The latest revised Acolaid statistics have been released - revealing how hard your local councillor works for you.
Details here covering the period July 2009 to February 2010.
The subject of reporting councillor statistics has been a regular source of controversy (see here for a round-up), while the matter was recently used to heap further embarrassment on under-fire Cllr John Hartley (Labour, Park ward) by opponents.
Topping the list of active representatives was Labour's deputy leader Cllr Tony Page (Abbey ward) with 167 recorded casework enquiries.
LibDems Cllr Daisy Benson (Redlands) and Cllr Gareth Epps (Katesgrove) followed in second and third with 128 and 116 respectively, while Labour's Mike Orton (Whitley) was the only other councillor to score over 100 pieces of work.
Meanwhile 15 of Reading's 46 councillors recorded less than a tenth of that number in the same 10 month period. In this hall of shame were (in alphabetical order):
Terry Byrne (Con), Minster, 3
Jon Hartley (Lab), Park, 4
Greame Hoskin (Lab), Norcot, 7
Azam Janjua (Con), Church, 1
Peter Jones (Lab), Norcot, 5
Dave Luckett (Con), Caversham, 10
Chris Maskell (Lab), Battle, 7
Shirley Merriot (Lab), Park, 2
Fred Pugh (Con), Mapledurham, 5
Mary Singleton-White (Lab), Whitley, 8
Jeanette Skeats (Con), Thames, 4
Richard Stainthorp (Lab), Katesgrove, 5
David Stevens (Con), Thames, 1
Mike Townend (Con), Church, 10
Debbie Watson (Lab), Minster, 4
LibDems complete about double the amount of casework per councillor than Labour members, and treble that of Conservatives.
Redlands ward has the most active councillors, with 246 Acolaids between Cllr Benson and her two LibDem colleagues, Cllrs Bayes and Goodall.
This compares to those at the at the bottom of the list:
Park Ward (2 Labour, 1 Conservative): 32
Minster Ward (2 Labour, 1 Conservative): 36
Thames ward (3 Conservatives): 38
Church ward (3 Conservatives): 50
Another interesting feature of the report are the differences between ward colleagues. In a number of cases it is noticable that one councillor has a far larger share of the casework than others.
This tendency is highly marked in Abbey Ward, where full-time councillor Tony Page combines his deputy leadership duties with an active presence in the community responding to 176 enquiries, while his colleague Mohammed Ayub undertook only 16 enquiries in the same 10 month period and Bet Tickner recorded 33.
In leafy Thames ward it appears a strict division of duties has been agreed, with David Stephens focussing almost exclusively on policy work, former mayor Jeanette Skeats prefering the social life afforded by committee work and Isobel Ballsdon clearly enjoying her role as a community activist with 33 of the 38 pieces of casework.
But the biggest disparity in workloads is in deprived Whitley ward where Mike Orton's 106 Acolaids far outstripped the combined sum of Jim Hanley's 15 and Mary Singleton-White's 8 casework totals.
Rob White takes aim at 'lazy' councillors, as he claims to have completed 'over 150' pieces of casework as a prospective candidate this year alone - in what sounds suspiciously like a commitment to maintain this level of activity were he to become the first Green party councillor.
He also calls on his opponents to hand back their £8,385 allowances if they don't do their jobs (although Cllr Hartley also collects over £4,000 Special Responsibility Allowance as Lead Councillor for Education).
Cllr Glenn Goodall provides an in-depth analysis of the stats. He is particularly pleased that the statistics rebutt any inaccurate or malicious claims made for partisan reasons.
He also notes that the Park ward Labour candidates previously mocked opponent Cllr Wazir Hussain for not holding surgeries, yet now he has reported 26 enquiries in 10 months compared to 6 between Cllrs Hartley and Merriot in the same period!
Oranjepan asks:
A number of the 'lazy' councillors identified above are either standing down or likely to be unseated at the next round of local elections, how can they be incentivised not to give up as soon as they see the writing on the wall?
If you have a problem your local councillors are here to help you - why not contact them directly or pop along to one of their public surgeries?
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More on 'Who is your hardest working councillor?'
Showing posts with label Acolaid. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Acolaid. Show all posts
Friday, 12 March 2010
Wednesday, 9 December 2009
Recommended Reading List #41
Caroline Eveleigh uses her blog to evangelise about ways in which the level of performance can be raised in all sorts of unsuspecting areas - including in a recent post discussing the highly-relevant subject of how to measure the performance of local politicians!
It is something of a specialism for her as a company director of Anatec, a local software company which specialises in performance management, business intelligence and "getting the best out of people, teams and organisations."
Caroline offers the useful insight that all statistics are a management tool and as such are a way to measure accountability. She explains that although current public sector performance indicators are "not a perfect measure... they are a lot better than nothing."
Interestingly she raises the idea of a national league table for local politicians, arguing that improvements in tracking and publication of the figures will ultimately drive improvements in political performance as voters gain better information to inform decisions made at the ballot box.
However she signs off leaving a tantalising warning that the risks and opportunities in the use of statistics are the same in politics as they are in business - provided they are used sensibly they can be extremely valuable...
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More on 'Who Is Your Hardest Working Councillor?'
