Partnership working with other organisations and the public was also key to turning Lambeth around.

‘We have gone from being a failing council, to a can-do council,' says Cllr Reed.

And it was all done without the usual wholesale clear-out of the top management team.

Chief executive, Derek Anderson, has only been with Lambeth for two years, but most members of the rest of the senior team have been with the council through thick and thin.

‘We took the decision that stability was important as part of the improvement process. We supported senior management staff in their roles.'
It was turning around the finances of the authority which made the biggest difference. As well as being an improvement in itself, it has also freed up some much-needed cash to plough into future improvement works.

‘This year is an absolute turning point,' says Cllr Reed. But he says it is also a ‘spur to improve further and faster'.

He is determined that this is not the end of the story and the council will not be resting on it's laurels.

‘There is just one more star to get,' he says.