Localism

Related drivers

What are the implications?

1. devolution to greater local governance

The focus of decision-making may shift away from Whitehall and to the local councils. This could be closer to where your organisation operates.
Councils might assume a greater role in managing their area. They may be therefore looking for organisations that have more local knowledge to deliver services with.
New connections may need to be made as the councils’ role shifts in the local society.
There may be greater variance in how councils operate, leading to new models of council governance such as the ‘Co-operative Borough’ (stronger communities and sustainable outcomes through rise in mutual action), the ‘Outsourced Borough’ (long term strategic partnerships with large private sector provider), the ‘Easy Borough’ (stripping down to ‘no frills’ services).

2. locally delivered public services

In the drive to push localism, local councils (and/or co-producing organisations and individuals) stand to gain greater control over their services and budgets. This is a shift from centralised targets and so the centrally-led ringfencing of budgets, which has been beneficial to many civil society organisations, may disappear.
Variations in levels of public services and variations in council priorities. For example a council may previously have spent a percentage of resources to reach national targets of supporting eg young people. However if a particular council’s area does not have high numbers of young people then they may not see the need to spend resources on this.
Many civil society organisations (CSOs) have a wealth of experience in community building as well as reaching out to marginalised and disadvantaged groups. These skills could be in demand from councils as they look to improve participation in the decision making process. It may also help ensure local authorities access a wider range of voices in order to have a better understanding of the needs and concerns of all individuals they serve.

3. more empowered local communities

There might be a greater focus on community action and reaching out to engage these communities. If you are a small CSO with a highly defined beneficial group, this implication could be beneficial. Moving the focus away from the generic to the local opens opportunity for you to express your skills and get involved.
There may be discussion around what defines a community.
We might see a greater interest in the role technology can play in connecting people.

Moving forward

1. devolution to greater local governance

Councils could well be looking for expertise such as your organisation’s, to deliver services or engage users. In what ways could you get involved?
What are your current links with the local council? Would you be able to suggest closer ways of working to deliver specific projects, perhaps linked to delivering public services?
Is your organisation prepared if your local authority adopts a different way of structuring and governance? How might you need to work differently with them?
If you are a larger organisation, can you demonstrate that you connect with beneficiaries on a local level?

2. locally delivered public services

If you are a national CSO, could you have a role in encouraging equal provision of services across the country? If you’re a smaller, local CSO, could you connect with your equivalents in other areas to form networks which could function in the same way?
Could the move away from ring fenced budgets affect your funding levels? Has your organisation thought about how you could prepare for this? Take a look at our Future Focus on funding for some further thinking in this area. Have a look at our pages on planning as well. You need to bear in mind some of the issues here and on our other drivers to feed into your planning. And of course you can join for free to get our ebulletin which will help you think through all these elements to face the future with confidence.
How could your organisation prepare for this possible demand for your expertise? Could you act as a broker?
Personalisation could lead to greater competition between service providers. How is your organisation preparing for this?

3. more empowered local communities

More empowered local communities could benefit from the expertise of organisations who are accustomed to working with and for communities. Does your organisation have such knowledge? How could you harness it and offer it to a local council?
Information your organisation might have on community engagement and participation could feed into local and national discussions on Big Society discourse. Could you position yourself as experts on this? How would you go about doing this?
Technology is increasingly being used to connect communities. Rural communities can be bonded by for eg skype or izwe, or more simply, text messages can help set up meetings. Does your organisation have a role in helping people connect in this way?
Localism often evokes nostalgia. The concepts of local and community summon up 50’s era associations. Initiatives such as the Big Lunch are reminiscent of the VE day street celebrations. Could this be a way for CSOs to engage older people in community engagement?

Want to know more?

Local by social: How Local Authorities can use social media to achieve more for less

Published by: IDeA (now renamed Local Government Improvement and Development) and NESTA

Date: 2010

Format: PDF (367 kb)

What is it? A paper exploring how councils can use new tools - social media to meet their objectives and the increasing expectations of transparency and engagement. This document outlines how local authorities can use social media to achieve more for less. It also highlights the risk to councils if they ignore the technological advances of social media and the people using them.

How useful is this?

