Housing & Social Work

Performance Indicators 2003/04
Comparing the performance of Scottish Councils

Prepared for the Accounts Commission
January 2005

The Accounts Commission
The Accounts Commission is a statutory, independent body which, through the audit process, assists local authorities in Scotland to achieve the highest standards of financial stewardship and the economic, efficient and effective use of their resources. The Commission has four main responsibilities:

• securing the external audit including the audit of Best Value and community planning

• following up issues of concern identified through the audit, to ensure satisfactory resolutions

• carrying out national Best Value studies to improve economy, efficiency and effectiveness in local government

• issuing an annual direction to local authorities which sets out the range of performance information they are required to publish.

The Commission secures the audit of 32 councils and 34 joint boards (including police and fire services). Local authorities spend over £9 billion of public funds a year.

Audit Scotland is a statutory body set up in April 2000 under the Public Finance and Accountability (Scotland) Act 2000. It provides services to the Auditor General for Scotland and the Accounts Commission. Together they ensure that the Scottish Executive and public sector bodies in Scotland are held to account for the proper, efficient and effective use of public funds.

Main findings
 
Housing

The housing indicators for 2003/04 reflect the transfer of housing stock to housing associations by Dumfries & Galloway, Glasgow City and Scottish Borders. These councils are excluded from the analysis of housing indicators for this year and this affects year-on-year comparisons at a national level.

Indicator 1
Of the council house rent due from current tenants for the year, 7.9% (£28 million) was in arrears for the 29 councils providing council housing, a small increase from 2002/03. Only five councils achieved the target levels of arrears; and in seven councils the level of arrears is over 10%. 

Indicator 2
The amount of rent lost in 2003/04 as a result of empty houses was just under £22 million (2.7%) for the 27 councils providing reliable data (excluding Aberdeenshire and Perth & Kinross). Across Scotland about 31,000 houses were re-let by 25 of the 29 councils providing council housing. Of these, 59% took longer than four weeks to re-let. Aberdeenshire and Dundee City were unable to provide reliable data for this indicator and both City of Edinburgh and Perth & Kinross failed to report the information.

Indicator 3
Only 57% of council house sales were completed within the national target time of 26 weeks, a fall of 6.5% since 2002/03 and an 11% fall since 2001/02. The proportion of sales completed within the target time ranged from just 3.5% in East Dunbartonshire to 94.9% in Angus. 

Social Work

Indicator 4
In 2003/04 just over 58,000 people aged 65 or over received home care services. Of these, 57.2% (approximately 33,000 people) received personal care services, the percentage varied from 32.6% in West Dunbartonshire to 88.5% in South Ayrshire. Just over 25% received services during the evening or overnight and nearly half received services at the weekend.

Indicator 5
Overall, 41% of staff in council homes for older people were appropriately qualified, an increase from 39% last year and a rise of over 14% since 1999/2000. There was a wide variation in the proportion of qualified staff among councils, ranging from 17% in Shetland Islands to 75% in Clackmannanshire.

Indicator 6
87% of social enquiry reports requested were allocated to social work staff within the target time of two days, a slight increase on last year’s figure. On average, 95.5% of reports were submitted to courts by the due date, the same as reported last year. Only Argyll & Bute (86%), East Lothian (86%) and South Ayrshire (82%) submitted fewer than 90% by the due date.

Indicator 7
3,835 community service orders were completed during 2003/04, an increase of over 400 (12%) compared to 2002/03. The average rate at which these orders were served was 3.6 hours per week, up from 3.4 hours per week in the previous year.

Introduction

Each year councils publish a range of information to show people how well they are providing their services and how they compare with other councils. This pamphlet contains information on seven indicators relating to councils’ management of housing and social work. They are:

•	rent arrears

•	managing tenancy changes

•	council house sales

•	home care

•	the use of qualified staff in care homes

•	social enquiry reports 

•	community service.

Using the information
Several factors affect the way a council performs its activities. You need to be aware of these in order to understand why results may vary. Some of these factors are outwith the control of a council – for example, population size and density, geographical area, and the mix between urban and rural settlements. Others may be specific to the service or the groups of people it serves. These local factors may mean that a council with a performance which, at first sight, appears to be worse than that of another has, in fact, done better given the circumstances it faces.

