Welcome
This, our corporate plan 2009, sets out what we will do to tackle the issues that residents have told us matter most to them; more jobs, less crime, a more sustainable environment and better housing, schools and health.
I want to give a huge thanks to our staff, partners and the people of Liverpool for making 2008 the year it was for the city - a year of superlatives, with:
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praise from the Prime Minister for our 'fantastic' Capital of Culture year and from the President of the European Union for our exemplary performance as host.
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15 million people attending cultural events or attractions in the city, making us the 3rd most visited city in the UK, with the highest annual growth in hotel occupancy rates.
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the opening of Europe's largest new shopping and leisure district at 'Liverpool ONE', attracting a 33% rise in shoppers to the city, generating a total spend of £2bn, and moving the city up from the 15th to the 5th most popular shopping destination nationally.
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the fastest growing airport in the UK, with a record breaking 5.5m passengers, and the new cruise liner terminal bringing 16,000 high spending visitors.
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the start - through the work of Liverpool Mutual Homes - of one of the biggest social housing upgrades in the country.
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an outstanding first year for the Echo Arena and BT convention centre, with 621,000 visitors spending an estimated £200m in the city.
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the city's brand projected across the world, boosted by over £200m worth of positive publicity.
These achievements, and the £4bn of infrastructure, business, residential, retail and cultural regeneration initiatives coming to completion across Liverpool, have repositioned the city. We now have the foundations in place to rid ourselves of one title we do not want; "the most deprived city in the UK", with a history of low employment rates, skills levels and business start-ups.
That's why we remain focused on our three aims, to:
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'grow the city's economy' by increasing the jobs available.
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'empower our residents' so that they can take the opportunities created.
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'develop our communities' so that people want to stay in the city.
To strengthen our capacity to continue to deliver improved outcomes for our residents, the council is implementing a corporate improvement programme. This work has already enhanced our use of resources, but there is much more to do to ensure we have the right systems and resources in place.
We have a way to go to fully realise our ambition, but our resolve is reinforced by the substantial progress made over the last year. For the first year, our performance across the full range of council services is now better than our peers, while saving £34.7m on the previous year's budget.
Key improvements this year include:
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an increased number of jobs and businesses in the city.
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a significant reduction in crime.
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the best ever exam results - for the first time beating the national average in GCSE passes.
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greater residents' satisfaction with environmental services.
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consistently improving services for children and vulnerable adults.
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improved performance in housing and cultural services.
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strengthening our governance and improving our financial management and balances.
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improvements to the way we work with partner agencies, to provide more co-ordinated and responsive services that better meet local needs.
Our annual report, due to be published in the summer, will provide a full account of our performance and finances for 2008/09.
On behalf of the people of Liverpool I want to, again, express our gratitude to everyone who contributed to the city's outstanding achievements in 2008. Your work has not only changed the way people around the world see Liverpool, but also the way we see ourselves - shifting our focus from what we once were, to what we can become, giving the city the renewed confidence it needs to fully capitalise on our next appearance on the world stage - at the Shanghai expo in 2010 - the next milestone on our march towards our ambition to be recognised as - 'a thriving international city'.
Cllr. Warren Bradley.
Leader, Liverpool City Council.
Downloadable version of our corporate plan 2009/10 - 11/12.
Downloadable versions of the corporate plan, are available on the CP downloads page.