Hackney's 3 Star Thursday

Labour Hackney Council is officially awarded "three star" status today and is rated as "improving strongly" in a report published by the Audit Commission.

The Comprehensive Performance Assessment (CPA) states that over the last year Hackney shows "one of the highest rates of service improvement in London”.

The Audit Commission, through its detailed annual review of local authorities, praised the Council for its housing services, recycling rates, and time to process benefit claims. Children's services and adult social care scored well and it also highlighted improved resident satisfaction ratings. The report says the Council's use of resources has improved in the last year and that strong and effective management is providing good community leadership, which is continuing to improve civic pride.

It concludes by saying Hackney Council has the capacity to deliver its robust plans for future improvement, noting "there are no weaknesses or failures in corporate governance that would prevent improvement being sustained".

Well done to Jules Pipe and the rest of the Cabinet, and all of Hackney's staff, for this acheivement.

Quite a contrast compared to the hung council I joined as a Political Assistant in 1998 despite the warning I had from a senior MP "don't waste your time going there, Hackney Council will always be in a mess".

Congratulations also to Steve Reed and his Labour team in Lambeth, another previously failing council that today got a three star rating.