First official day back in after Keele and having dropped my car off for a service in the morning, the day is spent in a variety of meetings with suppliers, my managers and the third sector. The garage ring to say the car will not be ready to pick so arrange for it to delivered the following day so my planned reasonable finish ends up being 8pm as I pick up Louis from his rock music school on the way home
Tuesday sees me on the early train to London spending the morning in meetings at HQ, followed by a meeting with DWP on the Tell Us Once project before finishing off the day by speaking at the London and Home Counties AGM where I present amongst other things the initial proposals around the new education startegy. It is a good turnout and it is nice to see an election from executive member places. Arrive home by 8.30pm to find car has not been delivered.
Wednesday morning I have arranged to pick up Leslie Dunn from Coventry for a countywide Revs and Bens meeting in Stratford via the garage who are very apologetic and my compensation is a free valet! on a free Saturday which looking at my diary will not be easy. Get to Stratford just in time for what is a very productive meeting before spending the afternoon in Coventry in a series of meetings discussing the shared service progress and meeting the Audit Commission who are on site. Return to Atherstone for an evening meeting making it another rather late finish as I again leave after the cleaners.
Thursday morning I am in work early at 7.30am to meet some work deadlines and finish my slides for the East Midlands AGM where Alistair Townsend takes over as President from Roy Thompson. Do a presentation with David before heading off late afternoon with Mark Fearn, Barry Powell and Rob Andrews for a game of golf and the first opportunity to use some new golf clubs. In by 9’ish to some supper and get on with some work.
Spend Friday in work all day finalising corporate end of year information. We again have achieved some excellent results as a team and I have to update various protocols we follow at this time of year around risk and training plans.
Spend all day Saturday in work getting back up to date and in front of actions before we attend a 50th birthday party of one of Julies work colleagues at night and a couple of hours on Sunday morning before meeting up with Allan Traynor and two others for a game of golf at the Forest of Arden in advance of the Council round of meetings that start in the evening. It is tradition to hold a round of meetings in the Presidents of the days patch so this is very much home from home for me
Week Two
Meet David for a breakfast meeting followed by our normal round of Council meetings throughout the day before hosting a dinner which incorporates a barn dance that is a huge success. It was a lovely opportunity to recognise all those people who have helped me get where I am and so family, old work colleagues as well as some of the members and staff from North Warwickshire make for another very memorable night.
Up early for the full Council meeting we pass some key decisions around governance and moving the education strategy forward before we finish by lunchtime for an afternoon on the golf course kindly sponsored by Gandlake which I manage to win which makes it all the better. Back home by 8pm, I don’t last too long before I fall asleep !
Having gone to bed early, I rise even earlier than normal and do an hour or so before getting into work by 7am and have a meeting with my director, host a visit from a Cornish authority up to look at our One Stop Shop and Contact Centre and prepare some information for the afternoons shared service board meeting. A really productive meeting agrees a positive way forward on a number of collaborative fronts before finishing off the rest of the day tying up some loose ends getting in by 6pm. Just before I leave I flick through Opportunities to find myself and other Keele tutors exposed for our Spice Girls antics with evidence in the form of a short video loaded onto their website. Thankfully the piece should not be career ending and hopefully demonstrates again that we certainly must have buried the traditional grey suited image of a Council Member for good (see also pictures attached) Its Wednesday night and J’s birthday so we nip out for a family meal before settling down for the Apprentice, possibly the only programme of the week I make a point of watching. Do some institute work before hitting the sack but my mind is racing overtime and I end up getting back up again at 2pm and hitting the e-mails that have accumulated over the last three days. My apologies to anyone who got missives from me at some very strange hour but eventually go back to bed by 5pm.
