Laria & Data Working Group collaboration

LGInform Event: data at your fingertips

Laria and the West Sussex Data Working Group (DWG) recently collaborated to hold a very successful event in Horsham, called ‘LGInform: data at your fingertips’. This event was organised by Laria South East Chair, Helen Butcher and Anuschka Muller, Chair of the DWG in order to provide their respective members with the opportunity to gain hands-on experience of using LGInform – the LGA’s online benchmarking data service for councils and fire and rescue authorities.

Those in attendance were able to use their own laptops to follow the interactive presentation given Jonathan Evans and Juliet Whitworth from the LGA . Participants learnt how to get the most out of the range of key performance data and contextual and financial information for local authorities through the creating of dashboards and headline reports to compare metrics and review performance.

In support of the Laria collaboration and to provide a good overall knowledge of the ‘ pro’s and cons’ of LGInform, Julie McKenzie and Karen Jordan from the Southern Performance Improvement Network outlined their experience of helping to develop LGInform and of using it for Performance Management at Horsham District Council. Martin Farrell (Performance Manager at West Sussex County Council) then explored the benefits of using LGInform at the County Council level, particularly in relation to its potential role as a lever in changing behaviours.

Attendees were encouraged to network with a game of People Bingo and a tasty lunch of sandwiches and hot nibbles. Feedback from both LARIA and DWG members suggested the event was useful, informative and enjoyed by all.