The statutory performance indicators cover key aspects of the performance of council services. Further information that may be of assistance in assessing the performance of these services can be found on each council’s web site. The following websites also contain useful information:

Communities Scotland
www.communitiesscotland.gov.uk

Social Work Services Inspectorate
www.scotland.gov.uk

Care Commission
www.carecommission.com/

In this pamphlet we have shown information for councils for 2003/04 and where appropriate made comparison with previous years. 

Key
Councils have a statutory obligation to report the information for each indicator. In cases where a council has failed to do so it is shown in the narrative and tables for the relevant indicator as ‘failed to report’.

Auditors appointed by the Accounts Commission have reviewed authorities’ arrangements for producing performance information. An asterisk (*) against the data for a council indicates that the auditor expressed doubts about the reliability of its arrangements for producing information. In such cases we have shown the information separately and have not included it in the calculation of overall Scottish averages, although such information was included prior to 2001/02.

Other pamphlets published by the Commission cover:

Corporate management
Cultural and community services
Education and children’s services
Environmental and regulatory services
Police and fire services.

For 2003/04 the Commission will be reporting 77 indicators of the performance of council, fire and police services. The publication process will involve:

•	six published pamphlets featuring 48 indicators
•	a compendium of information on all 77 indicators on the Commission’s website
•	individual council profiles on the website.

The indicators are selected by the Commission according to criteria identified in consultation with CoSLA, SOLACE, the Scottish Consumer Council and the Scottish Executive. They are kept under review and the Commission consults about any changes it considers making. The Commission will review its approach to statutory performance indicators in the light of the new requirement on councils to report their performance publicly, and the new Best Value audits of each council and police and fire authority.

Housing

The housing indicators for 2003/04 reflect the transfer of housing stock to housing associations by Dumfries & Galloway, Glasgow City and Scottish Borders. These councils are excluded from the analysis of housing indicators for this year and this affects year-on-year comparisons at a national level.

Indicator 1: Rent arrears

The level of current tenants’ rent arrears as a percentage of the net amount of rent due in the year and the proportion of tenants seriously in arrears (ie, those tenants owing £250 or more and over 13 weeks in arrears) at the end of the year.

This indicator shows each council’s performance in collecting rent that is due but unpaid by current tenants. It excludes rent that is due to be paid through housing benefit. The indicator does not show councils’ performance in recovering rent outstanding from former tenants.

Points to bear in mind
In June 2000, the Accounts Commission published Managing rent arrears – getting the balance right, which provided a snapshot of the extent to which councils and a sample of registered social landlords (RSLs) were implementing good practice in managing rent arrears. The report recommended actions that should be taken by councils and RSLs to improve their management of rent arrears.
A council’s local circumstances can affect its ability to collect all of the rent due. For example, councils in urban areas tend to have higher levels of deprivation and higher levels of arrears compared to those in rural areas that appear to benefit from a better payment culture among tenants and staff maintaining a closer relationship with tenants.

The report identifies achievable rent arrears targets for councils:

•	3% of net rent, for those in semi-urban and rural areas
 
•	7% of net rent, for those in city and urban areas.

Commentary
Overall rent arrears
Because of housing stock transfers in Dumfries & Galloway, Glasgow City and Scottish Borders, the total amount of rent due to councils in 2003/04 was £86 million less than in the previous year at £354 million. 

Of the rent due from current tenants for the year, 7.9% (£28 million) was in arrears for 29 councils (ie, excluding Dumfries & Galloway, Glasgow City and Scottish Borders). This represents a small increase (0.5%) on the previous year.

Only five councils met the target levels of arrears. Within the semi-urban and rural areas, Argyll & Bute and Orkney Islands met the 3% target while North Lanarkshire, South Lanarkshire and Fife met the 7% target in the city and urban group.