Back up and in work for 8.30pm, my day is spent in a variety of meetings and completing tasks which also involves an impromptu meeting with Lesley Dunn in Coventry as we develop the proposals agreed at the previous days meeting before returning to complete another reasonably long day before heading home for 7pm. This is one of the downsides to only living a mile from work you tend to stay late as you have no commute home! Before leaving organise a big cheque to be printed for picking up in the morning as it is the annual Mayors Golf day at the Belfry on the Friday and we have arranged to give her the £500 we won for being a finalist in two categories of the Institutes awards in October 2008. Go home and clean the clubs in preparation for the following days golf
Pop in on way to Belfry for a couple of hours as the CAPITA I am playing with are not due off until 9.50am. We have a really enjoyable knock around the beautiful countryside of North Warwickshire and despite not winning, the company and weather are good. Back at work by 4pm I put in a late shift finishing by 7pm.
Saturday morning sees us up and packed (J even goes to her sisters to get her hair done) and all by 9am as we drive up the M1 to attend the Yorkshire dinner. As is tradition, I have a game of golf on the hotel course (my 4th game in the week (it seems like buses all of a sudden having hardly played for 9 months or so) before we don the dj and chain for what is a great evening hosted by the Yorkshire President, Alan Fane and organised by John Clark.
Meet up with Dave Chapman and Mike Shang and partners for a leisurely breakfast before hitting the roads and getting back to go into work from 1pm to 7pm as I have a very busy couple of weeks coming up. My “to do list” is looking as good as it has done for months but one problem is I have managed to drop my blackberry down the loo so in short it is knackered and I leave a note for the ICT boys as a cry for help to see if another can be found for me.
Week Three
Monday is spent in London all day in meetings both with the Ministry of Justice officials and then with David and Gary on some conference discussions around bringing together a programme to go to market with. Type it up on the train home arriving back by 5pm allowing me to pop into work for a few hours until 8.30pm before going home to pack as I am away the rest of the week on work and IRRV commitments.
Rise early and on the road by 6.30am to allow me to get to Manchester for the second day of the Planning Professional Forum conference on contact centre activity. With 2 of my senior managers we give a 30 minute question and answer facilitated session and manage to coordinate meeting some people I deal with from the County Council who are in attendance which is really helpful considering the fullness of my diary. Unfortunately we are pipped to the post in the Public Sector Innovation in Contact Centre awards having got down to the last 16 nationally and mixing it with some of the biggest and most recognisable companies in the UK is a great achievement for us as a small council. It’s another certificate for the growing trophy cabinet and we have a great night dancing the night away
Wednesday morning, up early and work from my hotel room on some reports and e-mails before making the trip across the Pennines to a hotel in Lincolnshire we are considering using for a forthcoming conference. Spend the afternoon working (this time from another hotel room) before meeting up with Gary Watson and we spend the rest of the night concluding a number of things including the annual conference programme.
Up early Thursday for a breakfast meeting with the hotel and following a very successful meeting, managed to squeeze in nine holes on the hotels course which results in an honourable draw. Leave by 1pm for the journey up to Durham where we meet up for a very civilised early evening game of golf with a few sponsors and David Magor up for the following Northern Counties one day event and dinner on the Friday. 27 holes takes it toll and after dinner it is straight to bed but rise very early to send some e-mails and a 2 hour meeting with David (and all this by 8.45am) when I head across to the Durham CCC where a 90 strong delegate event is held. Deliver the first paper of the day on the challenges of Delivering Excellence in Customer Services before having to make an unplanned and worrying journey back to the hotel as I find to my horror that the crest on the presidential chain has come detached. I was warned by past Presidents that this can happen but thankfully it has fallen into the bottom of my travel bag and panic over I return to the event to catch some sessions on shared services, the particular issues of LGR impacting on Durham and a few other papers given by fellow Council Members before finishing off the day with a run through of the possible ideas on the future education strategy. Click on the headline above to view the presentation.
Return to the hotel for a quick change before returning in the evening to the same venue which has been bathed in sunshine all day for a dinner hosted by the Association President Christina Parkin for 100 people on a very relaxed and informal evening where we are entertained by Brendan Healey, a very funny local comedian. Back to the hotel by midnight for a nightcap before rising early for the drive home which I complete in record time and get into work by midday for an afternoon on the keyboard.
