Strategic Framework

The Council continues to use the themes of People, Place, Prosperity and Public Service as themes to frame its strategic priorities. These themes are used to illustrate the impact of four groups of strategic priorities:

• Homes
• The Economy
• Safety and Cleanliness
• Healthiness 

Theme - Homes

Strategic Objective

• Develop more affordable housing by making maximum use of Section 106 contributions, by acquiring or developing new homes, by reducing the number of empty homes, by bringing forward brownfield land and by recognising that different models and definitions of ‘affordable housing’ could increase the scope and choice in housing
• Develop a mixed provision of affordable homes which includes starter homes serving the needs of younger people, families with young children and homes for older people
• Increase the availability of supported housing and extra care, ensuring that these choices are extended as widely as possible
• Establish a development company to act as a vehicle for new housing developments
• Develop our lettings policies to maximise support for local people
• Review the Council’s own stock and land to encourage appropriate growth and development
• Ensure that planning policies include scope for small-scale development in villages and smaller settlements where the community are in support Provide support and signposting to relevant support services and agencies
• Prevent homelessness wherever we can and support which help people manage and prevent indebtedness
• Review the way in which all council policies and services support the most vulnerable in our community 

Theme –The Economy

Strategic Objectives

• Facilitate events which improve access to jobs and apprenticeships for local people
• Directly engage with schools and colleges on training choices, careers advice and business brokerage
• Develop a scheme of business ambassadors
• Review of the Community Infrastructure Levy to ensure that jobs creation and economic investment are not deterred, including a review of the ‘123’ list and Infrastructure Development Plan
• Support inward investment activities, most especially ‘warm leads’ and consider direct investment to create appropriate step-up and incubator units
• Improve the promotion of tourism including the development of online and printed media - merge
• Stimulate the development (and coordination) of the Sherwood Forest Regional Park and major projects with the Sherwood Forest Trust and partners
• Support lobbying and feasibility studies to bring the Robin Hood Line into use
• Support and lobby for plans to improve the A46, the associated junctions and roundabouts and , the Newark Southern Link Road
• Support the creation of ‘travel to work’ solutions to connect people to employment opportunities
• Develop the role and impact of the National Civil War Centre
• Work to bring coherence to heritage and landscape strategies and forums for the Sherwood Forest area
• Review our strategies to promote tourism and the visitor economy so that they are integrated with heritage and landscape strategies and develop measures to retain and disperse visitors within the district
• Support the roll-out of broadband into all communities
• Work to secure a solution to bring forward the redevelopment of the Robin Hood Hotel in Newark and Ollerton Hall 

Theme -Safety and Cleanliness

Strategic Objectives

• Review the use, location and investment in CCTV
• Counter and reduce anti-social behaviour
• Carry out preventative work through Family Intervention Programmes to reduce the impact of costly and entrenched social problems
• Tackle fly-tipping and dog-fouling and encourage reporting and a robust approach to prosecuting offenders
• Encourage a greater engagement with Neighbourhood Watch, Community Contracts and Safer Neighbourhood Groups
• Actively support community litter-picks, reporting of litter nuisance and replace bins where this can help to reduce littering
• Roll-out a Garden Waste collection across the district
• Continue to devolve services to local communities and review residual service delivery options
• Review policies to ensure that S106 contributions are used effectively
• Support flood prevention schemes at a local level
• Develop a programme of Neighbourhood Studies to support community renewal
• Review Conservation Area Character Appraisals (CACAs) and Management Plans (CAMPs), and update where necessary 

Theme - Healthiness

• Develop the district’s leisure centres managed through Active4Today to encourage sustainable activity and increase leisure activity across the district
• Work to deliver the Playing Pitch Strategy across the District and develop a strategy to ensure there is adequate provision in all areas, including alternative activity provisions where necessary
• Ensure that Sports Hub proposals for the Newark area are linked to and complementary to all other sports and leisure provision
• Engage with and scrutinise the effectiveness of the Clinical Commissioning Groups and NHS Trusts which serve the District
• Support and participate in policy development to address improved public health and ensure that health promotion and illness prevention activities are supported through the activities of the Council, Active4Today and Newark & Sherwood Homes

In addition, there are a number of corporate priorities which will shape the way in which the Council operates over the coming four years including:

• The commitment to the Community Covenant and specifically the way it shapes the Council’s approach to priorities around our lettings policy and support, advice and sign-posting activities
• The need to review central and support services as some activities are reduced or moved into other delivery vehicles
• The ability to increase the range of digital service delivery
• The scope to increase collaboration with neighbouring councils