It is something of a specialism for her as a company director of Anatec, a local software company which specialises in performance management, business intelligence and "getting the best out of people, teams and organisations."
Caroline offers the useful insight that all statistics are a management tool and as such are a way to measure accountability. She explains that although current public sector performance indicators are "not a perfect measure... they are a lot better than nothing."
Interestingly she raises the idea of a national league table for local politicians, arguing that improvements in tracking and publication of the figures will ultimately drive improvements in political performance as voters gain better information to inform decisions made at the ballot box.
However she signs off leaving a tantalising warning that the risks and opportunities in the use of statistics are the same in politics as they are in business - provided they are used sensibly they can be extremely valuable...
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More on 'Who Is Your Hardest Working Councillor?'
Saturday, 5 December 2009
Who Is Your Laziest Councillor?
#rdgnews - It's six months now since the last time I reported on the levels of enquiries each of Reading's 46 councillors make on behalf of the public, so it's about time that I followed up.
Redlands' Cllr Glenn Goodall was the first to publish the most recent list of 'Acolaid' statistics (taking the period July-October 2009).
He highlights the fact that 6 councillors failed to make any enquiries whatsoever during this period, while 21 councillors made less than 10.
By comparison the top three were Cllr Page (Labour, 67 enquiries), Cllr Benson (LibDem, 50) and Cllr Epps (LibDem, 47).
Cllr Daisy Benson is proud of the consistent effort each of the members of their LibDem team puts in and says the community feels the benefit of the hard work.
Independent Cllr Tony Jones has argued that a number of councillors are lazy and could be cut with no discernable difference in the effect to the public.
Linda Fort reports that the statistics don't tell the whole story.
She questions Mayor of Reading, Cllr Fred Pugh, who has regular public engagements and states the desciption of laziness isn't fair. However, as the representative of a single-member ward his zero enquiries may seem to be leaving residents in the lurch.
Both Cllr Pugh and Park ward's Cllr Hartley claim they bypass the system of logging enquiries because it is time consuming and as experienced councillors they have connections with the right council officers who they can go to directly to get the work done.
But Park ward Green party candidate Rob White is particularly aggravated by the lack of evidence Cllr Hartley and his Labour party colleague Cllr Merriot can show. He says the lack of evidence is proof they are both 'rubbish'!
Meanwhile Cllr Willis doesn't think the number of enquiries made by councillors is relevant - he decides instead to count the number of meetings he attended (and those he sent apologies for missing).
He also reports that the old Acolaid system of reporting on councillor enquiries has been been replaced with a more efficient system called 'Front Office'.
Earlier this year Bracknell LibDem Mark Reckons gained national attention during the expenses scandal for analysinging the statistical connection between the size of politicians' electoral majorities and their level of corruption.
His work was referenced by at the highest levels as supporting the case for political and electoral reform - could the same be said for their effectiveness?
Oranjepan says:
It's a good thing the system is changing, now there is no excuse for any councillor not to use it. It is not acceptable that public representatives subvert agreed processes - because that distorts the political debate and leads to bad decisions.
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More on 'Who is your hardest working councillor?'
Redlands' Cllr Glenn Goodall was the first to publish the most recent list of 'Acolaid' statistics (taking the period July-October 2009).
He highlights the fact that 6 councillors failed to make any enquiries whatsoever during this period, while 21 councillors made less than 10.
By comparison the top three were Cllr Page (Labour, 67 enquiries), Cllr Benson (LibDem, 50) and Cllr Epps (LibDem, 47).
Cllr Daisy Benson is proud of the consistent effort each of the members of their LibDem team puts in and says the community feels the benefit of the hard work.
Independent Cllr Tony Jones has argued that a number of councillors are lazy and could be cut with no discernable difference in the effect to the public.
Linda Fort reports that the statistics don't tell the whole story.
She questions Mayor of Reading, Cllr Fred Pugh, who has regular public engagements and states the desciption of laziness isn't fair. However, as the representative of a single-member ward his zero enquiries may seem to be leaving residents in the lurch.
Both Cllr Pugh and Park ward's Cllr Hartley claim they bypass the system of logging enquiries because it is time consuming and as experienced councillors they have connections with the right council officers who they can go to directly to get the work done.
But Park ward Green party candidate Rob White is particularly aggravated by the lack of evidence Cllr Hartley and his Labour party colleague Cllr Merriot can show. He says the lack of evidence is proof they are both 'rubbish'!
Meanwhile Cllr Willis doesn't think the number of enquiries made by councillors is relevant - he decides instead to count the number of meetings he attended (and those he sent apologies for missing).
He also reports that the old Acolaid system of reporting on councillor enquiries has been been replaced with a more efficient system called 'Front Office'.
Earlier this year Bracknell LibDem Mark Reckons gained national attention during the expenses scandal for analysinging the statistical connection between the size of politicians' electoral majorities and their level of corruption.
His work was referenced by at the highest levels as supporting the case for political and electoral reform - could the same be said for their effectiveness?
Oranjepan says:
It's a good thing the system is changing, now there is no excuse for any councillor not to use it. It is not acceptable that public representatives subvert agreed processes - because that distorts the political debate and leads to bad decisions.
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More on 'Who is your hardest working councillor?'
