Telford & Wrekin Council finalist for Local Authority of the Year
Telford & Wrekin Council has been shortlisted as a finalist for Local Authority of the Year, the shortlisting follows the announcement earlier in the week that the council had won Cooperative Council of the Year.
In one of the most challenging years faced by local government and the country, this achievement has been possible thanks to the support and partnership of many local organisations, partners, council staff and volunteers, as well as local communities. They have all come together to support each other throughout the pandemic.
The council has seen off huge competition in one of the most memorable and challenging years ever for local government.
Council leader, Cllr Shaun Davies, said: "This is a real achievement for the council, its employees, councillors and partners.
"This shortlisting recognises the response to the pandemic by the council over the past 15 months.
“As a cooperative council, in everything that we do, we’re committed to listening to and involving our local residents in developing our plans to protect, care and invest to create a better borough.
“Over the last year, we have increased our engagement with our residents, carrying out a wide range of consultations, including a residents’ survey that all residents of Telford and Wrekin were invited to take part in.
“It’s great to have our efforts and achievements recognised as they have been this week. This reflects the support we have had from our residents and communities throughout the pandemic.
“Our residents’ survey last summer told us that our residents believe we have done a good job during the pandemic and that they have felt supported by us. This was reflected in the fantastic number of votes we received to be voted Cooperative Council of the Year which was announced earlier this week.
“We strive to go above and beyond to make sure local people and communities were supported and assisted throughout. We have been with them every step of the way and our resident survey, last summer, backs this up.
“Our strong response to the pandemic was only possible because of our solid foundations: our outstanding Ofsted rating for children’s’ services, exceptional adult services, the value for money we achieve time after time, offering the lowest council tax in the region, as well as our established partnerships (including valuable community partnerships).
"I am so proud of the work of our council, our staff, our volunteers and our partners – this shortlisting is the recognition they all so richly deserve.
"The next step is for us to be judged by local government experts and influential commentators from both the private and public sectors.
"We look forward to the awards ceremony later in the year when we will find out if we've been successful. Regardless of the outcome it is fantastic for us to have got this far given the stiff competition we have faced."
The MJ Awards have been held every year since 2004 and are one of the major, annual events in the public sector calendar.
