21 July 2022
In today's edition:
Significant steps have been taken this week in the creation of the new Cumberland Council.
The Cumberland Council logo. (Subject to further refinement, not for reproduction.)
At their meeting in Carlisle on 20 July, Executive members for the Shadow Authority for Cumberland Council agreed on the future identity of the new council and the process for developing its overall vision, ambitions and key priorities.
Branding
As a result the council now boasts a new concept design for a logo. The preferred design takes its inspiration from the Cumberland Flag and features a Grass-of-Parnassus flower which is the county flower of Cumberland. It contains two parallel waved lines, representing the area’s fells and mountains, coast and lakes. The colours of blue and green also link to this natural theme.
It was whittled down from a number of options that were considered by officers and members. The final design has been created by a member of the design staff at Carlisle City Council, and reflects the vision of the new authority.
A series of focus group sessions will now take place to further refine the design and develop a corporate identity manual ahead of its adoption in the Autumn.
Council Plan
Councillors also agreed on the process for the development of the Council Plan. This crucial document will set out the vision and priorities for the Council for its first four years.
Residents and staff are encouraged to have their say on the draft plan when it is published in a few weeks' time. The draft plan will also be considered by the Shadow Scrutiny committee ahead of adoption at the meeting of the Shadow Council on 18 October 2022.
Local government reorganisation means that the services of the six district councils and Cumbria County Council are brought under the control of two new unitary councils – Cumberland Council and Westmorland and Furness Council. This means bringing the services of the district councils together and the splitting, or otherwise, of the county council services.
The new councils will start providing services from vesting day on 1 April 2023.
Baseline blueprint documents
Councillors therefore also agreed the baseline blueprint documents which outline how services can expect to be organised and operate effectively on vesting day. These also include details of any transitional arrangements and proposals for how services can be provided. Once established it will be for the new councils to decide any further transformation and reorganisation of its services.
Integral to the establishment of the new councils is the need to ensure they have a sustainable financial footing. Therefore, councillors also agreed the high-level principles which will underpin how the funding for the two new councils, as well as the Cumbria Fire and Rescue Service, will be allocated. The guiding principles mirror national funding allocations where possible to ensure that service need is reflected alongside more basic allocations such as population and geography. Councillors also agreed a timeline throughout the Autumn when key decisions on the budgets and a future budget strategy will be taken.
More details on the meeting can be found on the Shadow Authority for Cumberland Council website: www.cumberland.gov.uk
Westmorland and Furness Shadow Cabinet meets tomorrow (22 July) to considers its logo options, council plan development and service blueprints. There'll be another newsletter after that meeting to keep staff and members informed. The Westmorland and Furness Shadow Cabinet papers can be viewed online.
Following the all staff briefing at the start of July, monthly online Q&As have now been arranged for employees with the LGR programme’s senior leaders.
Sam Plum, interim Head of Paid Service for Westmorland and Furness; Andrew Seekings, interim Head of Paid Service for Cumberland, and John Metcalfe, Chief Executive of Cumbria County Council, will be on Teams live on the first Monday of each month to answer your questions.
The first session will be on Monday 1 August at 10.30am, and then at 10am on Mondays 5 September, 3 October, 7 November 7 and 5 December.
Please save the below link if you would like to attend.
Join the Microsoft Teams live event - LGR Q&A (1 August 2022)
Sessions will be recorded for those unable to attend live. If you’d like to submit a question in advance please email info@newcouncilsforcumbria.info with ’Q&A question’ in the Subject field.
We've created an FAQ's section on our LGR SharePoint site that may help with the information you're looking for. The FAQ's are regularly updated to try to answer questions as they are raised.
Alternatively, you can get in touch by emailing info@newcouncilsforcumbria.info
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