Ensuring that public money delivers clear, positive outcomes to those who use public services is at the heart of good decision-making. Unless we have a clear idea of what the projected outcomes are from the decisions we take, and a sense of whether those outcomes are worth the monetary investment needed to make them happen, we can’t know that resources are being spent in the right way on the right things. This has always been important, but with councils now managing much smaller resource bases, getting it right is more important than ever. Leaders and Chief Executives also need reassurance ...
December saw some of the worst floods ever recorded in the north of England. For the first time, a major city, York, was seriously inundated. Images of floods seem to have now become a grim tradition at this time of year - floodwater cascading over breached defences, disintegrating bridges over swollen rivers, cars window-deep in water, quickly and suddenly abandoned with their hazard lights on.Pictures of the aftermath, too, are familiar. Pavements stacked high with ruined furniture and carpet, crowned with a sodden Christmas tree. Front rooms bare except for a solitary dehumidifer. Contrite and concerned politicians. Interviews with ...