25 June 2004
Local plans to improve communities are being undermined by the myriad of confusing and complex funding streams, targets and new initiatives emerging from Whitehall, the Audit Commission has reported.
A study published by the local government watchdog on June 23 highlights the extent of councils' long-running battle to manage central government initiatives effectively, claiming that the delivery of regeneration programmes, for example, is hindered by the increasingly blurred responsibilities and objectives often insisted upon by ministers.
People, Places and Prosperity also indicates that complex and overlapping schemes such as Sure Start, New Deal for Communities and Housing Market Renewal – which often involve councils working alongside several 'partner' agencies – can work to undermine government and local priorities.
James Strachan, the Audit Commission's chair, claims that the current situation amounts to a 'Humpty Dumpty effect', whereby centrally determined programmes fragment among several agencies at local level and 'have to be put back together to meet local priorities'.
Not only does this cause confusion over responsibility; it is also proving costly for councils.
Rochdale Metropolitan Borough Council discovered it was spending up to 10% of its £360m project grants in administration and only began to control costs once it had centralised the support teams involved.
Consequently, Strachan has called for a two-pronged approach to improved community initiatives.
Local area agreements (LAAs) would set out in advance what benefits local people could expect from projects that lie outside mainstream services, while local public service agreements (PSAs) could be refocused to ensure that they specify outcomes and standards that taxpayers can expect from mainstream services.
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