Thursday, 9 July 2009
'Cull-A-Councillor' Debated
Independent Battle ward Councillor Tony Jones yesterday presented his proposals for a reduction in the number of local politicians.
He argued that by reducing the number of councillors by a third this would save borough taxpayers a significant slice of change (approx 0.1% of the total budget) and force the less active among the current intake to buck up their ideas.
Cllr Richard Willis reports Conservative group leader Cllr Andrew Cumpsty argued strongly in favour of the move and added his support to all-out elections once every four years - a move which would enable his party to consolidate a growing stranglehold on the local borough.
On the other side Cllr Benson argued for the LibDems against the move which she said was not in the interests of her constituents as it did not discriminate between good councillors and bad councillors, while Cllr Willis paints Labour as opposed through fear that their number would inevitably be cut.
Meanwhile Cllr Ricky Duveen (Tilehurst, LibDem) warns of the unadvertised consequences, which may or may not be intended. Fewer councillors will reduce the council's effectiveness by shrinking the talent pool for executive and committee posts where scrutiny is undertaken and the increased workload will lead to calls for politicians to become full-time public employees - ultimately reversing any savings made.
He says that although it may grab a few headlines, this suggestion is one which is unlikely to increase democratic participation.
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Update: the recent reshuffle in West Berkshire provides an example of a potential problem which could be created by reducing the number of elected representatives.
Howard Thomas bemoans several councillors 'invisibility'.
Oranjepan asks:
what is Reading's political priority - to save money or to improve society?
He argued that by reducing the number of councillors by a third this would save borough taxpayers a significant slice of change (approx 0.1% of the total budget) and force the less active among the current intake to buck up their ideas.
Cllr Richard Willis reports Conservative group leader Cllr Andrew Cumpsty argued strongly in favour of the move and added his support to all-out elections once every four years - a move which would enable his party to consolidate a growing stranglehold on the local borough.
On the other side Cllr Benson argued for the LibDems against the move which she said was not in the interests of her constituents as it did not discriminate between good councillors and bad councillors, while Cllr Willis paints Labour as opposed through fear that their number would inevitably be cut.
Meanwhile Cllr Ricky Duveen (Tilehurst, LibDem) warns of the unadvertised consequences, which may or may not be intended. Fewer councillors will reduce the council's effectiveness by shrinking the talent pool for executive and committee posts where scrutiny is undertaken and the increased workload will lead to calls for politicians to become full-time public employees - ultimately reversing any savings made.
He says that although it may grab a few headlines, this suggestion is one which is unlikely to increase democratic participation.
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Update: the recent reshuffle in West Berkshire provides an example of a potential problem which could be created by reducing the number of elected representatives.
Howard Thomas bemoans several councillors 'invisibility'.
Oranjepan asks:
what is Reading's political priority - to save money or to improve society?
Wednesday, 17 June 2009
'Cull-A-Councillor'
Independent Battle Ward councillor Tony Jones has attempted to profit from the public outcry against official waste as he made an unashamedly populist call to cut the number of councillors on Reading Borough Council.
He says one-third of current representatives could be culled "without in any way harming the efficiency of the council or injuring the democratic processes," arguing that the system of local government which has been around for half his lifetime ought to be updated because communication technology has improved so much in that time that the less active councillors no longer give value for money and should be hurried off into retirement.
Cllr Jones also calls for the frequency of elections to be reduced and calculates this would produce a financial saving of as much as £150,000. Such a figure reflects approximately 0.1% of the total current annual council budget.
In her report Linda Fort makes an insightful final aside, raising the question of who the final beneficiaries of any such move would be and what ulterior motives might be masked.
It seems clear that the staunch trades unionist has no residual solidarity with his former Labour party colleagues, although it could equally be likely to discourage members of the public from voluntarily getting involved with the political process - something which opponents are trying to prevent.
In the meantime Reading's top bureaucrat, RBC Chief Executive Michael Coughlin has been out and about fulfilling ceremonial duties and promoting democratic initiatives, perhaps offering an insight into what Cllr Jones' vision involves.
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Update: Cllr Ricky Duveen doesn't like the idea. He says "it is not a way to enhance democracy in Reading nor a way to increase participation."
Oranjepan asks:
which councillor(s) do you think should be got rid of?
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Follow the link for full coverage of the expenses scandal and the political debate about democratic renewal.
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He says one-third of current representatives could be culled "without in any way harming the efficiency of the council or injuring the democratic processes," arguing that the system of local government which has been around for half his lifetime ought to be updated because communication technology has improved so much in that time that the less active councillors no longer give value for money and should be hurried off into retirement.
Cllr Jones also calls for the frequency of elections to be reduced and calculates this would produce a financial saving of as much as £150,000. Such a figure reflects approximately 0.1% of the total current annual council budget.
In her report Linda Fort makes an insightful final aside, raising the question of who the final beneficiaries of any such move would be and what ulterior motives might be masked.
It seems clear that the staunch trades unionist has no residual solidarity with his former Labour party colleagues, although it could equally be likely to discourage members of the public from voluntarily getting involved with the political process - something which opponents are trying to prevent.