Its work for me over the weekend and bank holiday as my diary over the coming weeks is incredibly busy (but I am determined to do everything I can). 5 months to go and counting down
B
Tuesday sees me on the early train to London spending the morning in meetings at HQ, followed by a meeting with DWP on the Tell Us Once project before finishing off the day by speaking at the London and Home Counties AGM where I present amongst other things the initial proposals around the new education startegy. It is a good turnout and it is nice to see an election from executive member places. Arrive home by 8.30pm to find car has not been delivered.
Wednesday morning I have arranged to pick up Leslie Dunn from Coventry for a countywide Revs and Bens meeting in Stratford via the garage who are very apologetic and my compensation is a free valet! on a free Saturday which looking at my diary will not be easy. Get to Stratford just in time for what is a very productive meeting before spending the afternoon in Coventry in a series of meetings discussing the shared service progress and meeting the Audit Commission who are on site. Return to Atherstone for an evening meeting making it another rather late finish as I again leave after the cleaners.
Thursday morning I am in work early at 7.30am to meet some work deadlines and finish my slides for the East Midlands AGM where Alistair Townsend takes over as President from Roy Thompson. Do a presentation with David before heading off late afternoon with Mark Fearn, Barry Powell and Rob Andrews for a game of golf and the first opportunity to use some new golf clubs. In by 9’ish to some supper and get on with some work.
Spend Friday in work all day finalising corporate end of year information. We again have achieved some excellent results as a team and I have to update various protocols we follow at this time of year around risk and training plans.
Spend all day Saturday in work getting back up to date and in front of actions before we attend a 50th birthday party of one of Julies work colleagues at night and a couple of hours on Sunday morning before meeting up with Allan Traynor and two others for a game of golf at the Forest of Arden in advance of the Council round of meetings that start in the evening. It is tradition to hold a round of meetings in the Presidents of the days patch so this is very much home from home for me
Week Two
Meet David for a breakfast meeting followed by our normal round of Council meetings throughout the day before hosting a dinner which incorporates a barn dance that is a huge success. It was a lovely opportunity to recognise all those people who have helped me get where I am and so family, old work colleagues as well as some of the members and staff from North Warwickshire make for another very memorable night.
Up early for the full Council meeting we pass some key decisions around governance and moving the education strategy forward before we finish by lunchtime for an afternoon on the golf course kindly sponsored by Gandlake which I manage to win which makes it all the better. Back home by 8pm, I don’t last too long before I fall asleep !
Having gone to bed early, I rise even earlier than normal and do an hour or so before getting into work by 7am and have a meeting with my director, host a visit from a Cornish authority up to look at our One Stop Shop and Contact Centre and prepare some information for the afternoons shared service board meeting. A really productive meeting agrees a positive way forward on a number of collaborative fronts before finishing off the rest of the day tying up some loose ends getting in by 6pm. Just before I leave I flick through Opportunities to find myself and other Keele tutors exposed for our Spice Girls antics with evidence in the form of a short video loaded onto their website. Thankfully the piece should not be career ending and hopefully demonstrates again that we certainly must have buried the traditional grey suited image of a Council Member for good (see also pictures attached) Its Wednesday night and J’s birthday so we nip out for a family meal before settling down for the Apprentice, possibly the only programme of the week I make a point of watching. Do some institute work before hitting the sack but my mind is racing overtime and I end up getting back up again at 2pm and hitting the e-mails that have accumulated over the last three days. My apologies to anyone who got missives from me at some very strange hour but eventually go back to bed by 5pm.
Back up and in work for 8.30pm, my day is spent in a variety of meetings and completing tasks which also involves an impromptu meeting with Lesley Dunn in Coventry as we develop the proposals agreed at the previous days meeting before returning to complete another reasonably long day before heading home for 7pm. This is one of the downsides to only living a mile from work you tend to stay late as you have no commute home! Before leaving organise a big cheque to be printed for picking up in the morning as it is the annual Mayors Golf day at the Belfry on the Friday and we have arranged to give her the £500 we won for being a finalist in two categories of the Institutes awards in October 2008. Go home and clean the clubs in preparation for the following days golf
Pop in on way to Belfry for a couple of hours as the CAPITA I am playing with are not due off until 9.50am. We have a really enjoyable knock around the beautiful countryside of North Warwickshire and despite not winning, the company and weather are good. Back at work by 4pm I put in a late shift finishing by 7pm.
