Friday 05 December 2008, 16:50hrs
Blears publishes Local Democracy Bill
Ms Blears, the Communities Secretary, said: “The new Bill will give every neighbourhood, city and region the opportunity to unlock the potential and the talent of its people.”
The Bill formalises the legal standing of Multi Area Agreements (MAAs) and aspires to strengthen the role of overview and scrutiny by cementing the requirement for a ‘dedicated scrutiny officer’ in county and unitary authorities.
Although both these measures are welcome it will be said by some that they amount to ‘treading water’ in legislative terms given that MAAs already exist and that most county and unitary authorities have at least one dedicated scrutiny officer. Extending the requirement to have a dedicated scrutiny officer to district councils would arguably have made the Department of Communities and Local Government’s “plan to boost capacity and raise awareness of overview and scrutiny” seem more forthright.
However, the admission that “growing evidence suggests the number of scrutiny officers is decreasing as the range of work carried out by overview and scrutiny committees is increasing” should be seen as an important step in the right direction.
More disparagingly, there was little to suggest that overview and scrutiny will play a significant role in scrutinizing the new Regional Strategy as they will be developed in by the Regional Development Agency in partnership with a new local authority Leaders’ Board and subject to the new regional select committees.
Related Links
Posted by Adam Pickering
Friday 28 November 2008, 12:40hrs
IRP publishes report about its experiences
The Panel has published a report about the work it has undertaken so far and this provides some useful lessons about the process of developing and consulting on proposals for service changes.
The panel found that the most common reasons for the referal of reconfiguration proposals were:
- inadequate community and stakeholder engagement, before
options are published in a formal consultation - important content missing from reconfiguration plans – local
communities want to know what services will be provided,
where and how they will access them - mixed messages about clinical issues – if doctors in an area
publicly disagree, their patients are entitled to be sceptical
about proposed changes - proposals that emphasize what cannot be done and underplay
the benefits of change and plans for additional services - health agencies caught on the back foot about the three issues
most likely to excite local opinion – emergency care, transport
and moneyRelated Links
- IRP: Learning from Reviews
Posted by Adam Pickering
Thursday 27 November 2008, 17:15hrs
CfPS E-newsletter launch
Related Links
Posted by Adam Pickering
Thursday 27 November 2008, 12:27hrs
Using the scrutiny process to review the use of surveillance powers under the Regulation of Investigatory Powers Act 2000
In June 2008, thenChairman of the LGA, Sir Simon Milton, suggested that all Councils should review and monitor the use of the RIPA powers through the overview and scrutiny process.
The CfPS would like to know of any good practice examples where councils already use overview and scrutiny to review the use of the RIPA powers. Further to a recent posting on the CfPS discussion forum examples have been received from Poole and Bradford Councils, but any more examples would be helpful.
Please supply any examples to CfPS by 12 December to Mark Lowe – mark.lowe@cfps.org.uk
Posted by Adam Pickering
Thursday 27 November 2008, 12:10hrs
Cardiff Council’s research project to improve the way Scrutiny Committees & independent regulators work together
Cardiff Council’s scrutiny research team is currently conducting research to improve the way in which Scrutiny Committees and independent regulators work together. The Centre for Public Scrutiny is in full support of this research project.
The intended outcomes of this research are:
- Greater impact on citizen outcomes from the collective scrutiny & regulatory spend;
- Improved co-ordination of scrutiny and regulatory work;
- Increased impetus for scrutiny improvement and investment.
In preparation for a large piece of primary research by external consultants Cardiff council’s scrutiny research team are conducting a literature review to identify current debates about the interface between regulation and council’s scrutiny function and identify examples of current scrutiny/regulator interfaces in place.
As such, the team are looking for practical examples of where regulators and scrutiny committees have worked together in some way and would be grateful if you would take the time to complete the attached form.
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Posted by Adam Pickering
Thursday 27 November 2008, 11:55hrs
Crime and Disorder Scrutiny - Police and Justice Act 2006
The Home Office has advised the CfPS that the Policing Green Paper responses are due to be published imminently. They are now looking at how/when to commence the Community Call for Action and the crime and disorder scrutiny powers under the Act and they have been asked to give urgent advice to Ministers. In order for the Home Officeto be able to give detailed accurate advice to ministers, it would be helpful if local authorities could complete the attached questionnaire which we will then forward to the Home Office.
Related Links
Posted by Adam Pickering
Tuesday 11 November 2008, 10:45hrs
Expanding the Remit of LINks - Action Learning Projects
This notice invites you to express an interest in being an action learning project site and provides further information about the background to the projects and the process for this work.
Related Links
Posted by Adam Pickering
Monday 03 November 2008, 17:47hrs
Audit Commission publishes report on children’s trusts
The report has found that children’s trusts have added little value and have in some cases got in the way of more successful if informal arrangements that were already in place.
The report concludes that local authorities and partners must have clear governance and accountability arrangements with their Local Strategic Partnership, embrace joint commissioning, find ways to influence mainstream resources and improve the way partners are involved.
The Audit Commission have also produced a useful self-assessment tool for children’s board trusts.
Related Links
Posted by Adam Pickering