In the meantime Reading's top bureaucrat, RBC Chief Executive Michael Coughlin has been out and about fulfilling ceremonial duties and promoting democratic initiatives, perhaps offering an insight into what Cllr Jones' vision involves.
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Update: Cllr Ricky Duveen doesn't like the idea. He says "it is not a way to enhance democracy in Reading nor a way to increase participation."
Oranjepan asks:
which councillor(s) do you think should be got rid of?
=
Follow the link for full coverage of the expenses scandal and the political debate about democratic renewal.
Sunday, 31 May 2009
Who Is Your Hardest Working Councillor?
Local LibDems have been cock-a-hoop with the release of Acolaid figures showing the amount of casework undertaken by councillors across Reading Borough.
Daisy Benson says she is proud of the effort put in by the LibDem team which they fit in around their normal day-jobs because they "get a lot of satisfaction from helping local residents and from campaigning to improve our area."
Warren Swaine reminds us that the national scandal over dodgy expense claims may be blinding us to the actual value for money provided by the different sides and points out that LibDems in Reading do on average twice-as-much as the typical Labour representative and almost three-times-as-much as Conservatives.
A similar point is made by Cllr Goodall as he preemts criticisms from opponents that use of the casework figures is an unreliable measure. He says that the Acolaid system is designed to enable progress can be tracked and this helps ensure more effective responses.
Meanwhile over in Henley, Conservative councillors are facing criticism from LibDems over their decision to stop reporting of attendance at council meetings. Tories branded the reports "inaccurate" and "a waste of time", saying the quality of work was more important than the quantity.
Oranjepan says:
Whether it is quality or quantity you are after, without authorative statistical information to back up the claims of each party how will voters ever expect to make an informed decision!
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For full details of 'Who is Reading's Hardest Working Councillor?' click here (see sidebar).
Daisy Benson says she is proud of the effort put in by the LibDem team which they fit in around their normal day-jobs because they "get a lot of satisfaction from helping local residents and from campaigning to improve our area."
Warren Swaine reminds us that the national scandal over dodgy expense claims may be blinding us to the actual value for money provided by the different sides and points out that LibDems in Reading do on average twice-as-much as the typical Labour representative and almost three-times-as-much as Conservatives.
A similar point is made by Cllr Goodall as he preemts criticisms from opponents that use of the casework figures is an unreliable measure. He says that the Acolaid system is designed to enable progress can be tracked and this helps ensure more effective responses.
Meanwhile over in Henley, Conservative councillors are facing criticism from LibDems over their decision to stop reporting of attendance at council meetings. Tories branded the reports "inaccurate" and "a waste of time", saying the quality of work was more important than the quantity.
Oranjepan says:
Whether it is quality or quantity you are after, without authorative statistical information to back up the claims of each party how will voters ever expect to make an informed decision!
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For full details of 'Who is Reading's Hardest Working Councillor?' click here (see sidebar).
Thursday, 2 April 2009
Budget Debate Continues: Councillor Allowances Frozen
As national politicians continue to make unjustified expense claims the local focus has shifted onto whether our Reading councillors offer value for money during these straitened economic times.
Although Labour's original proposal was for a 1% rise in the basic allowance package (as part of a total increase of 2%), pressure exerted by the budget review to find £400,000 of savings has forced Labour to reverse their policy in order to gain the votes to pass the motion necessary for them to maintain their leadership of RBC.
Councillor allowances will now return to 2007/8 levels.
The basic allowance for a councillor (reimbursing time spent fulfilling official duties) will now reduce from £8,447 to £8,220.
Compensation for additional responsibilities will also fall. Leader of the Council (currently Labour's Jo Lovelock) will recieve an extra £7,782 (down from £7,996). Lead councillors on the cabinet and the main opposition group (currently Conservative Andrew Cumpsty) will receive £4,240 (previously £4,357), while junior opposition group leader (currently LibDem Gareth Epps) and committee chairpersons will receive £2,386 (previously £2,452).
Reading Chronicle helpfully does the sums:
Council leader Jo Lovelock - £16,002; Deputy leader Tony Page - £14,578; Cabinet members and Tory leader Andrew Cumpsty - £12,460; Scrutiny/committee chairs and Lib Dem leader Gareth Epps - £10,606; Other councillors - £8,220.
Other allowances for legitimate expenses are also maintained at previous levels.
Party politics played a large role in the debate as Reading Conservatives explained that they wanted to 'send the right message' to voters, but were attacked for failing to make any formal proposals during the budget negotiations.
LibDems were praised for their honesty as they decried Conservative behaviour as "gesture politics" while nevertheless supporting the freeze which will only result in savings of £12,000.
Cllr Warren Swaine (LibDem, Katesgrove) provides an insightful commentary on the discussions.
He says "some councillors really do earn their allowances... others are lazy and feckless" and tentatively calculates a Performance Related Pay League table for all 46 RBC councillors (placing himself 13th).
Oranjepan says:
Some councillors spend hundreds of hours every year attending meetings, actively scrutinising council processes and helping residents with casework, often taking unpaid leave from work to do so.
We need an accurate way of calculating which councillors offer better value for money.
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Update: Cllr Willis lauds the proposal as it is now policy.
