Newham Council to be restructured to accelerate resident centred service delivery

Newham Council is being restructured in order to meet the priorities of the Mayor of Newham Rokhsana Fiaz and accelerate resident centred service delivery.

The current structure was reviewed following the election in May 2018, when Mayor Fiaz came into power.

The change will organise the Council in a structure that fits with the Mayor’s priorities and manifesto promises. A significant part of this will involve giving prominence to children and young people, ensuring that the organisation meets their needs.

London Borough of Newham will be split into seven directorates within the new structure. These will be:

  • Brighter futures; 
  • Inclusive economy and housing; 
  • Children and young people; 
  • Adults and health; 
  • Environment and sustainable transport; 
  • Resources; 
  • People;
  • Policy and performance.

Mayor Fiaz said: “The restructure of the Council gives us a chance to repurpose the organisation and in ways which better suit the delivery of the manifesto pledges and put residents at the heart of what we do.

“It quickly became clear to me that the structure of the Council would not sufficiently enable us to achieve our ambitions for the people of Newham.

“This restructure will accelerate the positive work we are doing for residents in the borough, through transforming the council into an organisation that is agile and better responsive and involving of our residents, including our young people.

“As part of a commitment I made when I was elected, this new structure will give prominence to children and young people, ensuring we can help them to reach their full potential and keep them safe.

“A new role of Newham Children and Young People’s Commissioner will be created as part of this restructure. It will be the first of its kind in any council in the country and will touch all services at Newham Council to ensure they all transform to better serve the young people in the borough.”

Almost 38 per cent of Newham’s population are under the age of 25 and this restructure will ensure the needs of this section of the population are met.

The new structure has been designed with the policy priorities of the new administration in mind, including Housing, Community Wealth Building, as well as Children and Young People.

Significant savings will be made as a result of the restructure with the Council using its resources increasingly carefully and maximising every efficiency it can.

Mayor Fiaz added: “I am excited and positive about the changes to the way the Council operates and the benefits they will provide for Newham residents, making the organisation work better for them.

“Community Wealth Building will be an important pillar of the new structure, allowing residents to better benefit from the investment coming into the borough.

“Too often investment into Newham has failed to benefit the people of the borough. I want to change this and ensure our people receive the impacts of this growth, as we work to achieve a fairer and more prosperous Newham.”

Althea Loderick, Newham Council’s new Chief Executive, said “One of my highest priorities is to take forward the implementation of the new structure with a particular focus on making permanent appointments. This will start from the top of the structure and work its way down.

“I will also be progressing the service reviews referred to in the Cabinet report and not forgetting the critical nature of building on the culture and values work that has begun to make this an inherent part of our new way of working.”

Published: 17 Apr 2019