The Big Society: too easily criticised, or simply too politicised?

Posted on May 11, 2012 by OPM

By Linda Jackson, associate fellow at OPM.

The second anniversary of David Cameron’s Big Society has given commentators, supporters and critics alike the opportunity to reflect on the extent to which the policy has been put into practice.

The concept has often felt more of a riddle than a policy, so it’s probably unsurprising that critics have been quick to lead with some fairly damning analysis. The conclusion of one report is not just that Big Society has failed in what it set out to do, but also that it has made things worse; that the policy works for ‘leafy suburbs’ but further disenfranchises areas with fewer resources leading a widened social gap between rich and poor.

Reading this didn’t come as a particular surprise – I’d co-written a paper in 2010 about the need to tailor support to different communities to prevent further inequality – but I think it’s a little more complicated that some suggest.

In many ways the criticism feels easy and intuitive, especially considering the broader impact of debilitating cuts to voluntary sector funding which have fuelled critics to argue that the Big Society is merely a smokescreen for cuts.

But the agenda’s central themes – of social action and volunteering for example – are hugely important to civic society. Intuitively again, few could argue against policy which aims to support more individuals taking greater control over their lives and the services they access. And yet, this policy more than any other, seems particularly vulnerable to attack – and particularly so in the current financial context.

So is the problem with Big Society that it’s become too politicised? And/or that it hasn’t been given enough time? Continue reading →

Ensuring neighbourhood plans represent their communities

Posted on April 10, 2012 by OPM

By Harriet Dalrymple, Dialogue by Design project coordinator

Dialogue by Design is OPM’s sister company and specialises in running public and stakeholder engagement processes using online, paper-based and face-to-face methods.

A key component of the Localism Bill, which reached Royal Assent last year, is to pass the ‘power of competence’ down to local authorities. This will give local people the right to make decisions about planning in their local area through the right to develop a neighbourhood plan. Continue reading →

‘It’s all Greek to me!’ – How do you ask for evidence of value for money?

Posted on March 6, 2012 by OPM

By Chih Hoong Sin, OPM principal

Most people have come to realise that we all need to know whether something represents good use of increasingly scarce resources. Many are waking up to the fact that it is no longer sufficient to demonstrate good outcomes. With shrinking budgets, we cannot commission everything that produces positive outcomes. We need something more upon which to base decisions. That ‘something more’ is evidence to justify spending money in a certain way. But we can struggle to articulate what that ‘something more’ should look like.

As an organisation that conducts economic appraisals/evaluations of public services, we come across an ever-growing number of specifications for work that incorporate some element of ‘value for money’. But while the demand is obviously there we know that this demand is often poorly articulated. Terminology is bandied around without much (or any) understanding of what they mean, perhaps an indication that phrases such as ‘value for money’ and ‘cost effectiveness’ have entered mainstream consciousness as the hot new buzzwords. Continue reading →

Unlocking local capacity – local authority entrepreneurship

Posted on February 20, 2012 by OPM

By Hywel Lloyd, OPM senior fellow.

This is the latest in a series of posts in anticipation of new research from OPM about what local government can do to unlock local capacity. To find out more about the free evening seminar on Tuesday 21 February where the research will be launched, click here.

Across the country local authorities are engaged in massive change. On one hand they are seeking to balance budgets in light of significant changes to their central grant; on the other, they are looking to ‘unlock’ capacity that exists in their locality. This local capacity can take many forms. Continue reading →

Simple but powerful: making community leadership work in practice

Posted on February 16, 2012 by OPM

By Phil Copestake, OPM principal.

When looking to unlock the capacity of local communities, local councils find nothing is more fundamentally important than the language they use. This was one of the points that struck me most powerfully at a really excellent, wide-ranging debate last week at the RSA, to launch the 2020 Public Services Hub’s evaluation of Sunderland City Council’s community leadership programme.

In amidst thoughtful opinions offered by amassed luminaries including the RSA’s own Matthew Taylor and head of volunteering charity CSV Lucy de Groot, the leader and chief exec of Sunderland both made telling points based on their practical experience. Continue reading →

What can ‘the beautiful game’ teach us about how to unlock local capacity?

Posted on January 23, 2012 by OPM

By Sarah McDonnell, OPM senior researcher, with an introduction from Phil Copestake, OPM principal.

