Part 7 - Management Structure
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1. Introduction
Ashford Borough Council's current management
structure came into effect in late 2010.
2. The Key Features
The primary purpose of the Council’s
management arrangements is to ensure that the organisation as a
whole implements the policies and strategies that Members of the
Council have approved, in an efficient and effective manner; and to
support and advise Members in discharging their various
responsibilities.
The management structure revolves around seven
key main business units:
Business Change and Technology
Cultural Services
Customers, Homes and Property
Environmental Services
Financial Services
Legal and Democratic Services
Planning and Development
These services are focused on delivering
quality services to the community. Heads of those Services have
substantial devolved responsibility for managing their own
resources in line with the agreed Business Plan and Budget and
operational service needs.
The Management Team comprises
a Chief Executive, a Deputy Chief Executive and six other Heads of
Service.
Additionally, there are three other services
responsible for key cross-cutting "corporate" activities:
- Audit
- Personnel and Development
- Strategy, Partnerships and
Communications
The structure is expressed in the diagram at
Appendix A.
3. Management Team
The collective roles and functions of the
Management Team are summarised in the diagram at Appendix B and are
focused on the delivery of the council’s priorities and statutory
responsibilities. In discharging those roles participation of staff
across services is encouraged through using Officer Working Groups
and Project Task and Finish Groups.
Although there is no longer any formal
Directorate structure within the organisation, each member of the
Management Team supervises and mentors a defined group of
services.
4. Responsibilities of the Management Team and the seven
main business units
Chief Executive
Responsible for:
- Business planning for the council.
- Overall management and ensuring that service
delivery to the people of the borough is of as high a quality as
possible and that all the resources of the Council are used in the
most effective way.
- Leading and directing the Management Team,
ensuring a corporate approach to management of the Council.
- Ensuring Council policies are put into
action, performance is evaluated and keeping the operations of
the Council under review.
- Identifying and monitoring critical issues
and problems, reporting these to Councillors and taking action
to address them.
- Overseeing the local strategic partnership,
and community and voluntary sector work.
- Overall responsibility for election
matters.
- The Chief Executive is the statutory Head of
Paid Service.
Deputy Chief Executive
Responsible for:
- Finance services (including accountancy, financial management,
and treasury management). The Deputy Chief Executive is the
statutory Chief Financial Officer for the council.
- Council tax collection, business rates and benefits
services.
- Personnel and development services.
- Internal audit and governance services.
- Overseeing performance monitoring and management, and risk
management arrangements.
- Advising on longer term financial planning and other policy
issues more generally.
Head of Business Change and Technology
Responsible for:
- Business process design and change management
services.
- Information technology - technical support,
systems development, telephony.
- IT procurement.
- IT Project management.
- Data protection and Freedom of Information
Act issues
Head of Cultural and Project Services
Responsible for:
- Sports development and facilities for
children and young people.
- Working with trusts in managing leisure and
community facilities such as the Stour Centre, Julie Rose Stadium
and Tenterden Leisure Centre.
- Promotion of tourism, including tourist
information centres.
- Project management services across the
council.
- Art and cultural services.
- Conservation and heritage, and public
art.
Head of Customers, Homes and Property
Services
Responsible for:
CUSTOMER Services
- Face-to-face customer contact services, call
centre (telephone).
- internal document management and support
services.
HOMES
- Council housing management services,
including repairs
- Homeless person’s services.
- The council's housing waiting list and
lettings scheme.
- Working to provide new affordable homes.
- Disabled facilities grants.
- Unauthorised encampments.
PROPERTY Services
- General valuation and property advice to the
Council.
- Land and property management and its
maintenance.
- Acquisitions and disposals of land and
property.
- Management of the council's industrial and
commercial properties.
Head of Environmental
Services
Responsible for:
- Environmental contracts, such as domestic
refuse collection, street cleansing, grounds maintenance and pest
control.
- Community safety and anti-social
behaviour.
- Town centre and Tenterden market
management.
- Maintenance of public car parks, bus
shelters, street nameplates etc.
- Off-street parking services and enforcement
(on and off street).
- Environmental health and protection.
- The Ashford Monitoring Centre, which includes
CCTV, intruder alarms and Telecare.
- Emergency planning and business continuity
management.
Head of Legal and Democratic
Services
Responsible for:
- Legal advice and support to the Council and
its services.
- Members’ and democratic support
services.
- Electoral registration and administration
of elections.
- The Head of Legal and Democratic Services is
the Council's statutory Monitoring Officer and principal
adviser to the Council's Standards Committee which is responsible
for ethical framework and code of conduct issues and Ombudsman
matters.
Head of Planning and Development Services
Responsible for:
- Development control.
- Protected trees and enforcement.
- Building control.
- Plan making and masterplanning.
- Urban design and conservation.
- Economic development.
- Land charges and major sites projects support.
View the Management Structure Diagram
This webpage was updated on
5/9/2011