Our Vision for the Future
The Council has a strong vision for the future of our City which we share with Cambridge citizens and partner organisations.
Our vision… is of a compact, dynamic, sustainable City with a thriving historic core surrounded by attractive neighbourhoods and green spaces, and where the community as a whole and every person in it matters.
There will be strong leadership on environmental issues, and diverse local communities will enjoy a high quality of life in safe, accessible neighbourhoods supported by affordable housing, integrated transport, and good access to leisure and community facilities.
Cambridge will continue to foster a strong local economy together with its development as a centre of excellence and a world leader in the fields of higher education and research.
We are clear that climate change is an important issue for the City. We believe we should set an example by minimising our own carbon footprint as well as supporting local people and organisations to reduce their own carbon dioxide emissions. We are looking at ways in which we can adapt the way we do things to take account of likely impacts of climate change. We will use the arrangements we have put in place to work with neighbouring local authorities, the County Council and other public bodies to ensure that the low carbon agenda is at the forefront of all we do in partnership with them.
We know that providing services of a high standard has a big impact on the quality of life experienced by our citizens. We will work to ensure that we listen and respond to evidence of those experiences. We will continue to focus on improving performance in areas that we know are important to our citizens and work hard to find further efficiencies that enable us to make the best use of our resources.
The City Council is facing a period of unprecedented change. We, together with our partners, have a substantial work programme to deliver agreed sustainable growth in the sub-region in and around Cambridge. We aim to ensure that the growth of the City benefits all our citizens in both new and existing communities.
In 2006 the Council agreed a new set of Medium Term Objectives (MTOs) to help us achieve our vision and to meet the challenges that we face as a city.
Our Medium Term Objectives are to:-
Promote Cambridge as a sustainable city, in particular by reducing carbon dioxide emissions and the amount of waste going into landfill in the City and sub-region
We will do this by:
· Working with national, regional and local partners to promote sustainability and agree targets for carbon dioxide reduction
· Taking practical steps towards promoting sustainability and reducing carbon dioxide emissions and waste in the way the council operates
· Improving the energy rating of housing, offices and other buildings in the city
· Working with local communities, organisations and businesses to help people understand how they personally can make changes to live more sustainably and contribute to carbon reduction
· Encouraging sustainable waste management through waste minimisation, re-use and recycling
Ensure that residents and other service users have an entirely positive experience of dealing with the Council
We will do this by:
· Consulting residents and service users so that we know what is important to them and providing opportunities for involvement in the council’s decision making
· Managing the performance of our services to ensure they are efficient, cost effective and focused on what matters to service users
· Managing housing and housing estates owned by the Council in a way which involves tenants and responds to their needs
· Promoting equality of opportunity for all and celebrating diversity
· Delivering services in a fair and equal way to all sections of the community
· Encouraging young people to participate in the Council’s decisions
· Developing the skills of officers and members in working with young people
Maintain a healthy, safe and enjoyable city for all, with thriving and viable neighbourhoods
We will do this by:
· Providing attractive clean streets, neighbourhoods and open spaces
· Reducing levels of crime and fear of crime through working with partners to deliver the Cambridge Community Safety Strategy
· Supporting a flourishing and diverse voluntary and not-for-profit sector
· Ensuring Cambridge residents can access a range of sports, arts, recreational and community facilities and activities
· Working with partners to achieve better health outcomes for those who live and work in Cambridge
· Working with voluntary and statutory agencies to reduce homelessness in the City and tackle its consequences
· Working with the County Council in partnership with young people and others to improve services to children and young people
Lead the growth of Cambridge to achieve attractive, sustainable new neighbourhoods, including affordable housing, close to a good range of facilities, and supported by transport networks so that people can opt not to use the car
We will do this by:
· Using our influence in partnership working across the sub-region
· Ensuring that the views of residents and other stakeholders are taken into account in debating the growth agenda, and that the Council represents these views in the key decisions taken by partners
· Working to maximise the supply of affordable housing in the City and to ensure Cambridge residents have safe, decent and energy efficient homes
· Applying our planning policies so that new housing of all tenures is close to a good range of facilities with high standards of design
· Promoting more sustainable modes of transport including effective public transport, pedestrian and cycle networks
· Ensuring that the growth of the city is not accompanied by matching growth in private car traffic
· Promoting best practice in urban design and the provision of green space in the City
In tackling all these issues we will :-
· Put service to the public first
· Treat everyone fairly and strive to treat all as rational people able to make up their own minds
· Strive to provide services on the basis of need rather than ability to pay
· Encourage and welcome innovation, the acquisition of new skills and learning in the city as whole, and invest in the training and development of our staff
· Provide services in partnership or through other providers where this is the best option
· Work to maximise our resources by delivering services as efficiently as possible; working in partnership with others, in particular continuing to negotiate with Cambridgeshire Horizons for a fair share of resources to ensure delivery of infrastructure to support the City; and lobbying the Government for increased funding to implement Cambridge’s challenging growth agenda, together with powers to set the high standards necessary for sustainable development
· Continue to make the case for a new system of local government funding which is predictable and fair, where levels of local tax are more directly related to local decisions on services, and with tax bills based on each resident’s ability to pay