Annual Report 2021 - 2022

Each year, our annual report outlines our progress against our four key priorities.

Our vision for a cleaner, greener, healthier Hertfordshire is outlined in our Corporate Plan, which was launched in early 2022. Nearly a year on, we have much to be proud of despite the challenges we face.

Below are some examples of the key things we've achieved throughout the year.

Responding to the increased cost of living
A cleaner and green environment
Healthy and fulfilling lives for our residents
Sustainable, responsible growth in our county
Excellent council services for all

Responding to the increased cost of living

As outlined in the full report, here is some of the support we provided to residents over the summer of 2022:

Over 2,500 referrals to our Money Advice Unit, raising £10.9m in additional benefits for residents
Over £343,000 given to Hertfordshire Independent Living Service, Age UK, Hospital and Community Navigation Service and lunch clubs to support the elderly
£120,000 donated to foodbanks
Over 57,000 places booked on HAPpy holiday camps (Holiday Activities and Food Programme)
Over £12m in support from the Household Support Fund from October 2021 – September 2022.

A cleaner and green environment

Earlier in 2022 as part of the Your Tree, Our Future campaign, we began work with district council partners to provide more than 100,000 trees for residents, businesses and community groups to plant across Hertfordshire over the next four years. As part of this project, 46,910 trees have been claimed this year, with the estimated total carbon removal over the lifetime of the trees to be 89,086 tonnes.
Investing in our buildings is critical to meeting our target to be carbon neutral by 2030. We have been successful in securing a number of funding bids in the last year. This funding enabled us to improve both county council buildings and schools and to support our net zero targets, we have delivered 187 projects at sites across the county, through a successful Salix funding bid £24m.

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Healthy and fulfilling lives for our residents

Earlier this year, we became one of 15 organisations working on a new pilot service to help homeless adults with multiple support needs. This project brings together workers from mental health, domestic abuse, and drug and alcohol services to form a multi-disciplinary team, which is embedded in every district homelessness service. This multi-disciplinary pilot will be funded by Adult Care Services until March 2023, with future funding determined by an evaluation report which will be shared with partners in health, housing and probation services.
Following a Food Poverty Needs Assessment which was published in November 2021, we have begun a programme of work that aims to reduce health inequalities by increasing access to good quality food for Hertfordshire. Work around this includes increasing the number of food support entries on the Herts Directory from 3 to 41, to help promote available help to residents. We are also supporting the development of training that BeeZee Bodies will deliver in 2023, to offer support on basic nutrition information and cooking on a budget.ening in a new win

Sustainable, responsible growth in our county

The new A120 Little Hadham Bypass and Flood Alleviation Scheme opened to traffic in December 2021. As well as alleviating congestion along the route at the Little Hadham traffic lights, the 3.9km bypass scheme has provided more reliable journey times and improved flood defences. The opening of the bypass will create a cleaner, greener and more pleasant environment for the village, as well as improving the road network in the area, better connecting our people to the places they live, work and learn.
Broxbourne Nursing Home was officially opened in July 2022. It is wholly owned by the County Council and managed by Gold Care Homes and has been built with sustainability and innovation at the heart of it. The building was designed to include a large expanse of green roof, which is seeded with wildflowers to attract insects and birds to the local area. There are many solar panels on the back of the building that help with energy production. The New River runs along the side of the nursing home, so the gardens and balconies overlook the wider local habitats. This means that residents can sit and enjoy the local wildlife too.

Excellent council services for all

Since the UK government’s launch of the Homes for Ukraine scheme in March 2022, 1,000 sponsors have come forward in Hertfordshire, already welcoming over 1,600 arrivals from Ukraine. We have worked collaboratively with our district and borough council colleagues and partners, including from the voluntary sector, to support this work. Our Adult Care Services, for instance, have supported the wellbeing of sponsors and Ukrainian nationals who have come to Hertfordshire. Children’s Services have carried out hundreds of safeguarding and welfare visits to sponsors, and ensured that the majority of Ukrainian children have been offered a school place within the published national timeframe of 15 school days from application.
As part of our commitment to embracing diversity and inclusion, this year we ran an internal Disability at Work campaign as part of 2022 National Inclusion Week to help raise awareness of the experiences of staff who have a disability. Following this activity, the percentage of colleagues completing their disability indicator (marking yes or no to having a disability) rose to 96.9%, the highest this figure has ever been recorded. As part of work to deliver co-production to allow residents to have their say on services, this year Adult Care Services ran monthly virtual ‘Coffee mornings’. Training has enabled people with lived experience to take on roles such as ‘Co-chair’ of the boards or help influence projects related to services, such as the refresh of the Carers Strategy.

Email your feedback to corporate.policyteam@hertfordshire.gov.uk.