Although Labour's original proposal was for a 1% rise in the basic allowance package (as part of a total increase of 2%), pressure exerted by the budget review to find £400,000 of savings has forced Labour to reverse their policy in order to gain the votes to pass the motion necessary for them to maintain their leadership of RBC.
Councillor allowances will now return to 2007/8 levels.
The basic allowance for a councillor (reimbursing time spent fulfilling official duties) will now reduce from £8,447 to £8,220.
Compensation for additional responsibilities will also fall. Leader of the Council (currently Labour's Jo Lovelock) will recieve an extra £7,782 (down from £7,996). Lead councillors on the cabinet and the main opposition group (currently Conservative Andrew Cumpsty) will receive £4,240 (previously £4,357), while junior opposition group leader (currently LibDem Gareth Epps) and committee chairpersons will receive £2,386 (previously £2,452).
Reading Chronicle helpfully does the sums:
Council leader Jo Lovelock - £16,002; Deputy leader Tony Page - £14,578; Cabinet members and Tory leader Andrew Cumpsty - £12,460; Scrutiny/committee chairs and Lib Dem leader Gareth Epps - £10,606; Other councillors - £8,220.
Other allowances for legitimate expenses are also maintained at previous levels.
Party politics played a large role in the debate as Reading Conservatives explained that they wanted to 'send the right message' to voters, but were attacked for failing to make any formal proposals during the budget negotiations.
LibDems were praised for their honesty as they decried Conservative behaviour as "gesture politics" while nevertheless supporting the freeze which will only result in savings of £12,000.
Cllr Warren Swaine (LibDem, Katesgrove) provides an insightful commentary on the discussions.
He says "some councillors really do earn their allowances... others are lazy and feckless" and tentatively calculates a Performance Related Pay League table for all 46 RBC councillors (placing himself 13th).
Oranjepan says:
Some councillors spend hundreds of hours every year attending meetings, actively scrutinising council processes and helping residents with casework, often taking unpaid leave from work to do so.
We need an accurate way of calculating which councillors offer better value for money.
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Update: Cllr Willis lauds the proposal as it is now policy.
Thursday, 5 March 2009
The Busy-ness Stakes: February
A slightly belated round-up of self-accredited activity by local blogging politicians for February (see here for January).
Richard Willis has emailed his promise to provide an update on his activities, but it seems we must continue to wait.
Conservative councillor for Caversham, Dave Luckett, offers a monthly update.
Redlands LibDem Councillor Glenn Goodall decides to report weekly (1, 2, 3 and 4).
Green activist Rob White offers a rundown of his activity.
While Reading List is glad to see that reporting continues, a number of questions must be raised about the quality and content of the reports.
Dave Luckett says he "attended a dinner", received "countless calls" and "raised more issues", while Rob White is similarly vague. If these reports are to have any meaning then surely accurate data must be forthcoming.
Oranjepan asks:
Do you think your representative represents you effectively?
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Update: Thank you, Richard.
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For full details of 'Who is Reading's Hardest Working Councillor?' click here (see sidebar).
Richard Willis has emailed his promise to provide an update on his activities, but it seems we must continue to wait.
Conservative councillor for Caversham, Dave Luckett, offers a monthly update.
Redlands LibDem Councillor Glenn Goodall decides to report weekly (1, 2, 3 and 4).
Green activist Rob White offers a rundown of his activity.
While Reading List is glad to see that reporting continues, a number of questions must be raised about the quality and content of the reports.
Dave Luckett says he "attended a dinner", received "countless calls" and "raised more issues", while Rob White is similarly vague. If these reports are to have any meaning then surely accurate data must be forthcoming.
Oranjepan asks:
Do you think your representative represents you effectively?
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Update: Thank you, Richard.
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For full details of 'Who is Reading's Hardest Working Councillor?' click here (see sidebar).
Saturday, 31 January 2009
The Busy-ness Stakes: January
Three Reading Councillors are taking the pro-active line in response to reporting the level of their activity.
Conservatives Richard Willis and Dave Luckett have reported on their monthly activity, while LibDem Glenn Goodall has taken the weekly approach.
Oranjepan asks:
Are all Reading's other councillors too busy to report?
Update: Cllr Willis has provided fuller details.
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For full details of 'Who is Reading's Hardest Working Councillor?' click here (see sidebar).
Conservatives Richard Willis and Dave Luckett have reported on their monthly activity, while LibDem Glenn Goodall has taken the weekly approach.
Oranjepan asks:
Are all Reading's other councillors too busy to report?
Update: Cllr Willis has provided fuller details.
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For full details of 'Who is Reading's Hardest Working Councillor?' click here (see sidebar).
Monday, 26 January 2009
More comment on those Acolaid figures
Richard Willis has written on his blog to list council actions he has instigated recently. These are very basic examples of your councillor's typical workload.
If you see any similar problems please report them to your local councillor (a list of contact details can be found on the RBC Councillor Information page) or use the public resources (such as FixMyStreet) which I've placed on my sidebar for the purpose.
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For full details of 'Who is Reading's Hardest Working Councillor?' click here (see sidebar).
If you see any similar problems please report them to your local councillor (a list of contact details can be found on the RBC Councillor Information page) or use the public resources (such as FixMyStreet) which I've placed on my sidebar for the purpose.
