By Richard Johnstone | 4 July 2014
Nearly two-thirds of people say that they have seen no real change in council services despite reductions in local authority funding as part of the coalition government’s deficit reduction plan, a poll has found.
According to the survey by insurers Zurich Municipal and Ipsos MORI, 63% of people said they had not noticed any difference to their council services, despite almost all local authorities introducing major changes, including reduction in some services, in response to budget pressures. The Local Government Association has highlighted that central government funding for councils will have been cut by 40% between 2010/11 and the end of 2014/15.
Publishing the research at CIPFA’s annual conference on Wednesday, Paul Tombs, head of public services at Zurich Municipal, said councils could be proud that few people have noticed any impact on services.
However, the greatest challenge for local authorities was to keep local communities informed about future decisions to cut spending, he said, as the impact of further reductions may be felt.
The poll found that almost half of people (47%) recognised that budget cuts were a key challenge for authorities, he highlighted.
“Now, given that communities appear to be pretty sympathetic to the challenges facing local government, they have an opportunity to build on this success and reassure people how they will continue to meet budget requirements whilst maintaining high quality services.
‘That means demonstrating they are managing the risks ahead and adopting long-term plans to ensure the continuing viability of public services.’
The report also asked people what their priorities for local improvements were.
Top of the list was improvements to the condition of roads and pavements, which was backed by 41% of people. Improvements to local job prospects were highlighted by nearly one third (30%), as were more activities for teenagers (29%).
