Local Government decision making

1. Local Government decision making Councillors/ Officers Service Delivery Hierarchy Accountability Finances

2. Councillors • Local councillors elected by the people • Their duties include to direct and control local affairs; take key policy decisions; keep under review progress and performance of local services • Councillors do not get paid a salary (expenses/allowances) • Most councillors work FT as managers or self-employed

3. Officers • Must be politically neutral • Senior posts are politically restricted • Provide councillors with policy advice based on their knowledge and experience • Support all councillors and the executive, non-executive and scrutiny arms • Each department is headed by a Director. • Overseeing are the Chief Executive followed by the Monitoring Officer and the Chief Financial Officer

4. Service Delivery • Councils now ‘enable’ services – contracted out to private companies, agencies • Compulsory Competitive Tendering (CCT) – saw companies bid for tenders mainly in construction • Now it’s Best Value (BV) – still CCT but under another name

5. LG Hierarchy Three models – • Leader of council & cabinet/executive • Directly elected mayor & cabinet/executive • Directly elected mayor and council manager Executive is powers exercised by councillors (Cabinet) Non-executive and scrutiny are committees and sub-committees

6. Council Decision Making • Cabinet/Executive – policy proposals • Scrutiny Committee – comments and amendments • Full Council – final say on key decisions (things which would affect more than one ward or where there is a significant increase in money) • Each authority publishes a Forward Plan every 4 weeks outlining its key decisions

7. Accountability • Councils are accountable to local community • Publish their constitutions, standing orders • Submit accounts for auditing • Allow press and public to attend meetings (governed by the LG (Access to Information) Act 1985) • Give local people a say at the ballot box

8. Financing Local Govt • Capital expenditure builds infrastructure (roads, schools, offices, houses) • Revenue expenditure operates and maintains the infrastructure (wages, lighting, heating, repair) • Revenue spending comes from council’s income (CG grants, fines, parking permits)

9. Grants • Formula Grant – revenue support grant, uniform business rate & principal formula police grant • Non-formula grant – Specific grants and area based grants

10. Council Tax • Council tax based on property value • Each house falls into one of eight bands (A-H) according to their capital value • Banding not changed since introduction in 1993 • Total amount the authority intends to spend minus Total non-Council Tax revenue divided by Council Tax base (number of eligible households)

11. Uniform Business Rate • UBR based on value of premises used by businesses • Value based on how much the building could have been let for at the relevant date • Amount charged is based on a ‘national multiplier’ calculation • Rateable value of property multiplied by National Muliplier

12. Other sources of LA income • Council house rent • Leisure services (pools, sports centre, libraries) • Collection of trade refuse • Car parking tickets, fines • Income from private contractors • European Social Fund (ESF) which is money given to provide training and employment prospects to some groups