing Strategy
- Inclusive Communities Framework
You can find out about these strategies at Policies and strategies.
