The Total Place report highlights the excellent work councils have done, leading their areas to find ways of delivering better services for less. This is an important first step in changing the relationship between Whitehall and town halls, but it will need to be followed up with bolder and more concrete action.

Total Place will only deliver savings and better outcomes if Whitehall massively reduces the cost of central government bureaucracy so that more money reaches the front lines, and delegates decision-making power so that local people have a real say over how public money is spent.

The Government has listened to the LGA’s call that funding should be allocated by place, need and priority rather than be institutionally or initiative-driven through their ‘Single Offer’ pot of money. It is also good news that central government has recognised the need for places to be able to retain the savings made, to be reinvested in the local area.

Download the full briefing (PDF, 6 pages, 114KB)

http://www.lga.gov.uk/lga/core/page.do?pageId=10170413