Overall, the level of arrears increased in 17 of the 29 councils. Renfrewshire (17.7%) reported the highest level of arrears of any council, an increase of 7.5% on the previous year. Six other councils (Dundee, East Renfrewshire, City of Edinburgh, Inverclyde, North Ayrshire and West Dunbartonshire) also had arrears of over 10%. 
Arrears levels reported by councils vary:

•	in semi-urban and rural councils from 2.8% in Orkney Islands to 7.7% in Clackmannanshire

•	in city and urban councils from 4.3% in South Lanarkshire to 17.7% in Renfrewshire.

Serious rent arrears
For the 29 councils providing a service, the percentage of council house tenants in serious arrears was 4.9% in 2003/04, very close to the figure in the previous two years.

Within the two groups of councils the percentages of tenants with serious arrears varied:

•	from 0.7% in Argyll & Bute to 6.8% in Eilean Siar among semi-urban and rural councils

•	from 2.0% in South Lanarkshire to 12.8% in Inverclyde among city and urban councils.

Indicator 2: Managing tenancy changes

The total annual rent loss due to unoccupied houses as a percentage of the total rent due for the year, and the time taken to re-let council houses.

This indicator shows both the level of rent lost by councils as a result of council houses remaining empty when they could be available for letting and the efficiency of councils in managing tenancy changes. 

Points to bear in mind
Factors that will have an impact on a council’s performance include:

• 	the general level of demand for council housing in an area

•	the type of property (eg, tenement flat, end terraced house), its location and its condition

•	the time taken to identify and carry out repairs necessary before a new tenant can move in 

• 	the time taken to identify new tenants, and for them to sign a tenancy agreement. 

Some councils have a higher proportion of properties that are considered difficult to let. The indicator does not differentiate between these properties and those for which there is relatively high demand.

The report Managing housing voids published in July 2004 by Audit Scotland and Communities Scotland found that:

•	on average, RSLs relet their properties twice as quickly as councils

•	the level of low demand stock is higher in RSLs than in councils

•	location is the main factor in reducing demand for properties.

A new housing void performance indicator is being introduced which will provide more detailed information about performance in dealing with low demand properties.

Commentary
Rent loss due to unoccupied houses
Twenty-seven councils provided reliable data for this indicator. Aberdeenshire and Perth & Kinross were unable to provide reliable data.

The amount of rent lost by these 27 councils as a result of empty houses was almost £22 million in 2003.04, similar to previous years at 2.7%. The proportion varied from 0.4% in West Lothian to 7.2% in West Dunbartonshire.

Five councils (Aberdeen City, Clackmannanshire, Inverclyde, Shetland Islands and West Dunbartonshire) reported rent losses of 4% or more due to empty houses. Three councils (Midlothian, Moray, and West Lothian) reported a loss of rental income of less than 1%.

Time taken to re-let council houses
Twenty-five councils provided reliable data for this indicator. Aberdeenshire and Dundee City were unable to provide reliable data and City of Edinburgh and Perth & Kinross failed to report. 
About 31,000 houses were re-let by these 25 councils in 2003/04. Of these, 59% (18,000 houses) took longer than four weeks to re-let.

The proportion of houses re-let within two weeks ranged from 1.3% in Midlothian to 72.2% in West Lothian.

The proportion of houses taking more than four weeks to re-let ranged from 5.7% in West Lothian to 96% in Aberdeen City.

West Lothian was once more the only council to re-let more than 90% of its houses within four weeks. Aberdeen City and West Dunbartonshire reported that more than 90% of their houses took over four weeks to re-let.

Indicator 3: Council house sales

The percentage of council house sales completed within 26 weeks.

This indicator shows the overall performance of each council in processing council house sales. It includes all council house sales completed under the ‘Right to Buy’ legislation.

Points to bear in mind
The Housing (Scotland) Act 1987 gave most secure tenants of public authority houses the right to buy their homes, under specified conditions.

The time taken to complete sales will be affected by:

•	the time taken for an applicant to respond once the council makes an offer to sell

•	the time that it takes to complete the legal work in processing a sale.

