Andrew Husband says council has made significant progress

Andrew Husband, Reform leader of the council, said the authority had made significant progress in supporting the local economy, improving community safety and tackling homelessness, while managing what he described as a continuing care crisis and the impact of changes to local government funding.

Speaking as councillors reviewed the council’s latest performance report, Cllr Husband said the authority had remained focused on directing resources towards areas that matter most to residents.

“We have continued to deliver strongly across many of our priorities, while also being open about the challenges we are managing,” the Chester-le-Street member said. 

“It demonstrates how we have continued to respond to the care crisis and wider operational challenges we face as a large and complex council, while dealing with the impacts of national reforms in areas like local government finance, which do little to resolve our structural funding gaps.”

The report shows the council supported 1,429 businesses over the past year, secured 14 inward investment projects and helped create or safeguard 1,673 jobs across County Durham.

Council investment of £1 million in festivals and events generated an estimated £7.6 million for the local economy, according to the report.

The council said reports of anti-social behaviour had fallen to their lowest level in two years, while fly-tipping remained low at 9.6 incidents per 1,000 residents. 

The report highlighted work to address housing pressures, with 483 households helped to retain or secure accommodation and 889 households assessed as homeless receiving support during the year.

The authority also met its target to repair 90 per cent of road network defects within agreed timescales in three out of four repair categories.

And Cllr Husband said these improvements showed residents were seeing the benefits of the council’s work.

He told cabinet members: “Together, that adds to the sense that alongside our economic ambitions we are continuing to deliver practical improvements which residents can see and feel in their day-to-day lives.”