Annual Delivery Plan 2024 - 2025

As a council we are committed to delivering highly effective, efficient and customer focused services for our residents and stakeholders. We aim to achieve this through modern, integrated, high-quality, agile, and cost-effective delivery on a city-wide basis. Our extensive range of statutory and core services include waste collection and recycling, street cleansing, planning and building control, bereavement services, inspections and enforcements relating to public and environmental health.

To deliver effective and efficient services, in 2024-25 we will:

Planning and building control 

Actions 

1. Deliver statutory Building Control functions covering building regulations, dangerous structures, entertainment, and other licensing functions.
2. Deliver the revised Dual Language Street Sign Policy.
3. Finalise the implementation of the replacement building IT systems, integration with other Council systems and ‘Go Live’.  
4. Deliver planning service including provision of advice to customers, pre-application discussion, planning applications; Tree Preservation Orders and enforcing breaches of planning control.
5. Monitor the implementation of the Local Development Plan Strategy and produce the Local Policies Plan (LPP)
6. Deliver the Planning Service’s improvement plan to include a review of planning processes and charges** (including a review of PAD/PPA processes).
7. Establish a Belfast Planning Partnership with agents, architects and developers to work collaboratively on improving the planning process in Belfast and act as a vehicle for promoting fundamental reform of the NI Planning System at regional level.

Bereavement services  

Actions

1. Continue to deliver a high standard and customer focused Bereavement and Cemetery Service.
2. Prepare for the new Crematorium development and the repurposing of the existing crematorium in the grounds of Roselawn Cemetery.
3. Support the identification, acquisition, and development of new burial land provision for Belfast City Council.

Waste collection and recycling  

Actions

1. Operate daily bin collections of household and commercial waste through the deployment of adequate & efficient resources.
2. Pilot the introduction of smaller refuse collection vehicles to improve collection service to narrow and congested streets.**
3. Create an operational control room to assist pre-planning, daily control of collections and data analysis.
4. Continue to operate Household Recycling Centre's services across Belfast segregating various waste streams and working in partnership with others to ensure items are reused, recycled, or recovered.
5. Review and implement the single bin policy and develop a supporting and costed action plan.
6. Complete a review of litter bin provision to ensure adequate resourcing and arrangements for waste disposal across the city.**

Port health  

Actions

1. Continue to deliver the statutory regulations in relation to food imports at Belfast Port.
2. Continue to implement the Northern Ireland protocol (including the Windsor framework) and operational activity with competent authorities including the Food Standards Agency (FSA), Department of Agriculture Environment and Rural Affairs (DAERA), Department for Environment Food and Rural Affairs (DEFRA), and other Ports/Local Councils.
3. Advocate for a long-term sustainable funding model to secure adequate funding and review resources (including staff) to ensure effective delivery of the Council’s legal responsibilities at Belfast Port.

We will know we are successful if:

*Statutory performance indicators

**Performance Improvement Plan actions and performance indicators