Saturday morning sees us up and packed (J even goes to her sisters to get her hair done) and all by 9am as we drive up the M1 to attend the Yorkshire dinner. As is tradition, I have a game of golf on the hotel course (my 4th game in the week (it seems like buses all of a sudden having hardly played for 9 months or so) before we don the dj and chain for what is a great evening hosted by the Yorkshire President, Alan Fane and organised by John Clark.
Meet up with Dave Chapman and Mike Shang and partners for a leisurely breakfast before hitting the roads and getting back to go into work from 1pm to 7pm as I have a very busy couple of weeks coming up. My “to do list” is looking as good as it has done for months but one problem is I have managed to drop my blackberry down the loo so in short it is knackered and I leave a note for the ICT boys as a cry for help to see if another can be found for me.
Week Three
Monday is spent in London all day in meetings both with the Ministry of Justice officials and then with David and Gary on some conference discussions around bringing together a programme to go to market with. Type it up on the train home arriving back by 5pm allowing me to pop into work for a few hours until 8.30pm before going home to pack as I am away the rest of the week on work and IRRV commitments.
Rise early and on the road by 6.30am to allow me to get to Manchester for the second day of the Planning Professional Forum conference on contact centre activity. With 2 of my senior managers we give a 30 minute question and answer facilitated session and manage to coordinate meeting some people I deal with from the County Council who are in attendance which is really helpful considering the fullness of my diary. Unfortunately we are pipped to the post in the Public Sector Innovation in Contact Centre awards having got down to the last 16 nationally and mixing it with some of the biggest and most recognisable companies in the UK is a great achievement for us as a small council. It’s another certificate for the growing trophy cabinet and we have a great night dancing the night away
Wednesday morning, up early and work from my hotel room on some reports and e-mails before making the trip across the Pennines to a hotel in Lincolnshire we are considering using for a forthcoming conference. Spend the afternoon working (this time from another hotel room) before meeting up with Gary Watson and we spend the rest of the night concluding a number of things including the annual conference programme.
Up early Thursday for a breakfast meeting with the hotel and following a very successful meeting, managed to squeeze in nine holes on the hotels course which results in an honourable draw. Leave by 1pm for the journey up to Durham where we meet up for a very civilised early evening game of golf with a few sponsors and David Magor up for the following Northern Counties one day event and dinner on the Friday. 27 holes takes it toll and after dinner it is straight to bed but rise very early to send some e-mails and a 2 hour meeting with David (and all this by 8.45am) when I head across to the Durham CCC where a 90 strong delegate event is held. Deliver the first paper of the day on the challenges of Delivering Excellence in Customer Services before having to make an unplanned and worrying journey back to the hotel as I find to my horror that the crest on the presidential chain has come detached. I was warned by past Presidents that this can happen but thankfully it has fallen into the bottom of my travel bag and panic over I return to the event to catch some sessions on shared services, the particular issues of LGR impacting on Durham and a few other papers given by fellow Council Members before finishing off the day with a run through of the possible ideas on the future education strategy. Click on the headline above to view the presentation.
Return to the hotel for a quick change before returning in the evening to the same venue which has been bathed in sunshine all day for a dinner hosted by the Association President Christina Parkin for 100 people on a very relaxed and informal evening where we are entertained by Brendan Healey, a very funny local comedian. Back to the hotel by midnight for a nightcap before rising early for the drive home which I complete in record time and get into work by midday for an afternoon on the keyboard.
Its work for me over the weekend and bank holiday as my diary over the coming weeks is incredibly busy (but I am determined to do everything I can). 5 months to go and counting down
B
