Leeds City Council’s response to the Covid pandemic has been labelled “outstanding” in an external report.
The Local Government Association (LGA) highlighted the local authority’s work with other public bodies and businesses during the crisis and singled it out for praise.
The comment came in a peer review the LGA conducted into various aspects of the way the council runs, in particular its culture and governance.
The report described the council as “very well-led”, “ambitious” and a “beacon of best practice” for other local authorities.
The LGA made 15 recommendations, however, including advising the council to be “mindful of the risk of staff burnout”, as it grapples with dwindling resources.
Introducing the report at a council scrutiny meeting on Monday, Judith Hurcombe from the LGA, said: “One of the things that was really striking about Leeds was the values and how you conduct yourself.
“The values you have seem to be lived and breathed right the way through the organisation and are really recognised by partners, which is quite unusual.”
Ms Hurcombe said the council benefited from “stable and visible political leadership”, highlighting its child-friendly city policy and net-zero ambitions as examples of good practice.
She added: “It may be something you sometimes take for granted but it’s a really fundamental part of how you operate.”
The report itself said: “The city’s response to Covid and how it worked with community, voluntary, public sector and private sector stakeholders is regarded by partners as outstanding.”
The LGA spoke to 150 people, inside and outside the council, for the purposes of its peer review, which it carried out last November.
It typically inspects its member organisations – local authorities – every four or five years, though the councils themselves are largely in control over when that happens.
Ms Hurcombe said that the staff the LGA spoke to “feel good” about working for the council but warned bluntly “they’re stretched”.
She said this was a picture typical of councils across the country, struggling as they are with rising demand and meagre resources.
Leeds City Council will be using reserves for the first time in living memory this year to bridge a £15m budget gap, and is likely to approve a council tax rise this week, which will kick in for residents in April.
Ms Hurcombe said: “One of the members of staff we spoke to was very clear they could go and work for a neighbouring local authority and earn more money.
“But they didn’t want to, because they felt they could deliver the best here, for the people of Leeds. That (view) was multiplied many times and that’s a precious thing.
“They do feel valued, but they’re under pressure. I haven’t got an easy answer to that I’m afraid.”
Despite the LGA’s glowing praise, Labour councillor Kevin Ritchie warned many residents wouldn’t recognise some of the review’s contents.
Councillor Ritchie, who represents Bramley, told the meeting: “I think we have to be careful that we don’t just sit in the Civic Hall bubble here.
“Because if I was to take this report around my ward, and I suspect other wards too, some constituents wouldn’t believe your findings really.
“When people come to us (as councillors) it’s a last shot at resolving problems, because other systems have failed. I think we have to be mindful of that.”
