A rush and a push… and the Big Society’s ours?

Posted on May 15, 2012 by OPM

I enjoyed taking part in a spirited discussion at the RSA last week, as part of a roundtable launch of the 2020 Public Services Hub’s latest report – a really excellent one – which proposes a ‘social productivity framework’ to bring down the barriers between business, the public sector and citizens, thus enabling better collaborative policymaking.

The timing – coincidental with the second anniversary of another launch: that of the Prime Minister’s Big Society – made it impossible not to draw comparisons between that seemingly ill-fated agenda and the successful reforms showcased in the 2020 report. It was a shame that Cabinet Office minister Francis Maude couldn’t be there as planned (something about a strike) because there was real practical wisdom to hand.

I was particularly taken – as were others around the table, judging by their remarks – with one of the report’s defining dictums: ‘Government has to jump first’ and its cousin: ‘Government can’t do it all, but it can set clear goals and establish values’. The report contains an illuminating case study which highlights what a difference these principles can make in practice: that of the Zero Carbon Hub. Continue reading →

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 →

Two TV shows display the challenges to community integration

Posted on March 29, 2012 by OPM

By Ewan King, OPM director

Two TV programmes shown recently brought into sharp focus the enormous challenges facing polarised and segregated communities in England: Make Bradford British and Proud and Prejudiced. The first looks at cultural and ethnic differences in Bradford while the second looks at extremism in Luton. Both highlight some of the entrenched divisions that exist in some urban areas.

Proud and Prejudiced, which explored the motivations and rationales of two organisations on the extremes of British Politics – the English Defence League (EDL) and Muslims Against Crusades (MAC) – was perhaps the most disconcerting of the two, showing how dangerous extremists can be when they gain sufficient support and traction in the media. Both groups, while ostensibly holding very different memberships and ideologies, shared a visceral hatred for other communities and a deep enmity for mainstream politics. Continue reading →

How can local councils unlock capacity?

Posted on February 23, 2012 by OPM

By Mohini Khanna, OPM researcher.

How can councils make getting involved in local community life energising and inspiring rather than dull and worthy? What would happen if turnout at local elections increased to 80 per cent? How can elected members be supported to become true community champions?

Earlier this week, OPM launched brand new research about how local authorities across England are unlocking the local capacity of their residents and communities, at a Public Interest Seminar attended by senior managers, policy-makers and practitioners from local and central government and the voluntary and community sector. You can download the full report from the research for free, here.

Participants heard from a panel of leading speakers chaired by editorial director of The MJ Mike Burton, and including Mayor of Newham Sir Robin Wales and chief executive of NCVO Sir Stuart Etherington. Here are some of the main points raised during the course of a wide-ranging discussion. 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 →

A simple way to support migrant and refugee community organisations

Posted on February 17, 2012 by OPM

By Mohini Khanna, OPM researcher.

In my spare time, I volunteer with the Migrant and Refugee Communities Forum (MRCF), based in west London. Set up almost 20 years ago, MRCF is a ‘user-led, community forum working to promote the rights of migrants and refugees in London’. One aspect of its work is to act as an umbrella organisation; as such it has a membership of over 40 migrant and refugee community organisations. 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 →

Putting public assets back in community hands

Posted on February 3, 2012 by OPM

By Robin Clarke, OPM fellow.

Reading the news this week about the Circle Partnership’s takeover of Hinchingbrooke Hospital in Cambridgeshire it’s understandable that people might conclude that where a service is struggling the only viable alternative to public sector management is a solution involving significant private sector input. But in some cases community ownership can be the best answer.

Take the Battersea Arts Centre, for instance. A little while ago I was sitting there helping to facilitate an event about the future of health services in South West London. The venue had a ‘shabby chic’ feel to it and a cat (Pluto – on the staff list as Head of Security, Sleeping and Prowling) who strutted about checking everyone out. But I wondered if I was the only person at the event who was aware of the great transformation that had taken place there?

The Battersea Arts Centre is a shining example of how local people can take over the management of a public asset and not only save a service from possible closure, but also improve it. The building has been threatened with closure many times in its long history, but finally it seems to have found a sustainable future. Since taking over the asset the Centre has broadened its range of projects and seen an increasing number of visitors. Continue reading →

Releasing the talents of isolated older people

Posted on January 31, 2012 by OPM

By Clive Miller, OPM principal.

How can isolated older people be enabled to reconnect with and become active parts of their local communities again? Loss of a partner or increase in your own or your partner’s disability is often linked with a collapse of personal social networks. You can’t or don’t feel able to get out and about as before. Friends are diffident about contacting you. For older people in residential care this can be even more of an issue.

The usual answer to tackling isolation is to reach out to older people in their own homes through befriending services or enable them to come to social events. These are fine but they neglect the abilities of older people and the wish of many to be able to still help others and be a valued and active part of their communities.

There is a different approach: instead of starting with needs, focus on the assets that older people and the communities in which they live already possess. How can older people be enabled to make better use of them? This is the central question posed by the DWP / LGA Ageing Well programme. 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 →

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