There are 51 councillors who are elected to represent the people of the borough and to direct the work, and decide the local policies, of the Council.  Councillors are elected every four years and the last borough-wide election was held in May 2002. The political composition of the Council is as follows:

 Revene and Expenditure

See our Member structure

See our organisation structure chart

Corporate Performance Assessment

Greenwich is improving well. Council services are improving in line with local priorities. Work with partners has allowed the Council to secure significant provision of new and affordable housing, the creation of jobs for residents with a substantial reduction in the local unemployment rate. Three quarters of performance indicators show improvement on last year. 

The Council is continuing to deliver against a significant internal modernisation programme. However, in some areas progress on improving performance is not as advanced. In comparison to other local authorities, education and housing are areas that further improvements still need to be realised. The Council is making contributions to wider community outcomes and has significantly improved results in the residents' satisfaction survey, including an increase in satisfaction with waste services. In 2006, three quarters of local people consider that the Council is doing a good job. Based on the Council's current plans, it is well placed to continue to improve the way it works and the services it provides to local people.

Corporate Assessment Report 2007

Our values

Greenwich Council is committed to:

• Ensuring the delivery of high quality, value for money services to Greenwich residents.
• Protecting the vulnerable and promoting independence.
• Promoting equality amongst all sections of the community and celebrating diversity.
• Challenging discrimination in its own operations.
• Listening to our communities and empowering local people.
• Providing a mode of open democratic local government.
• Fostering high levels of achievement amongst its citizens and institutions.
• Developing effective partnerships with all the agencies that impact on the lives of Greenwich residents.
• Maximising our impact as a local authority, as a partner with business, the voluntary sector and other public agencies as a champion of Greenwich on the well-being of its citizens.

The ethos of the Council

The ethos of the Council, building on the Council's values, will need to change and develop if it is to meet the challenges and opportunities ahead. The Council, both councillors and employees, will need:

• To put customers first by empowering and listening to users, residents and business, understanding their needs and aspirations, striving to improve our response, involving them in delivery, treating customers as we would wish to be treated ourselves.
• To treat all residents with equity through understanding the implications of serving a diverse and active community, fighting discrimination and seeking to meet the needs of residents equitably on the basis of need.
• To act as one council with a universal ownership of the Council's vision, one clear corporate identity, understanding the contribution each individual team and service makes to its delivery and an end to departmentalism.
• To seek continuous improvement which means knowing how we perform, how our service performs, how it compares with others and seeking out good practice to improve the outcomes for service users.
• To procure services on the basis of best value through examining options for service delivery which underpin best value and support the Council's commitments to regeneration and economic development.
• To work in partnership because we recognize that, to improve services and the well being of the community, we need to work in partnership with all other sectors, including joint commissioning, pooled budgets, integrated multi-disciplinary teams, neighbourhood working.
• To have a ‘can do' attitude ad be proactive and positive in delivering solutions to meet residents' needs, to be innovative and think ‘outside the box'.

The Council is rated by the CPA as having strong political leadership and a strong corporate management team which provide visible and coherent leadership.  Leadership of the challenges and changes the Council is pursuing is vital to the generation of the Borough, to the modernization of the Council and improving the standards and quality of services.

Greenwich has an overall CPA rating of 3 stars (Good) and the future looks very promising.  The Council scores 3 out of 4 for services and ability.  Education has increased its rating from 2 to 3 since 2002.  Social care for adults and children has maintained a rating of 2.

The Council has made significant improvements to its Education service over the last year and on improving its internal processes.  There have also been some improvements to Adult social care services and waste management.  A pathfinder children's trust is being developed to integrate services to children and strengthen the support available to children and their families.