Despite a diverse range of activities within our service, we aim to work together as one cohesive team to deliver the best service we can with the resources we have. Central to this is our commitment to communicate our business clearly and consistently, with one voice.
We will say what we do and do what we say.
When we cannot meet the expectations of the communities we serve, we will explain why not.
We aim to explain what we do, why we do it and when we will do it, so that people affected by our decisions are kept informed.
We aim to communicate our policies, plans, priorities and programmes of work effectively, consistently and at the most suitable time.
We work with colleagues across the county council to deliver Devon County Council’s strategic aims.
We are focussed on developing our digital information to enable information to flow in and out of our business by:
- making data available for sharing, with the community and industry, through our Open Data portal
- providing online facilities for reporting highway problems, submitting licence applications and making payments for services
- ensuring web pages have clear explanations of what we do, what we do not do and options for community self-help alternatives
- consulting on legal changes to the public rights of way network and the upkeep of statutory on line registers
The Highway Maintenance Efficiency Programme highlights the importance of taking ‘a long term view of how highways may be managed, focusing on outcomes by ensuring that funds are spent on activities that prevent expensive short-term repairs’. Explaining this message is a key challenge to reduce public pressure for ‘short-term fixes, … rather than properly planned and implemented longer-term solutions’ (HMEP).