Corporate Plan

We are always looking at how we can work better to make a difference to local people. This includes transforming the Council to be more modern, efficient and financially sustainable.

Growing the Council’s talent

We employ nearly 3000 people with wide- ranging skills and expertise. Our staff have showed kindness, resilience and talent in the toughest times. We have learned from significant events such as floods and COVID-19, and are building on people’s flexibility to adapt.

We aim to be recognised as one of the best places to work in Yorkshire. A place where staff feel supported, enabled and empowered to do great work that makes a difference to people’s lives.

Through our commitment to being an inclusive employer, we want to improve employment opportunities for people from our diverse communities.

Our staff networks, which represent our diverse communities, have been described by Inclusive Employers as strong, and they will remain at the heart of our work to deliver this Corporate Plan.

There are ongoing challenges with funding, cyber security threats, attraction and retention of talent for modern public services, alternative methods of working and further changes in the way we deliver services.

We will continue to empower our staff and transform the way we work to achieve our priorities in a digital, wellbeing-led and financially sustainable way.

The Council’s finances and transformation

The Council has a proud history of doing more with less, whilst protecting services that people value. Since 2010 we have made savings of £127 million, whilst still meeting the needs of people who need services most. Through more efficient work practices and processes, we have reduced our workforce by 16.4% and our buildings by 20% over the past decade.

Our financial planning aims to maximise income and funding, invest in the things that have the biggest impact, in line with our priorities, and minimise the effect of savings on communities.

We will continue to:

• Make our budget balance and keep decision-making local.
• Meet our legal and statutory obligations.
• Work with partners to reduce inequalities.
• Be ambitious for Calderdale.
• Enhance quality of life.
• Keep residents safe.
• Protect services where possible.
• Remain focused on tackling climate change.
• Bring investment into the borough.
• Be honest about what we can and cannot do.
• Focus on good financial management to stay on track within the cash limits set within our budget.
• Be financially sustainable and adapt to remain effective for the future through transformation.

Our transformation priorities focus on service redesign in children’s and adults’ services; bringing the Local Plan to life in transforming the place; developing new ways of delivering waste management and highways; and implementing a refreshed Digital Strategy that changes the way we interact with people.

Digital transformation

Through digital transformation, we will:

• Ensure all local people can equally access digital technology and services.
• Continue our focus on cyber security and our ability to recover and continue business as usual.
• Automate routine tasks so staff can focus more on activities that are valuable to local communities.
• Have better connections between our systems and those of partner organisations, so we can share data and make better decisions.
• Ensure staff have the right technology and digital skills to provide services effectively.

Equality, diversity and inclusion

We are committed to building a fairer Calderdale where everyone can thrive, contribute and be their authentic selves. We will continue to support our diverse and vibrant communities that make Calderdale so special, by always involving and listening to them so we know what they need, and they can access our inclusive services.

As one of the largest employers in Calderdale and one of the main providers of local services, we are committed to the highest standards in service delivery, decision-making and employment practice. Equality of opportunity for all our diverse communities and workforce is an important part of this commitment, and we will uphold our duties under the Equality Act 2010.

We have consulted on and published six equality objectives, which we are reviewing in 2024/2025.

We have made good progress in ensuring our workforce reflects our diverse communities, by collecting and using diversity data, but know there is still work to do. 

We have achieved a bronze award in the Inclusive Employer Standard, and we are proud to have eliminated our gender pay gap to -0.4% and our ethnicity pay gap to -0.7% as part of our work to be an employer of choice.

We care about what our employees think and feel, and give them a voice through focus groups, staff surveys, consultations and staff-led equality networks. We have networks representing race equality, the LGBTQIA+ community, women, people with disabilities, working carers and early careers.

How we will make a difference

Growing the Council’s talent

• Implement our Workforce Strategy to ensure staff are flexible and motivated to respond to change over the next five to 10 years and achieve our Vision and priorities.
• Continue our commitment to workplace wellbeing by building on the success of our integrated health, safety and wellbeing management system.

Council finances and transformation

• Deliver the approved budget savings in our Medium-Term Financial Plan.
• Improve our cyber security performance.
• Deliver our Customer Experience Framework, improving our response times to people and reducing complaints.
• Ensure we provide value for money, by reviewing service business plans and carrying out annual value for money assessments.

Equality, diversity and inclusion

• Publish our new corporate equality objectives in 2025, with an action plan to deliver improvements against our targets.

How we will measure success