Chief Executive, Laurence Rockey

In this issue of Inform, you’ll find all the details of the new employee survey, which I would like to encourage everyone to complete. This is a really important piece of work we undertake every two years and I would emphasise that your voice really does matter. This time around, we’ve added the question: “What one thing would you change about the council if you were Chief Executive?” I’ll be really interested to see what suggestions come in via this and will consider and respond to everything. Not directly of course as the survey is completely anonymous so you can be absolutely open and honest with your thoughts and suggestions! Your feedback is incredibly valuable. By taking part you can help create change and shape the future of the council. The survey will only take 10-15 minutes of your time and is open 'til 19 June.

Carrying on the theme of collaborative working and shaping the future of East Lothian Council, I have been reaching out to members of the new Scottish Government, with a particular focus on new Ministers, to discuss the challenges and opportunities we have here in East Lothian, with a view to gaining a mutual understanding of priorities and how we can work well together going forward.

Meanwhile I’ve been continuing my visits locally to some key East Lothian businesses, including a really enjoyable visit to Belhaven Brewery (where no beer was consumed, sadly!) finding out about this historic family business and how it has developed over the years and how we as a council, including our Economic Development Team, have been supporting them and how best we can continue that relationship. I’m looking forward to visiting some more local businesses over the next few busy summer months.

My visits to our own council services also continue, most recently with a hugely enlightening meeting with our Children’s Services team, learning more about the absolutely crucial work that they do.