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For full details of 'Who is Reading's Hardest Working Councillor?' click here (see sidebar).
Saturday, 17 January 2009
Acolaid: deeper analysis
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total Acolaids: 1186
Labour total Acolaids: 556
Conservative total Acolaids: 231
LibDem total Acolaids: 393
Independent total Acolaids: 6
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as proportion of total:
by party group
Lab - 46.88%
Con - 19.48%
LibDem - 33.14%
Ind - 0.50%
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as proportion of total:
average per party councillor
Lab (19 councillors) - 2.467%
Con (18 councillors) - 1.082%
LibDem (8 councillors) - 4.142%
Ind (1 councillor) - 0.505%
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For full details of 'Who is Reading's Hardest Working Councillor?' click here (see sidebar).
total Acolaids: 1186
Labour total Acolaids: 556
Conservative total Acolaids: 231
LibDem total Acolaids: 393
Independent total Acolaids: 6
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as proportion of total:
by party group
Lab - 46.88%
Con - 19.48%
LibDem - 33.14%
Ind - 0.50%
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as proportion of total:
average per party councillor
Lab (19 councillors) - 2.467%
Con (18 councillors) - 1.082%
LibDem (8 councillors) - 4.142%
Ind (1 councillor) - 0.505%
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For full details of 'Who is Reading's Hardest Working Councillor?' click here (see sidebar).
Acolaid: The analysis
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by ward:
# 1 - (total: 240) ave: 80.0 - REDLANDS
# 2 - (total: 127) ave: 42.3 - ABBEY
# 3 - (total: 118) ave: 39.3 - KATESGROVE
# 4 - (total: 102) ave: 34.0 - PEPPARD
# 5 - (total: 93) ave: 31.0 - KENTWOOD
# 6 - (total: 92) ave: 30.6 - WHITLEY
# 7 - (total: 73) ave: 24.3 - SOUTHCOTE
# 8 - (total: 64) ave: 21.3 - NORCOT
# 9 - (total: 63) ave: 21.0 - CAVERSHAM
#10 - (total: 50) ave: 16.6 - THAMES
#11 - (total: 47) ave: 15.6 - MINSTER
#12 - (total: 43) ave: 14.3 - BATTLE
#13 - (total: 37) ave: 12.3 - TILEHURST
#14 - (total: 21) ave: 7.0 - CHURCH
#15 - (total: 5) ave: 5.0 - MAPLEDURHAM
#16 - (total: 11) ave: 3.6 - PARK
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by Party group
Total Lab (19 Councillors): 556; ave: 29.3
Total Con (18 Councillors): 231; ave: 12.8
Total LibDem (8 Councillors): 393; ave: 49.1
Total Ind (1 Councillor): 6; ave: 6
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Individual totals:
133 - Daisy Benson
90 - Tony Page
84 - Mike Orton
82 - Gareth Epps
57 - Jo Lovelock
55 - Kirsten Bayes
52 - Glenn Goodall
46 - Mark Ralph
44 - Tom Steele
39 - John Ennis
38 - Isobel Ballsdon
38 - Jamie Chowdhary
36 - Paul Gittings
34 - Warren Swaine
31 - Gul Khan
29 - Tom Stanway
27 - Bet Tickner
26 - Jennifer Rynn
23 - Deborah Edwards
23 - Emma Warman
24 - Andrew Cumpsty
18 - Richard Willis
17 - Ricky Duveen
14 - Peter Beard
11 - Pete Ruhemann
11 - Jeanette Skeats
10 - David Luckett
10 - Mohammed Ayub
9 - Deborah Watson
8 - Tim Harris
7 - Mike Townend
6 - Chris Harris
6 - Azam Janjua
6 - Tony Jones
6 - Chris Maskell
5 - Graeme Hoskin
5 - Fred Pugh
4 - Jim Hanley
4 - Wazir Hussain
4 - Mary Singleton-White
4 - Shirley Merriott
3 - Jon Hartley
2 - Terry Byrne
2 - Richard Stainthorp
2 - Peter Jones
1 - David Stevens
------------------------
=
For full details of 'Who is Reading's Hardest Working Councillor?' click here (see sidebar).