Communities in Control White Paper

Published by: Communities and local government department

Date: 2008

Format: PDF

What is it? A paper exploring who has power, on whose behalf is it exercised, how is it held to account, and how can it can be accessed by everyone in local communities.

How useful is this? Although by a previous government, this paper is useful to read as background to the localism agenda.

All Our Futures: The challenges for local governance in 2015

Published by: The Tavistock Institute – for Communities and Local Government – a government department

Date: 2006

Format: PDF (612KB)

What is it? A research report examining the impact of key issues and trends influencing local governance and public services in the future.

How useful is this? Although published several years ago it still provides a useful overview. This report examines social, economic, organisational, technological, cultural and political factors to identify what society will be like in 2015 and uses these findings to explore the implications for local government and governance. It looks both at functions and framework for local governance, and concludes that: community leadership; collaboration between key players in a locality; and engagement between local people and the state will be the most important functions.

Who’s accountable? The challenge of giving power away in a centralised political culture

Published by: Institute for Public Policy Research (IPPR)

Date: 2009

Format: PDF

What is it? A report examining accountability in the localism agenda.

How useful is it? This report asks the question whether, with minister’s still being held ultimately responsible, is it possible for power to ever be truly devolved from centralised government? By examining how devolution occurs, and the public’s perception of this, it concludes that whilst the public generally hold Westminster responsible at present, with proper communication, and real power given to regional and local authorities, the public would support localism, and attitudes towards responsibility will change.

Civic streets: the big society in action

Published by: Demos

Date: 2010

Format: PDF

What is it? A report looking at estates which re in the City of Birmingham, have been held up as examples of
community regeneration, collective efficacy and civic reengagement, and what lessons can be learnt from their experiences. "An attempt to inject some gritty realism into the 'Big Society' narrative.examining accountability in the localism agenda".

How useful is it?

Mass Localism

Published by: NESTA (National Endowment for Science, Technology and the Arts - an independent body with a mission to make the UK more innovative)

Date: 2010

Format: PDF

What is it? A report proposing a new approach to localism.

How useful is it?

Last updated at 16:19 Thu 26/Aug/10.

