While local government has handled substantial budget reductions perhaps better than expected so far, the negative financial outlook will remain beyond the lifetime of the current Parliament with the LGA predicting that councils will face a £16.5 bn funding gap by the end of the decade.
London Councils has backed a communities and local government committee report that called on the Government to ‘grab the lifeline’ offered by community budgets.
The most innovative public sector organisations are adopting smart collaboration with like-minded partners.
More than half of council bosses believe a lack of time and capacity is holding back the transformation of public services, according to a new report by Localis.
Council leaders and healthcare professionals will need to ‘develop a shared view’ of services, according to the latest guidelines issued by the Local Government Association (LGA) and NHS England.
A report has called on the government to make local taxation more available to councils.
65% of survey respondents see council leaders and chief executives as the key drivers in re-thinking the way they design and delivery public services.
More than half of senior council leaders fear that local government does not have the time or resources to undertake the reforms demanded by Whitehall funding cuts, a poll has found.
While the debate continues endlessly in Whitehall about who’s responsible for the state of the economy, and which levers of power should be pulled, pushed ? or just caressed ? the fact remains that, out in the real world, most people just want to have a job.
Councils should be given new powers to tackle land banking by developers including ‘use it or lose it’ planning powers, according to think tank Localis.