Yvonne Reinhardt and Sally Dickens encourage PiP Neighbourhood Boards and Councils to start thinking about further steps towards community-led delivery now. In early December, the Ministry of Housing, Communities & Local Government (MHCLG) published the Pride in Place (PiP) programme prospectus. Building on the previous Plan for Neighbourhoods, the Government’s flagship regeneration programme stands out for its emphasis on a profound shift in power dynamics: moving from an in

The next twelve months will be critical for public services and determine the scale of the reform that will be delivered in the next three years. John Copps picks out some of the areas to watch out for. 2025 felt like stuttering progress for a government that has styled itself as a champion of public services. It was always going to be a tough job, but the rollercoaster of the previous ten years has not been replaced by something that feels like stability. There’s been lots o

Client:  The five Worcestershire District Councils of Bromsgrove, Redditch, Malvern Hills, Worcester City and Wychavon Date:  Sep – Dec 2025 Challenges faced by the client : Central government has committed to simplifying local government. In February 2025, the Minister of State wrote to all councils in two-tier areas to formally invite proposals for Local Government Reorganisation (LGR). Working together, five district councils in Worcestershire were seeking to put together

In the latest Radical Reformers episode, I welcome Des Murray, Chief Executive of North Lanarkshire Council and Chair of Solace Scotland. Des shares his personal journey from growing up in Lanarkshire to leading the council in his hometown, highlighting the power of local roots and the value of a generalist perspective in leadership. He explains how North Lanarkshire’s “one plan” approach integrates housing, economy, infrastructure, and digital strategy to deliver real change

In this article, Andrew Laird argues that each level of government should have to justify why they aren’t passing power down to the next. It's a deliberately provocative title... of course it's not true for everything. But I'd love it if we started with that. I think it’s probably fair to say that every level of government over estimates its own importance and ability to effect positive change. There is a cultural reluctance to pass power, resources and responsibility to the

As resources tighten, councils are at risk of diminishing to simply being a provider of last resort, statutory public services. In this blog, Kate Copeland and Ross Murray argue that this can’t be allowed to happen.   They reflect on their recent work with Norfolk County Council (NCC) to develop a new Community Engagement Model focused on creating a practical path for councils to become true partners with the communities they serve as well as other parts of the public sector.

When systems are designed around trust and relationships, they create change. Sophie Coles argues that great public services are about...

In the latest episode of Radical Reformers, I talk to Helen Bailey, Chief Executive of Sutton Council. Helen brings the rare experience...

When it comes to public service reform, large swathes of public services have been experiencing “delivery paralysis”. In this article, Prof Donna Hall and Andrew Laird explore why this is and what can be done about it. This article kicks off an Autumn of content from the Mutual Ventures team focused on supporting a stronger delivery focus in public services. #GettingStuffDone #DoingTheRightStuff!! Where we’ve been – and where we are… Reading the conference programmes for this

Andrew Laird argues that leaders must reject the short-termism of traditional approaches to achieving efficiency savings. Instead, they...

Catch up on our webinar 'Trusting Place' , which discussed the findings of our report to the LGA on place-based working, held on 6th...

T he spending review has given government departments some medium-term budget certainty and with it, the opportunity to launch multi-year...

This is episode 100 of the Radical Reformers podcast!   We wanted to take the opportunity to thank all the guests who have taken the time...

We have published a new guide for councils going through the Local Government Reorganisation (LGR) process – the focus is on the...

The next two episodes of the Radical Reformers podcast will be a bit different (and hopefully a treat for the public service reform nerds...

In this article, Prof. Donna Hall and Andrew Laird recognise the challenge now faced by public service leaders and set out a positive set...

Watch our recent webinar that reflected on the Spending Review announcement on the 11th June and the impact on local government. Almost...

In this new episode of Radical Reformers, I chat with Kath O'Dwyer, former Chief Executive of St Helens Council and Chair of S OLACE . ...

Our latest report explores Local Government Reorganisation (LGR) and the significant opportunity it brings to reshape and improve the...

In this latest episode of Radical Reformers, I'm joined by Caroline Simpson, Chief Executive of Greater Manchester Combined Authority...