CfGS Annual Conference – date change – now Wednesday 1 December 2021! The annual conference is the highlight of our year, when we look forward to bringing together scrutiny members, officers and partner colleagues to network, hear brilliant speakers and share excellent scrutiny practice. We have been considering the potential impact of reduced attendance numbers on the conference experience due to continued social distancing, travel concerns, etc. and the uncertainty of further disruption. So we decided it would be safer to move the conference date to Wendesday 1 December 2021. By making this change, we can (fingers crossed) ...
Sessions: 10am – 11am, 2pm – 3.30pm, 4pm – 5pm Sign up for the whole day; attend all three sessions, or dip in and out as you choose. This workshop will provide an opportunity for scrutiny practitioners (both councillors and officers) to come together to share their experiences of scrutiny, and remote council meetings. After sessions 1 and 2, brief notes of discussions and their outcomes will be drafted and circulated to participants. Session 1: Plenary plus Q&A (10am-11am) Short presentations from: Ed Hammond and Kate Grigg (CfGS): on the overall approach that councils are taking to their scrutiny ...
This is the first in a series of five blogs on political culture and scrutiny. Over the course of the next couple of months we will explore what political culture is, what its practical implications are and how members and officers at a local level can work together to identify deficiencies in how people act and behave to promote a more positive and productive approach to politics and local democracy at a local level. Some of this work intersects closely with work that the LGA has been doing on civility in public and political life – and it also links ...
With the publication of the NHS Long Term Plan, an expected Social Care Green Paper and the drive towards integrated services through Sustainability and Transformation Partnerships and Integrated Care Systems, health and care continues to feature as one of the most high profile policy challenges we face as a country. Tackling inequalities and improving population health are key to successfully keeping people healthy and living independently for as long as possible, as well as making sure that people can access effective treatment and support when they need it. Overview and scrutiny and other forms of local assurance have a vital ...
With the publication of the NHS Long Term Plan, an expected Social Care Green Paper and the drive towards integrated services through Sustainability and Transformation Partnerships and Integrated Care Systems, health and care continues to feature as one of the most high profile policy challenges we face as a country. Tackling inequalities and improving population health are key to successfully keeping people healthy and living independently for as long as possible, as well as making sure that people can access effective treatment and support when they need it. Overview and scrutiny and other forms of local assurance have a vital ...
After the local elections in May, supporting your new and returning councillors will be a high priority. Elections can mean change - a new council, different political leadership and/or a churn in committee places. While the council settles into its new cycle, new councillors will need support to understand how it all works. For returning councillors it’s an opportunity to refresh their skills. When it comes to overview and scrutiny, it’s also an opportunity to reflect, establish ground rules and get things off to a good start. Creating a positive scrutiny culture and expectations about ways of working are often ...
Is there a role for scrutiny when a council faces big and scary challenges? Does scrutiny step forward or slip back when the task becomes complex and risky? CfGS argue that there is no place for ‘shy scrutiny’. There has never been a topsy-turvier time in local government. Finances continue to decline, the pressures get bigger and the suitability of council structures is under question. Unitarisation is either at the talking phase or else being implemented in two-tier areas, with places like Northamptonshire, where a unitary structure is proposed as an affordability solution. Other models abound: Combined Authorities, Devolved ‘Powers’, ...
Join CIPFA and the Centre for Governance and Scrutiny at the House of Commons on 13 September for our inaugural councillors’ conference. Council finances are at the top of everyone’s agenda at the moment. Our focus on them is not just about the need to avoid high profile failures as has happened in Northamptonshire – the financial challenge affects us all, in different ways. We have all been dealing with increased financial constraints since 2010 (and in some cases before) but in the next couple of years, the pace of change will accelerate. Councillors need to be aware of – ...
The Centre for Governance and Scrutiny is interested in understanding the views of local politicians, council employees and other local people on scrutiny of local government. We have created a short survey and would like to invite anyone with an opinion on the issue to fill it. You can find the survey here - Scrutiny perceptions' survey. All responses will be anonymised. We are producing our annual publication on scrutiny perceptions in February, and responses to the survey will help us with this. If, along with the survey, you want to share any more detailed views, please contact ...
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