Commentary
The 29 Scottish councils providing council housing (excluding Dumfries & Galloway, Glasgow City and Scottish Borders) completed almost 13,500 council house sales in 2003/04. Only 57% of these sales were completed within the national target time of 26 weeks, a fall of 6.5% since 2002/03 and an 11% fall since 2001/02.

Compared with 2002/03, 14 councils sold a higher percentage of houses within 26 weeks; 14 other councils sold a lower percentage within that period. The proportion of sales completed within the target time ranged from 3.5% in East Dunbartonshire to 94.9% in Angus. 

Four councils (Angus, East Renfrewshire, Moray and Renfrewshire) completed more than 90% of sales within 26 weeks. However, three councils (East Dunbartonshire, Fife and City of Edinburgh) processed fewer than 25% of houses sales within the national target time.

Social Work

Indicator 4: Homecare

The extent to which flexible homecare services are provided to meet the need for personal care, weekend and evening/overnight services among those age 65 or more.

Homecare is one of the most important services in helping people with community care needs to remain at home. This indicator measures the level of service for homecare users, in terms of both the total number of service users and the total number of homecare hours provided or purchased per 1,000 people age 65+. 

Increasing the flexibility of the service is a key policy objective for both central and local government, to ensure that people receive the type of assistance they need, when they need it. The indicator measures flexibility in terms of the extent to which:

•	care is provided outwith normal working hours to meet clients’ needs

•	personal care is provided in addition to help with domestic tasks.

Points to bear in mind
The indicators will be affected by:

•	the pattern of need and demand within its area, influenced by the age structure of the elderly population and levels of deprivation

•	the particular needs of service users

•	the balance between homecare and residential care services in the area.

This indicator captures only homecare services provided on an hourly basis. Other services that support people at home, such as community alarms and meals-on-wheels, are not included.
 
This is the first year for which information relating to services for older people age 65+ has been collected.

Commentary
In 2003/04 just over 58,000 people aged 65 or over received homecare services. Of these, 57.2% (approximately 33,000 people) received personal care services. Just over 25% received services during the evening or overnight and nearly a half received services at the weekend.

The proportion of homecare clients age 65 or over receiving personal care services varied among councils from 32.6% in West Dunbartonshire, to 88.5% in South Ayrshire. Eight councils provided at least 70% of their homecare clients with personal care services.

Services during the evening or overnight varied from just 4.9% of clients in Aberdeen City to 62.4% of clients in West Lothian. Three councils (Dumfries & Galloway, Falkirk and West Lothian, provided evening and overnight services to more than 50% of their homecare clients age 65 or over. Evening and overnight care services were provided to fewer than 10% of clients in Aberdeen City, Midlothian and Perth & Kinross.

The proportion of homecare clients aged 65 or over receiving care services during the weekend varied among councils from 13.1% in the Orkney Islands, to 77.6% in Glasgow City.

Indicator 5: The use of qualified staff in care homes

The percentage of care staff with appropriate qualifications 
in care homes, for:

•	older people
•	other adults.

The extent to which care staff are qualified is one of the factors that contribute to the quality of residential care. This indicator relates only to staff in care homes managed by councils. Voluntary and private sector homes are not included.

‘Other adults’ include people who have physical disabilities or sensory impairments, people who are recovering from mental illness and people who have learning disabilities.

There is a wide range of qualifications that are relevant for each of the user groups. 

Points to bear in mind
The reported performance of councils will be affected by:

• 	their policies on recruiting staff that are suitably qualified, and on training existing staff

• 	the availability of suitably qualified staff.

Commentary
Older people
Overall, 41% of staff in council homes for older people were appropriately qualified, an increase from 39% last year and a rise of over 14% since 1999/2000. There was wide variation among councils in the proportion of staff with appropriate qualifications, ranging from 17% in Shetland Islands to 75% in Clackmannanshire.
 
Other adults
In council homes for other adults, 38% of staff held an appropriate qualification, a fall of 2% compared to last year. The overall number of staff employed (1,363) increased by 20% compared to 2002/03. There was wide variation in the proportion of qualified staff among councils, from 19% in Aberdeen City to 75% in Falkirk and Moray.

