WATCH: Combined Authority no longer on 'life support' as notice of concern is lifted
The Combined Authority will now get £3.85million in funding which was previously withheld
The ‘hard work and dedication’ of staff at Cambridgeshire and Peterborough Combined Authority (CPCA) has been praised as the Government has lifted a notice of concern issued to it.
Called a ‘Best Value Notice’ – these are letters sent by the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities to local authorities who are not meeting their ‘Best Value Duty’.
The duty relates to important funding decisions, with the Government guidance stating “councils should consider overall value – including social value – when deciding on service provision”.
Following a programme of improvements since the notice was issued in 2023, the decision has been made not to renew it.
Comparing the notice to being ‘on life support’, Mayor of Cambridgeshire and Peterborough, Dr Nik Johnson said he was ‘absolutely delighted’ to hear that the Government will not been extending it.
“The expiry of the Best Value Notice is a fantastic endorsement of all the hard work of everyone who has contributed to the transformation of the Combined Authority,” he said.
“With the new Government committed to the role Mayors and devolution will play in powering growth, this Combined Authority is now even better placed to work in partnership with them and our local partners to deliver the investment our region needs for a better future.”
The decision not to reissue the notice was made by the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government (MHCLG) after the CPCA demonstrated how it had responded to concerns set out by the previous Government.
Minister of State at MHCLG, Jim McMahon, said the department recognised the progress made by the Combined Authority and its commitment to continuous improvement, along with its better partnership working with authorities across the region.
A spokesperson for CPCA said: “The Combined Authority has worked with its Independent Improvement Board to tackle matters raised in the Best Value Notice. Priorities have included changing the culture of the organisation, better partnership working, better processes and governance and embedding continuous improvement. Best Value Notices are issued where authorities need to improve delivery and value for money in the places they serve.
“When the Government issued the revised notice in January it recognised ‘the authority’s progress in delivering its agreed improvement plan’ since the first Best Value Notice was issued a year earlier.
“Separately, the Government’s Ministry for Housing Communities and Local Government also wrote to the Combined Authority in August to say it recognised the efforts which had been put into addressing the concerns, its evidence of progress, and how it had been delivering on commitments to improve. In the letter it agreed to lift £3.85 million of funding previously withheld, which is due to be paid to the Combined Authority this month. It noted the Combined Authority’s Independent Improvement Board view that progress was encouraging, including around partnership working and said it was critical that progress was embedded in the long term.
“Significant achievements linked to improvement include getting an approved Local Transport and Connectivity Plan in place and the ongoing development of a Shared Ambition for Cambridgeshire & Peterborough.
The Combined Authority was also a finalist in the Local Government Chronicle Awards in the Partnership category, alongside Peterborough City Council and Anglia Ruskin University, for the delivery of ARU Peterborough, the city’s new university.
Chief Executive of the Combined Authority, Rob Bridge, said: “I want to first thank our staff for their incredible dedication and hard work, our Board, Committee and Business Board members for their support, our Independent Improvement Board for their valuable guidance, and the support of our constituent councils and our partners in transforming the Combined Authority. I have been so impressed by everyone’s determination to ensure we can succeed together for our residents and businesses and the lifting of the notice is testament to everyone.
“While work to deliver for the region has never stopped, we are now in much better shape to work collaboratively and effectively to bring sustainable growth and opportunity to the region.”