Birmingham City Council's improvement journey has been a long, drawn-out saga that has taken many backward steps. But new managing director Joanne Roney has joined Labour-party appointed leader John Cotton – and the council's commissioners – to turn round the authority.

Her back-story as a 16-year-old apprentice at the council who has made it to chief executive is well rehearsed but the ‘girl from Shard End' has a long to-do list to get the council back on track.