Indicator 6: Social enquiry reports

The number and proportion of social enquiry reports allocated to staff within two days and submitted to the courts by the due date.

Social enquiry reports may be requested by the courts to assist with their consideration of appropriate sentencing once an offender has been convicted. They provide information about offenders and their circumstances of general relevance to the courts. They also advise the courts on the suitability of offenders for community based sentences.

It is important that offenders are seen quickly and social enquiry reports are processed efficiently, in order to increase the likelihood that the offender will keep the appointment and to ensure that delays to the justice system are minimised.

In its report Dealing with offending by young people (December 2002) Audit Scotland found that social work reports for Sheriffs in the criminal justice system were prompt and of good quality. 

The National Objectives and Standards for Social Work in the Criminal Justice System set a target of two working days for the allocation of cases requiring social enquiry reports to social work staff. This indicator shows the proportion of reports for which that standard was met and also the proportion of reports submitted to the court by the due date.

Points to bear in mind
The number of reports submitted to the court may differ from the number requested because offenders may not make themselves available for report preparation. Younger offenders and those abusing drugs tend to have a lower rate of attendance for appointments with social work staff. The extent to which they fail to attend may affect the ability of staff to submit reports to court by the due date.

Commentary
The number of social enquiry reports requested during 2003/04 was just over 41,500, around 2,000 (5%) more than in the previous year. 

87% of the social enquiry reports requested were allocated to social work staff within the target time of two days, a slight increase on last year’s figure. Six councils (East Renfrewshire, Eilean Siar, Moray, North Ayrshire, Orkney Islands and Shetland Islands) allocated all requests within two days. West Lothian allocated just 55% within this time.

On average, 95.5% of reports were submitted to courts by the due date, the same as reported last year. Only Argyll & Bute (86%), East Lothian (86%) and South Ayrshire (82%), submitted fewer than 90% by the due date. 

Indicator 7: Community service

The average number of hours per day for community service orders completed in the year.

This indicator shows the relationship between the average length of community service orders and the time taken to complete them.

Points to bear in mind
Research has shown that community service orders tend to be more effective the shorter the period required to complete the hours ordered by the court. Therefore, it is important that councils manage the orders so as to maximize, as far as is possible, the amount of time served each week.

It is also important that councils match the programme of community service to the needs and abilities of the client. Unless the service programme is of a suitable quality it is unlikely that the order will be successful in reducing re-offending. There will, therefore, be occasions when it is inappropriate to work through the order too quickly.

Commentary
3,835 community service orders were completed during 2003/04, an increase of 13% compared to 2002/03. The average length of completed community service orders was 154 hours, slightly longer than the 151 hours in 2002/03. They varied from an average of 117 hours in Angus and Orkney Islands to 240 hours in West Dunbartonshire.

The average rate at which these orders were served was 3.6 hours per week, up from 3.4 hours per week in the previous year. The rate varied among councils, from 2.1 hours per week in Perth & Kinross to 8.2 hours per week in West Dunbartonshire. 

Orders were completed at an average rate greater than five hours per week in East Renfrewshire, Eilean Siar, Shetland Islands, South Ayrshire and West Dunbartonshire.

In two councils (Dundee City and Perth & Kinross) orders were completed at an average rate of less than 2.5 hours per week.

Contacts

If you have any specific queries about the performance information, you may wish to contact your council. A contact person for each council is given below. If you have general queries about this pamphlet, please contact Jim Lakie, e-mail jlakie@audit-scotland.gov.uk or Alec Taylor, e-mail ataylor@audit-scotland.gov.uk at Audit Scotland, T. 0131 477 1234. 