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Author	Comment
over 2 years ago Dhara	Written as Policy Officer at NCVO The localism agenda is moving forward at a rapid pace, and the requirements of the Local Government and Public Involvement in Health Act are now being implemented. NCVO have produced a briefing on some of the developments . In addition to this, the Sustainable Communities Act also passed last year. DCLG have published a guide to the Sustainable Communities Act DCLG have now released the final guidance you may also be interested in reading NCVOs briefing and response to the consultation on the draft guidance DCLG have also published a Principles for third sector representation on Local Strategic Partnerships The new performance framework for localities will inevitably have a huge impact on locally based and locally operating voluntary and community organisations. LSPs will continue to grow in importance as the main vehicles to agree the vision of, and priorities for, localities; Local Area Agreements will be the delivery mechanism to achieve these priorities.
over 2 years ago Dhara	Written as Policy Officer at NCVO I thought it might be useful to follow the above post with some more info on how the government is moving this agenda forward. The Communities in Control White Paper was published in July, and it has been accompanied by a raft of consultations, including: Consultation on the empowerment fund Consultation on DCLGs third sector partnership board Consultation on Improving local accountability Consultation on the future of the Local Area Agreement reward scheme MOJ Discussion paper on a framework for citizen engagement DCLG consultation on Standing for office: time off entitlements NCVO has responsed to these consultations. Communities in Control has been heralded by the government as the next step in terms of the devolutionary agenda – with last years Local Government Act devolving power to the town hall, will this white paper and the forthcoming Act really devolve power to people? I think that localism and empowerment are certainly going to be high on the political agenda for some time to come. Devolving power and the questions around how to get more people involved in local decision making are of interest to all political parties. Following the publication of their recent green paper on civil society, it will be interesting to read the forthcoming Conservative ‘centre-right’ local government green paper and learn more about what they have planned for localism and empowerment. The issues discussed in the white paper have also been debated in the media and the blogosphere quite extensively, with wide ranging opinions and many questions posed – can you really legislate for greater citizen engagement? Are voting incentives akin to bribing people for their votes? and is engagement delusory?
about 1 year ago Dhara	Written as Policy Officer at NCVO The Governments agenda on localism and local democracy is still moving forward. The Local Democracy, Economic Development and Construction Bill was introduced into the House of Lords on Thursday 4th December, with the second reading planned for Wednesday 17th Dec. The proposals that NCVO is particularly interested are related to: Local Democracy – including the proposed duty on local govt to promote democracy (to stimulate debate, improve democratic understanding and take up of civic roles) Economic Development – including the proposed duty on local govt to prepare an assessment of the economic conditions in an area Compact – we anticipate the Government will lay an amendment concerning statutory provisions in relation to the Commission for the Compact. An NCVO briefing is now available.
10 months ago Elizabeth	Moving further its agenda on localism and local democracy, in July this year the Department for Communities and Local Government launched a consultation on ‘Strengthening Local Democracy’ (PDF 400KB). The document set out a range of proposals, intended to increase the powers and responsibilities of local government and strengthen the role of councillors, particularly in relation to their scrutiny of public services and public spending. We initially produced an NCVO briefing on the 'Strengthening Local Democracy Consultation' (PDF 110KB). Our main concern was that any new proposal should be informed by the views and experience of VCOs, and should ensure the best balance between participative and representative democracy. NCVO has long argued that decision-making should be devolved to the local level as much as possible and that there is a need to strengthen local democracy. Enabling greater participation through devolved decision making is an important step toward reducing the local democratic deficit, and truly engaging with people. But in order to have strong local communities, both representative and participative democracy must be valued and enabled to thrive. While strengthening the powers of local authorities should enable them to better respond to local needs, acting decisively and effectively on behalf of their citizens, a strong and vibrant civil society is also required. We know how VCOs have an invaluable role in fostering citizen engagement by giving voice to a range of different interests and concerns, and ensuring people have the skills, confidence and support they need to participate in decisions that affect their lives. NCVO's response to the 'Strengthening Local Democracy Consultation' (PDF 114KB) is therefore informed by the requirement that local authorities understand and support the invaluable contribution VCOs make in engaging with individuals and communities, and recognise the value of working in partnership with the VCS. Our belief is that the VCS is capable of playing an even greater part in solving the problems of civil society and local democracy than it does at present. The focus of the consultation, and of our response, was of course on democratic processes and structures. And we welcomed the debate: it is important that there are more opportunities for people to participate directly in decisions that affect their lives. But here at NCVO we also think that now is the time when it is equally important for people to come together and debate the bigger questions that should be at the heart of politics: what kind of society do we want to create? What are the values we want to base it on? Join NCVO’s debate on The Good Society by telling us what it means to you.
6 days ago Jess Third Sector Foresight	On the issue of empowered local communities, I have been intrigued by some of the recent developments in my own community, which arguably seems to be evolving along the much-mooted Big Society ideal. Following the collapse in funding for a Café & Skills Centre, run by the support and housing charity Carr-Gomm, locals set up a not-for-profit called Bold Vision to get a community space up and running in the area again. What’s striking is about this replacement project, is the emphasis on the need for the new facilities to be financially secure and sustainable in the long run, rather than simply lurching from grant to grant as it did before. The building itself was renovated by locals giving their free time at the weekends, and funded through a series of start up grants and donations. The project is now funded partly through an innovative new local membership scheme (Bold Backers) and profit making activities, and has really begun to take off. Now – what is the role of a charity in all this? With the spectre of collapses in funding and services before us, it’s likely that new initiatives like this one will start to emerge – albeit in the wealthier, skills-rich areas. How can we support fledgling charities and not-for-profits, and help to replicate success where we find it in those areas with more limited local resources? And how can we help ensure that much needed services (like those provided by Carr-Gomm) don't simply drop off the agenda for community-led projects like this? Even with the best will in the world, local activists are very unlikely to use the success of their model to start up projects in other areas. Perhaps the role of civil society service providers in this region would be to pick up on innovations like this, and help others access the skills and models that have worked in neighbouring areas. An argument for infrastructure? Maybe. Last, but certainly not least, if you’re interested in localism and participation issues, keep an eye on the excellent Pathways through participation research project that’s currently looking into journeys of participation for people living in three different UK communities. With localism creeping higher and higher up the agenda, keeping up with findings around participation and engagement should be at the top many of our 'to do' lists! Want to find out more? Catch up with the latest on our dicussions around attitudes towards community responsibility.