EUKN - European Urban Knowledge Network - A Very English Revolution – Delivering Bolder and Better Local Area Agreements

A Very English Revolution – Delivering Bolder and Better Local Area Agreements

Introduction

Local Area Agreements have the potential to transform public services and through better co-ordination, innovation and efficiency, they drive up standards and ensure better value for money, while creating higher public satisfaction and better public access.

Description

This pamphlet offers two contributions to take us on a road to greater devolution and local autonomy.

First, it looks at what has been happening on local area agreements. Despite obvious difficulties of an unsatisfactory framework, much good progress has been made.

Second, it sets out our ambitions, and those of the Improvement and Development Agency (IDeA), for the second generation of LAAs.

Background information

The potential of LAA's depends on the original concept of:

releasing the energy of local partnerships around common local aims and objectives,
energising their staff,
and harnessing their initiative and local expertise.

The aim is to recapture this original intent to shape the way forward.

Methodology

The original LAA pilots have now experienced two years of implementation and we are coming to the end of the first year of round two. These 87 areas have recently undertaken six month reviews, through which government offices analyse and report on progress.

Case studies are included throughout this pamphlet which reflect the varied ways in which different areas are pursuing
better outcomes for local people.

Conclusions

The development of a single coherent national indicator set, with data collected once and shared across all government and local partners, will be critical to reducing the bureaucratic load.

Likewise, a substantial change in the way targets are set is promised, with a maximum of 35 improvement targets designated within each LAA.

The new duties to co-operate and have regard to agreed LAA outcomes will help to underpin a further change of gear in local partnership working. Capacity-building and support for LSPs remains a crunch issue for 2007/8.

Contact info

Local Government Association
info@lga.gov.uk

Publication date

Project finished

//2007

Researcher

I&DeA and LGA

Article info
ISBN: 978-1-84049-562-1

Links

www.lga.gov.uk

Download 'A Very English Revolution' Report (PDF, Eng, 273 KB)

Document type

research

Themes

Urban Policy

Keywords

Social inclusion & integration