Aberdeen City, Beth Smith, Strategic Support Officer, Aberdeen City Council, Office of Chief Executive, Town House, Broad Street, Aberdeen AB10 1FY, 
T. 01224 523418, email bsmith@aberdeencity.gov.uk

Aberdeenshire, David Hughes, Chief Internal Auditor, Aberdeenshire Council, Woodhill House, Westburn Road, Aberdeen AB16 5GB, 
T. 01224 664184, email david.hughes@aberdeenshire.gov.uk 

Angus, Jan Adam, Performance Co-ordinator, Angus Council, Chief Executive’s Department, The Cross, Forfar DD8 1BX, T. 01307 473788, email adamj@angus.gov.uk 

Argyll & Bute, David Clements, Performance Manager, Chief Executive’s Unit, Argyll & Bute Council, Kilmory, Lochgilphead, Argyll, PA31 8RT, 
T. 01546 604205, email david.clements@argyll-bute.gov.uk 

Clackmannanshire, Alexa Brown, Information Officer, Performance and Strategy, Clackmannanshire Council, Greenfield, Alloa FK10 2AD, 
T. 01259 452105, email abrown@clacks.gov.uk 

Dumfries & Galloway, Charlie Proctor, Consultant, Policy and Performance Unit, Corporate Services, Dumfries & Galloway Council, Council Offices, English Street, Dumfries DG1 2DD,
T. 01387 260098, email charliep@dumgal.gov.uk 

Dundee City, Rod McKay, Principal Accountant, Finance Department, Dundee City Council, Tayside House, Floor 4, 28 Crichton Street, Dundee DD1 3RF, 
T. 01382 433522, email rod.mckay@dundeecity.gov.uk
 
City of Edinburgh, Barry Leathem, Trainee Consultant, Performance & Development Unit, City of Edinburgh Council, Department of Corporate Services, 12 St Giles Street, Edinburgh EH1 1PT,
T. 0131 469 3858, email barry.leathem@edinburgh.gov.uk

East Ayrshire, Carol Foote, Principal Officer, Corporate Development, East Ayrshire Council, Chief Executive’s Department, London Road, Kilmarnock KA3 7BU, 
T. 01563 576159, email carol.foote@east-ayrshire.gov.uk 

East Dunbartonshire, Tom Duncan, Acting Manager Policy and Public Affairs, East Dunbartonshire Council, Tom Johnston House, Civic Way, Kirkintilloch, Glasgow G66 4TJ, 
T. 0141 578 8000, email tom.duncan@eastdunbarton.gov.uk 

East Lothian, Adam Stewart, Policy Officer, Chief Executive’s Department, East Lothian Council, John Muir House, Haddington, East Lothian EH41 3HA, 
T. 01620 827884, email astewart@eastlothian.gov.uk

East Renfrewshire, Tracy Butler, Corporate Policy Assistant, Chief Executive’s Department, East Renfrewshire Council, Council Headquarters, Eastwood Park, Rouken Glen Road, Giffnock, East Renfrewshire G46 6UG, 
T. 0141 577 3167, email tracy.butler@eastrenfrewshire.gov.uk

Eilean Siar (Western Isles), Andrew Mackenzie, Head of Strategy (Internal), Comhairle nan Eilean Siar, Council Offices, Sandwick Road, Stornoway, Isle of Lewis HS1 2BW, 
T. 01851 709201, email amackenzie@cne-siar.gov.uk

Falkirk, Barbara Knowles, Policy and Research Officer, Corporate and Commercial Services, 
Falkirk Council, Municipal Buildings, Falkirk FK1 5RS, 
T. 01324 506016, email barbara.knowles@falkirk.gov.uk 

Fife, Saul Hain, Policy Officer (Planning & Review), Policy & Organisational Development, 
Fife Council, Fife House, North Street, Glenrothes, Fife KY7 5LT, 
T. 01592 413986, email saul.hain@fife.gov.uk

Glasgow City, Tracey Cunningham, Senior Policy Development Officer, Corporate Policy, 
Chief Executive’s Office, Glasgow City Council, City Chambers, George Square, Glasgow G2 1DU, 
T. 0141 2873625, email tracey.cunningham@ced.glasgow.gov.uk

Highland, Ruth Grant, Performance Analyst, Highland Council, Council Offices, Glenurquhart Road, 
Inverness IV3 5NX, 
T. 01463 702416, email ruth.grant@highland.gov.uk 
 
Inverclyde, Brian Purdie, Head of Customer Services, Inverclyde Council, Chief Executive’s Office, 
Municipal Buildings, Greenock PA15 1LY, 
T. 01475 712748, email brian.purdie@inverclyde.gov.uk 