by ward:
# 1 - (total: 240) ave: 80.0 - REDLANDS
# 2 - (total: 127) ave: 42.3 - ABBEY
# 3 - (total: 118) ave: 39.3 - KATESGROVE
# 4 - (total: 102) ave: 34.0 - PEPPARD
# 5 - (total: 93) ave: 31.0 - KENTWOOD
# 6 - (total: 92) ave: 30.6 - WHITLEY
# 7 - (total: 73) ave: 24.3 - SOUTHCOTE
# 8 - (total: 64) ave: 21.3 - NORCOT
# 9 - (total: 63) ave: 21.0 - CAVERSHAM
#10 - (total: 50) ave: 16.6 - THAMES
#11 - (total: 47) ave: 15.6 - MINSTER
#12 - (total: 43) ave: 14.3 - BATTLE
#13 - (total: 37) ave: 12.3 - TILEHURST
#14 - (total: 21) ave: 7.0 - CHURCH
#15 - (total: 5) ave: 5.0 - MAPLEDURHAM
#16 - (total: 11) ave: 3.6 - PARK
------------------------
by Party group
Total Lab (19 Councillors): 556; ave: 29.3
Total Con (18 Councillors): 231; ave: 12.8
Total LibDem (8 Councillors): 393; ave: 49.1
Total Ind (1 Councillor): 6; ave: 6
------------------------
Individual totals:
133 - Daisy Benson
90 - Tony Page
84 - Mike Orton
82 - Gareth Epps
57 - Jo Lovelock
55 - Kirsten Bayes
52 - Glenn Goodall
46 - Mark Ralph
44 - Tom Steele
39 - John Ennis
38 - Isobel Ballsdon
38 - Jamie Chowdhary
36 - Paul Gittings
34 - Warren Swaine
31 - Gul Khan
29 - Tom Stanway
27 - Bet Tickner
26 - Jennifer Rynn
23 - Deborah Edwards
23 - Emma Warman
24 - Andrew Cumpsty
18 - Richard Willis
17 - Ricky Duveen
14 - Peter Beard
11 - Pete Ruhemann
11 - Jeanette Skeats
10 - David Luckett
10 - Mohammed Ayub
9 - Deborah Watson
8 - Tim Harris
7 - Mike Townend
6 - Chris Harris
6 - Azam Janjua
6 - Tony Jones
6 - Chris Maskell
5 - Graeme Hoskin
5 - Fred Pugh
4 - Jim Hanley
4 - Wazir Hussain
4 - Mary Singleton-White
4 - Shirley Merriott
3 - Jon Hartley
2 - Terry Byrne
2 - Richard Stainthorp
2 - Peter Jones
1 - David Stevens
------------------------
=
For full details of 'Who is Reading's Hardest Working Councillor?' click here (see sidebar).
Acolaid: the statistics
Following on from the recent controversy stirred by publication of the list of Acolaid figures I thought I should reprint the list in full to provide more insight.
Here are the Acolaid statistics released by Reading Borough Council under the Freedom of Information Act (the figures correspond with the period 1/5/2008 - 1/11/2008):
=====================
ABBEY ward (total 127):
Mohammed Ayub (Lab), 10
Bet Tickner (Lab), 27
Tony Page (Lab), 90
BATTLE (total: 43)
Chris Maskell (Lab), 6
Tony Jones (Ind), 6
Gul Khan (Lab), 31
CAVERSHAM (total: 63)
Tom Stanway (Con), 29
David Luckett (Con), 10
Andrew Cumpsty (Con), 24
CHURCH (total: 21)
Tim Harris (Con), 8
Azam Janjua (Con), 6
Mike Townend (Lab), 7
KATESGROVE (total: 118)
Richard Stainthorp (Lab), 2
Warren Swaine (LibDem), 34
Gareth Epps (LibDem), 82
KENTWOOD (total: 93)
Tom Steele (Con), 44
Emma Warman (Con), 23
Jennifer Rynn (Con), 26
MAPLEDURHAM (total: 5)
Fred Pugh (Con), 5
MINSTER (total: 47)
Terry Byrne (Con), 2
Paul Gittings (Lab), 36
Deborah Watson (Lab), 9
NORCOT (total 64)
Graeme Hoskin (Lab), 5
Peter Jones (Lab), 2
Jo Lovelock (Lab), 57
PARK (total: 11)
Wazir Hussain (Con), 4
Jon Hartley (Lab), 3
Shirley Merriott (Lab), 4
PEPPARD (total: 102)
Mark Ralph (Con), 46
Jamie Chowdhary (Con), 38
Richard Willis (Con), 18
REDLANDS (total: 240)
Kirsten Bayes (LibDem), 55
Daisy Benson (LibDem), 133
Glenn Goodall (LibDem), 52
SOUTHCOTE (total: 73)
Deborah Edwards (Lab), 23
John Ennis (Lab), 39
Pete Ruhemann (Lab), 11
TILEHURST (total: 37)
Peter Beard (LibDem), 14
Ricky Duveen (LibDem), 17
Chris Harris (LibDem), 6
THAMES (total: 50)
David Stevens (Con), 1
Jeanette Skeats (Con), 11
Isobel Ballsdon (Con), 38
WHITLEY (total: 92)
Mary Singleton-White (Lab), 4
Mike Orton (Lab), 84
Jim Hanley (Lab), 4
=================
ends
=
For full details of 'Who is Reading's Hardest Working Councillor?' click here (see sidebar).
