CIPFA Statistical Information Service

'Figure It Out' - Statistical Research Bulletin: Issue 7

Posted on 30th May 2006; updated on 9th June 2006

Flaming June - and another issue of Figure it Out.

Time does not stand still, and nor does the government of the day. The Department for Communities and Local Government (DCLG) is starting to flex its muscles (and some readers may, like me, struggle to keep up with all its previous guises - DoE followed in quick
succession by DETR, DTLR and ODPM). Pronouncements from the new department are awaited with interest,
not least on the next steps arising from the Lyons Inquiry into local government.

It is now almost two years since Sir Michael Lyons was given the task of reviewing the present system of local government funding, and nine months since his remit was extended to cover questions relating to the function of local government and its future role. The final report is not due until the end of 2006, but hot off the press we have a major pronouncement on ‘national prosperity, local choice and civic engagement’. This sets out challenges for both local and central government, with the emphasis on greater local choice, not more central control. We will return to Lyons at a later date.

In the meantime, in this issue we cover a range of relevant topics. First and
foremost is the perennial debate about local government review. This may again slip to the back of the agenda of new government priorities, but the questions will not go away for ever.

In the absence of structural change, more and more local authorities (and other public bodies) are nevertheless exploring the potential for sharing service delivery. Driven by the need for efficiency savings, improved performance assessment and, not least, to provide better services, we describe some examples from which the public service can learn.

Some wider concerns are echoed in the latest IPF Local Government Monitor survey. This time we can report some rather more positive views on, for example, the continuing headache of staff turnover and recruitment, and the latest changes to the grant settlement regime.

On a more technical level, we have a summary of the ‘Home Information Packs’ being introduced next year. Authorities will need to start gearing
up for the changes in good time. CIPFA is researching the mechanics behind a cost recovery system and the possible introduction of some guidance to help authorities.

And then to finish, we have two articles
of more general interest. First, an outline of progress on the CIPFA Learning Centre, which many readers will want to explore to further their professional development, and finally, on a lighter note perhaps, some suggestions for improvements to the way data is presented in reports. This is clearly a topic likely to rouse as many strong opinions as telling people how to write the reports in the first place, and readers will not necessarily agree with all the authors’ prescriptions, but at least we can provide some food for thought on the principles.

As before, please do contact the authors of each article if you would like to follow up any detail, and in particular if you have any examples of poorly presented information (see page 14). (And, before
you put pen to paper, comments on Figure it Out will, of course, be vetoed!). So, have a good summer break, while we await with interest the next policy announcements from the alphabet soup of Whitehall.

Related files:

Database File Figure It Out - Statistical Research Bulletin: Issue 7
Database File Longitudinal Analysis of Local Government Monitor Survey

CIPFAstats Datasets Browser