| Strengthening the Highlands | What we will do for children and families |
| What we will do for communities and older people |
| What we will do for the economy | What we will do for our environment |
We will:
- Continue to pursue best value for our residents and service users, seeking efficiencies in the way we work and continuously review the Council’s spending programmes. We will modernise our services to achieve an annual 2% efficiency savings target.
- Commit the Council to the principle of appropriate additional decentralisation of political decision-making within the Council.
- Continuously review our performance to improve the way in which Council services are designed and delivered. We will do this by measuring our progress, reporting on it publicly and listening to our customers and communities.
- Fulfil all of the Council’s duties to promote equalities and to tackle discrimination and disadvantage - as an employer, in providing public services, in community leadership and partnership working.
- Make Council decision-making more accessible by webcasting Council meetings and by other means.
- Make it easier and more convenient to contact the Council (through telephone, internet and other technology) including the extension of opening hours for telephone contact.
- Continue to develop ward forums for every Council ward which will enable the public and community representatives to be informed of and to scrutinise Council activities and service delivery, including community planning.
- Develop our asset management plan to ensure that the Council owns or occupies only the appropriate number of buildings and that these are fit for purpose.
- Value and consult with staff and trades unions through joint consultative committees between the Council and trades unions.
- Work with the trades unions to deliver modernised working conditions and a single status workforce by 2010.
- Agree an annual training and development programme for elected members and introduce role descriptions and performance development plans for councillors.
- Review the Council’s programme and report progress against it each year.