Here are the Acolaid statistics released by Reading Borough Council under the Freedom of Information Act (the figures correspond with the period 1/5/2008 - 1/11/2008):
=====================
ABBEY ward (total 127):
Mohammed Ayub (Lab), 10
Bet Tickner (Lab), 27
Tony Page (Lab), 90
BATTLE (total: 43)
Chris Maskell (Lab), 6
Tony Jones (Ind), 6
Gul Khan (Lab), 31
CAVERSHAM (total: 63)
Tom Stanway (Con), 29
David Luckett (Con), 10
Andrew Cumpsty (Con), 24
CHURCH (total: 21)
Tim Harris (Con), 8
Azam Janjua (Con), 6
Mike Townend (Lab), 7
KATESGROVE (total: 118)
Richard Stainthorp (Lab), 2
Warren Swaine (LibDem), 34
Gareth Epps (LibDem), 82
KENTWOOD (total: 93)
Tom Steele (Con), 44
Emma Warman (Con), 23
Jennifer Rynn (Con), 26
MAPLEDURHAM (total: 5)
Fred Pugh (Con), 5
MINSTER (total: 47)
Terry Byrne (Con), 2
Paul Gittings (Lab), 36
Deborah Watson (Lab), 9
NORCOT (total 64)
Graeme Hoskin (Lab), 5
Peter Jones (Lab), 2
Jo Lovelock (Lab), 57
PARK (total: 11)
Wazir Hussain (Con), 4
Jon Hartley (Lab), 3
Shirley Merriott (Lab), 4
PEPPARD (total: 102)
Mark Ralph (Con), 46
Jamie Chowdhary (Con), 38
Richard Willis (Con), 18
REDLANDS (total: 240)
Kirsten Bayes (LibDem), 55
Daisy Benson (LibDem), 133
Glenn Goodall (LibDem), 52
SOUTHCOTE (total: 73)
Deborah Edwards (Lab), 23
John Ennis (Lab), 39
Pete Ruhemann (Lab), 11
TILEHURST (total: 37)
Peter Beard (LibDem), 14
Ricky Duveen (LibDem), 17
Chris Harris (LibDem), 6
THAMES (total: 50)
David Stevens (Con), 1
Jeanette Skeats (Con), 11
Isobel Ballsdon (Con), 38
WHITLEY (total: 92)
Mary Singleton-White (Lab), 4
Mike Orton (Lab), 84
Jim Hanley (Lab), 4
=================
ends
=
For full details of 'Who is Reading's Hardest Working Councillor?' click here (see sidebar).
Friday, 16 January 2009
Acolaid: The rebuttal
Councillor Fred Pugh (Mapledurham, former leader of the Conservative group on RBC) has written to the Reading Chronicle to complain that the statistics the system produced by Reading's record management system are meaningless:
"I read your news item 'LibDems raise most issues' with increasing irritation.
To use Acolaid statistics to prove they are 'the hardest working councillors in Reading' is utter nonsense and spin of the worst kind.
Of course Mapledurham was the lowest in the table - it is a third of the size of all the other wards,"
which is why it only has one councillor to three for every other ward.
Cllr Pugh continues,
"You could put it another way and say it is the ward with the least amount of problems.
The truth is that my ward is full of intelligent people who sort out their own problems. They go direct to the council and don't come running to their councillor every time.
When they do, I pick up the phone and speak to the responsible officer avoiding council bureaucracy. Such calls do not appear in the statistics but the problem is dealt with more quickly and efficiently.
In my experience all councillors of all parties work hard for the community they represent, none harder than any other."
Cllr Pugh is a well known for his experience, but even so, his last line is a blatant falsehood.
Cllr Willis backs up his former leader's view in what appears to be the 'official' Conservative party line.
Oranjepan asks:
If the statistics are meaningless why is it not Conservative party policy to do away with the expensive record management system which collects them?
=
For full details of 'Who is Reading's Hardest Working Councillor?' click here (see sidebar).
"I read your news item 'LibDems raise most issues' with increasing irritation.
To use Acolaid statistics to prove they are 'the hardest working councillors in Reading' is utter nonsense and spin of the worst kind.
Of course Mapledurham was the lowest in the table - it is a third of the size of all the other wards,"
which is why it only has one councillor to three for every other ward.
Cllr Pugh continues,
"You could put it another way and say it is the ward with the least amount of problems.
The truth is that my ward is full of intelligent people who sort out their own problems. They go direct to the council and don't come running to their councillor every time.
When they do, I pick up the phone and speak to the responsible officer avoiding council bureaucracy. Such calls do not appear in the statistics but the problem is dealt with more quickly and efficiently.
In my experience all councillors of all parties work hard for the community they represent, none harder than any other."
Cllr Pugh is a well known for his experience, but even so, his last line is a blatant falsehood.
Cllr Willis backs up his former leader's view in what appears to be the 'official' Conservative party line.
Oranjepan asks:
If the statistics are meaningless why is it not Conservative party policy to do away with the expensive record management system which collects them?
=
For full details of 'Who is Reading's Hardest Working Councillor?' click here (see sidebar).
Wednesday, 14 January 2009
Explaining those Acolaid figures
Acolaid is the system RBC uses for recording and tracking the requests and queries councillors make on the behalf of citizens. This system is designed to ensure that any request is logged to prevent it from being lost and to ensure that it is responded to, while also recording what action is taken.
So a recent press release from the Green party (and the subsequent blog posting) advertising RBC's response to a Freedom of Information request makes particularly interesting reading. 'Reading's Hardest Working Councillor' responds here.
=
For full details of 'Who is Reading's Hardest Working Councillor?' click here (see sidebar).
So a recent press release from the Green party (and the subsequent blog posting) advertising RBC's response to a Freedom of Information request makes particularly interesting reading. 'Reading's Hardest Working Councillor' responds here.
=
For full details of 'Who is Reading's Hardest Working Councillor?' click here (see sidebar).
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