This meeting was scheduled to include reports on how Camden Council is progressing with its 'We Make Camden' strategy. In particular, this meeting was scheduled to include a presentation and discussion of how the council engages with external partners, as well as a more general report and presentation about the Council's overall approach to delivering on its 'We Make Camden' missions. The meeting was also scheduled to include a report on the work programme for the committee.

We Make Camden Partnership Strategy

This report was prepared to update the committee on how the council engages external partners in its 'We Make Camden' missions. The report describes Camden Council's approach to partnership working, and sets out how this has developed in recent years. It states that while [Camden Council] already [has] a range of longstanding good practice in local partnerships, [it is] currently in the process of adding more rigour and infrastructure. The report goes on to identify several areas where the council's partnership working could be improved, particularly in strengthening its relationships with borough wide institutions and corporates.

Our We Make Camden Missions Approach

This report was prepared to update the committee on the council's overall approach to delivering its four 'We Make Camden' missions. The missions were agreed in December 2021, and were intended to be cross-cutting, long-term ambitions designed to address systemic issues in the borough. They are:

• Diversity - By 2030, those holding positions of power in [Camden] are as diverse as [the] community – and the next generation is ready to follow
• Young people - By 2025, every young person has access to economic opportunity that enables them to be safe and secure
• Food - By 2030, everyone eats well every day with nutritious, affordable, sustainable food
• Estates and neighbourhoods - By 2030, Camden’s estates and their neighbourhoods are healthy, sustainable and unlock creativity

This report describes the council's overall approach to delivering these missions, arguing that councils are important actors in making change locally and in communities and as a place-based local authority, service provider and civic convener, [Camden Council is] uniquely placed to direct and stimulate research, investment and activity aligned with [its] Missions.

The report goes on to summarise what it describes as a small snapshot of a wider portfolio of research, evidence gathering, engagement and experimentation occurring across the Missions. The report lists the following projects as examples:

• Estates and Neighbourhoods:
  • Participatory budgeting on the Hilgrove Estate
  • Community Champions schemes on the Regent's Park Estate and Ampthill Estate.
  • Transforming under-used spaces on estates into productive, social value use
• Young People:
  • The Camden Young Talent Guarantee
  • The Camden STEAM Partnerships
  • An AI Campus being launched in partnership with Google in 2024
• Food:
  • The Food Growing Accelerator Programme
  • Investment in the council's schools breakfast programme
  • Bringing the council's school catering contract in-house.
• Diversity:
  • Increasing the diversity of Camden Council's own workforce.
  • A programme to increase the diversity of school governors, including research into the retention of governors from diverse backgrounds
  • Establishing the Global Majority Governor’s Network with Islington Council.

The report concludes by discussing the importance of public sector reform to the council's missions, and suggests that the council will need to develop new ways of working, including:

• [Organising] communities around a shared vision
• [Understanding] impact on complex outcomes for residents
• [Focusing] on ends - with flexibility and innovation on the means
• [Devolving] decision-making and involving those with experience, knowledge and expertise
• [Creating] accountability for learning as well as impact
• [Approaching] problems with a long-term preventative and early intervention approach
• [Learning] and [improving] services in the context of Missions

Work Programme 2024/25 and Action Tracker

This report provides an update on the committee's work programme. The meeting was scheduled to consider the draft work programme, and to propose amendments to it. It was also scheduled to note the action tracker, which provides updates on actions from previous meetings.