At OPM we know that whatever councillors and officers in local government feel about ‘open public services’ and ‘the big society’, few disagree that with much less money available, local authorities must find a way of unlocking the energy and capacity of local people. Each council is tackling this in a different way.

On Tuesday 21st February we’ll be launching a report based on brand new research with councils across England. The report will give an in-depth, wide-ranging picture of the practical ways in which local authorities are going about the difficult but vital task of unlocking local capacity.

We’ve got a fantastic panel of speakers at the launch event, including the Mayor of Newham Robin Wales, Stuart Etherington from NCVO, the leader of Oxfordshire County Council Keith Mitchell, and Matthew Gott, a senior director from complex families pioneers Swindon. The seminar will be in the early evening, in Central London, and is free, but places are strictly limited. If you’re interested in coming then please email seminars@opm.co.uk.

In the run-up to the 21st February there will be lots of posts on this blog offering different perspectives on how best to unlock local capacity, from the point of view of councils, residents and communities themselves, and local voluntary groups. To kick things off (the first of many puns: you have been warned) we have OPM’s Sarah McDonnell asking: what can local councillors and officers learn from the leadership strategies of managers from the world of… Premier League football! Continue reading →

From compliance to judgement: trusting more, controlling less

Posted on November 18, 2011 by OPM

By Sue Goss, OPM principal.

Local authorities – like many other public services – often struggle to move beyond the rhetoric when it comes to taking a common sense approach to managing risk. OPM’s recent work with the London Borough of Ealing provides an example of how turning the traditional ‘top down’ view of management upside down can help to identify practical steps to empower frontline staff.

Last week I was working with the Council’s Senior Leaders Forum – their top 80 or so managers – to think about the transition ‘From Compliance to Judgement’, or how a council like Ealing can shake off the sheer weight of bureaucracy and procedure that slows us down. The Munro Report has brought the issue back on the agenda – arguing that we have created compliance cultures that get in the way of good professional practice (Munro focused on children’s services, but the lessons hold across the piece). Ealing had a particularly good story to tell – about their ‘riot recovery’ work.

Continue reading →

The 21st Century local authority – how will you make decisions about yours?

Posted on November 10, 2011 by OPM

By Hywel Lloyd, OPM senior fellow

Local authorities across the country are getting to grips with continued budget pressures, and the consequences of wider policy changes. These changes reflect the concept of the diffusion of innovation (Everett, R. 1962) – some authorities are creating new ways of working and organising, others are adopting some of their solutions, while many are watching and learning to see which approaches are successful and applicable to their circumstances. Continue reading →

How collaboration can help address local delivery challenges

Posted on October 26, 2011 by OPM

By Hywel Lloyd, OPM senior fellow.

I recently had the pleasure to be involved in a two-day workshop hosted by the Institute for Government, part of a wider set of initiatives which make up ‘Transforming the Civil Service’ programme. Although the event focused on Whitehall, the issues of running effective services (and other interventions) for the public good are as, if not more, relevant to local leaders.

The event looked at reducing re-offending, and local adaptation to climate change. From the insights generated on the two days it is possible to draw out a number of key lessons that can be applied locally in any process of reviewing and redesigning local services in a time of austerity. Continue reading →

Practical tips to overcome the challenges facing public sector mutuals: event report

Posted on October 21, 2011 by OPM

By Phil Copestake, OPM’s head of communications.

Last week saw OPM’s Spinning Out Mutuals fringe event at the National Children and Adult Services (NCAS) conference. The session was really successful, with a packed room at the cavernous ExCel centre, excellent speakers (well, apart from yours truly) and a lively debate. For those who couldn’t make it, I thought I’d post a few of the best practical tips mentioned for overcoming the genuine challenges facing those wishing to ‘spin out’ public sector mutuals. The important contribution that events like this make to raising awareness of mutuals was underlined by Jesse Norman MP:

The short inquiry report from the All Party Parliamentary Group on Employee Ownership, which I chair, emphasised how important it is that the Government’s mutuals programme is better understood and viewed as a means to drive real improvements in our communities. Organisations like OPM play an important role in building awareness about mutuals and helping to create the capacity for change. Only by understanding the real life experiences of people who have already started down this route – such as the speakers and participants at this NCAS event – can we capitalise on the tantalizing possibility of public sector mutuals.