Midlothian, Michael Callaghan, Executive Services, Corporate Policy, Midlothian Council, Midlothian House, Buccleuch Street, Dalkeith EH22 1LY,
T. 0131 271 3444, email michael.callaghan@midlothian.gov.uk
    
Moray, Sandi Pick, Research and Information Officer, Corporate Services, Chief Executive’s Office, 
The Moray Council, Council Office, High Street, Elgin IV30 1BX,
T. 01343 563040, email sandra.pick@moray.gov.uk
 
North Ayrshire, Jim Montgomery, Principal Performance Review Officer, North Ayrshire Council, Chief Executive’s Office, Cunninghame House, Irvine KA12 8EE,
T. 01294 324125, email jmontgomery@north-ayrshire.gov.uk
 
North Lanarkshire, Graham A Reid, Information & Research Manager, North Lanarkshire Council, Chief Executive’s Office, Civic Centre, Motherwell ML1 1TW, 
T. 01698 302266, email reidga@northlan.gov.uk

Orkney Islands, Jim Love, Performance Review Officer, Orkney Islands Council, Council Offices, School Place, Kirkwall, Orkney KW15 1NY, 
T. 01856 888761, email jim.love@orkney.gov.uk

Perth & Kinross, Michelle Cochlan, Strategic Planning Officer, Performance Planning & Management, Perth & Kinross Council, 
2 High Street, Perth PH1 5PH, 
T. 01738 475071, email mcochlan@pkc.gov.uk

Renfrewshire, Oliver Reid, Principal, Corporate Policy, Renfrewshire Council, Council Headquarters, North Building, Cotton Street, Paisley PA1 1WB,
T. 0141 840 3298, email oliver.reid@renfrewshire.gov.uk

Scottish Borders, Brian Emmerson, Team Leader – Better Government & Democracy, Scottish Borders Council, Council Headquarters, Chief Executive’s Department, Newtown St Boswells, Melrose TD6 0SA,
T. 01835 824000 ext.5301, email bemmerson@scotborders.gov.uk

Shetland Islands, Anna Henry, Policy and Development Assistant, Chief Executive’s Office, 
Shetland Islands Council, Town Hall, Lerwick, Shetland ZEI 0HB,
T. 01595 744510, email anna.henry@sic.shetland.gov.uk

South Ayrshire, Sheila Adams, Auditor, South Ayrshire Council, Town Buildings, 5-9 High Street, Ayr KA7 1LY, 
T. 01292 617 669, email Sheila.adams@south-ayrshire.gov.uk

South Lanarkshire, Lynne Marshall, Research Supervisor, Finance Services, South Lanarkshire Council, 
4th Floor, Council Offices, Almada Street, Hamilton ML3 0AB,
T. 01698 455244, email lynne.marshall@southlanarkshire.gov.uk 

or Angela Watson, Research Assistant, Financial Performance, South Lanarkshire Council, 4th Floor, Council Offices, Almada Street, Hamilton ML3 0AB,
T. 01698 455309, email angela.watson@southlanarkshire.go.uk

Stirling, Lesley J Graham, Corporate Performance Officer, Stirling Council, Corporate Services, Quality, Performance and Research Team, Viewforth, Stirling FK8 2ET, 
T. 01786 442982, email grahaml@stirling.gov.uk

West Dunbartonshire, May Simpson, Policy Assistant, West Dunbartonshire Council, Chief Executive’s Policy Unit, Council Offices, Garshake Road, Dumbarton G82 3PU, 
T. 01389 737242, email may.simpson@west-dunbarton.gov.uk

West Lothian, Jim McIvor, Best Value Manager, West Lothian Council, West Lothian House, Almondvale Boulevard, Livingston, West Lothian EH54 6QG, 
T. 01506 777122, email jim.mcivor@westlothian.gov.uk 

Audit Scotland
110 George Street
Edinburgh EH2 4LH

Telephone
0131 477 1234
Fax
0131 477 4567

www.audit-scotland.gov.uk

ISBN 1 904651 59 3