Update from Chief Executive Mark Wynn, 9 June 2026

Hello,

After some really nice weather we are back to rain again. I hope that things pick up weather wise, and we can enjoy some summer weather again. Last month we saw the launch of the Lancashire Highways Facebook page, Ofsted inspection of Children's Services and continued work in preparing for the government's announcement around Local Government Reorganisation in Lancashire.

As we move through the Local Government Reorganisation (LGR) process, there are some key terms and phrases that you may hear. To help with this a key terms and phrases page is available both on the intranet and the staff area of our website at www.lancashire.gov.uk/staff. If you feel like anything is missing let the team know at internal.communications@lancashire.gov.uk and they will update the site.

We may need to write to you at points during the LGR process. To ensure that these letters reach you please make sure that your home address is correct in Oracle. You can find instructions on how to do this on Oracle guided learning.

You may know that where a county council is involved in LGR, it’s typical for the Chief Executive to take on a programme leadership role. Subject to Government confirmation, I will be taking on the role of Senior Responsible Officer for the Lancashire Implementation Board.

In this role, I will coordinate the programme across Lancashire and make sure delivery stays on track. I’ll be working closely with colleagues across all councils to support a joined-up approach as we move forward together. More details on this can be found on staff news.

I will also be holding all-staff briefing sessions in July. These sessions will provide an update on LGR and may also have an update on the governments decision (which may arrive based on current timescales before mid July) if we have received it.

Booking details and links will be shared nearer the time.

The dates and locations of the briefings are:

• 20 July, 1.30pm to 3.30pm – The Exchange, Barden Lane, Burnley

• 22 July, 2pm to 4pm – White Cross Neighbourhood Centre, Lancaster

• 23 July, 10am to 12pm – Council Chamber, County Hall, Preston (hybrid)

If you manage staff, please make sure that they are aware of the intranet and staff area of our website and share any key updates with them.

Since my last update, Cabinet has now agreed Moving the Dial on our priorities 2026/27: Building a better Lancashire. This annual delivery plan builds on last year’s Our Areas of Focus and Improvement Plan and sets out where we need to concentrate our efforts in the year ahead.

It’s a practical document that helps make sure we stay focused on what will have the biggest impact for residents, providing a clear line of sight between our day-to-day work and the council’s top priorities.

We will continue to track and monitor our progress against the plan throughout the year.

There is also a handy one-page summary that managers may find useful as part of their conversations with team members, including 1-to-1s and Performance Engagement discussions, to help link individual roles to our organisational priorities.

You can see the full document on our website and the summary document on the about the council area of our intranet.

Our new intranet launched earlier in May, following our move to SharePoint to make better use of the Microsoft tools we already have available. I’ve had a look at it, and I’ve found it simple to use, particularly the improved search.

You can now use the homepage, directorate hubs and service pages. Navigation and page layouts have been simplified, which should make it easier and quicker to find the information you need day to day, whether that’s guidance, policies or service information.

The site will continue to develop over the coming weeks, with the remaining areas moving across shortly. The team is working through some minor issues, and changes are already being made based on your feedback.

Some of the recent improvements include increased text size on the A to Z, clearer links to the main homepage and service homepages, and updates to content across the site.

There is a new intranet guide available to help you get the most out of SharePoint, and short videos will be added soon to highlight key features.

Please keep sharing your feedback, using the feedback form which is included in the intranet footer. Your feedback is already shaping the improvements being made and will help to continue to develop the site.

We recently hosted an AI Expo at County Hall, bringing together local government colleagues from across the country to share how we are using artificial intelligence to transform our corporate, adult and children's services. I want to thank everyone involved in organising the event – it was a fantastic showcase of the work happening here in Lancashire. It was particularly encouraging to see our teams leading the way nationally, sharing what’s working and demonstrating how we’re using AI responsibly to support staff and improve outcomes for residents.

I wanted to end by thanking everyone that was involved in the recent Ofsted inspection. It reviewed how effectively we support, protect and plan for children, young people and families, including children in care, care leavers and permanence planning. I was proud and unsurprised that the inspectors highlighted that the staff they met were positive, engaged and committed to improving outcomes for children and families. Once we have the result of the inspection, we will share this with you.

Have a great week,

Mark