The Development and Delivery of European Structural and Investment Funds Strategies: Supplementary Guidance for LEPs
In March 2013, the Government announced that, for the 2014-20 funding period, a large majority of the EU’s Structural Funds for England would be allocated to Local Enterprise Partnerships (LEPs). Supplementary Guidance, published 24 July, focuses in detail on what LEPs have to do to develop their strategies for EU funds. The Supplementary Guidance also…
Youth services and emerging models of delivery: Youth service mutuals
Local authorities are developing new ways of securing youth services for young people. This briefing, one of series, looks at two local authorities which have encouraged mutuals to take on the running of the youth service as a way of securing provision in light of significant local authority expenditure savings.
Planning for Urban Freight
This briefing provides a discussion of the Draft Principles, and the background and context associated with current reform processes. It explores recent urban freight trends and the impacts of COVID-19 (and associated restrictions), and the potential longer-term implications thereof.
Local Government Finance Act 2012 – Council Tax Reforms
The Local Government Finance Act 2012 brings in arrangements for localised council tax support schemes to replace council tax benefit from April 2013. It also provides local authorities flexibility on the council tax that can be charged on empty homes and provides them with the freedom to publish council tax information on-line. This briefing will…
Free Schools Admissions – DfE update to recent advice
Updates the previous CSN Policy Briefing about four documents, originally published by DfE on 2 May 2014, which were reissued with modifications on 12 June 2014. They provide advice for free schools about devising, determining and implementing their admissions policies: • Free school admissions: guidance v2, May 2014 (11 pages) • Free school admissions: common…
Traineeships: Funding Reform in England – BIS and DfE consultation
Traineeships are a government-funded programme, first launched in August 2013, intended to provide support in acquiring work experience and workplace skills to young people who require extra help with the transition into employment Feedback through subsequent months has led the Government to adjust aspects of the programme, but it is yet to finalise its approach…
Sporting Future: A New Strategy for an Active Nation
The government has launched a new strategy to engage more people in sport and physical activity and harness sport for ‘social good’. The strategy acknowledges the strategic co-ordinating role of local government in delivering sport and physical activity opportunities.
Changing to a committee system in a new era
This briefing looks at the experience of four councils that have changed to a committee system under the new provisions in the Localism Act 2011. The paper provides a background to the relevant legislation and a commentary on some of the key issues. It briefly considers perceived strengths and weaknesses of the new alternative system…
In Conversation With… Cllr Roddie Mackay
...community in Barra. If we manage this I think it’s a model that government will embrace and will use elsewhere. The care home in Lewis, public service delivery model in...
Vulnerable young people in residential care and re-integration into families: Multisystemic Therapy
One of the biggest challenges of local authority children's social care is helping young people return to their families if they have been in residential care for mental health problems, drug/alcohol abuse, and criminal offending. It is difficult and expensive. This briefing looks at the effectiveness of Multisystemic Therapy and the implications for its use…