Localism and the Frontline Councillor

1. Localism and the Frontline Councillor Derbyshire Member Development Skills Programme Alan Waters LGIU

2. Seminar Aims • Look at the implications of three parts of the Localism Act on the roles of frontline councillors. • Give an overview of the roles and skills required to be an effective community leader at local level. • Discuss a strategic approach within the authority for effective community leadership.

3. Leadership roles for working with communities

4. The Member as community leader • The LGA has useful guidelines on councillors as community leaders • They identify eight key roles • These could be used to develop your authority’s own version of community leadership for Members

5. The role of councillors as community leaders - List of characteristics from the LGA • Making things happen • Standing up for communities • Using resources effectively • Being accountable

6. Councillors as community leaders • Building vision and direction • Working in partnerships • Listening and involving local communities • Building skills in local communities

7. Activity • Please complete the Star Chart on the eight leadership roles • Officers can complete the Star Chart in relation to a number of Members they know

8. The Localism Act

9. Building the Big Society throughthe Localism Act Decentralisation – giving away power to individuals, professionals and communities Big Society - people, neighbourhoods and communities have more power and responsibility and use it to create better services and outcomes Right to Bid Neighbourhood planning Right to Challenge

10. Introduced on 13th December 2010 Passed final Commons stage 7th November 2011 and Royal Assent 15th November with key implementation April 2012 onwards Localism Act

11. The Right to Bid – is about land and property The Right to Challenge – is about services A plain English guide to the Localism Act

12. The Localism Act covers • Powers to call referendum • Power of General Competence • Community Right to Challenge • Assets of Community Value • Council / social housing tenancies and rents • Community planning • Business Rates • Councils (governance)

13. Familiar language • ‘local’; ‘localism’; ‘choice’; ‘community’; ‘accountability’; ‘freedom’; ‘decentralisation’; BUT A wide range of views about what this means in practice for local government; elected members and the ‘communities’ they represent.

14. Localism: What sort of hand is local government holding?

15. Different views of ‘Localism’ “ I think it is reasonable that councils shouldn’t use their new found freedom to saddle up the horses, arm their citizens and invade France. Apart from that, the world will be your oyster”. Eric Pickles MP, Secretary of State for Communities & Local Government. Local Government Association Conference, July 2010.

16. Localism: What sort of hand is local government holding?

17. Different Views of ‘Localism’ ‘The Localism Act is conditioned by the dominant centralist culture of central government… it could as well have been called the Centralism Act’ George Jones & John Stewart ‘The World will be your Oyster’ Reflections on ‘The Localism Act 2011’

18. What’s in a word? -‘community’ Different meanings under different parts of the Act (and the wider localism agenda) • Community Right to Challenge • Neighbourhood Planning • Community Right to Bid • Applications for Free Schools • Academy conversions.

19. ‘Localism’ & Decentralisation Grant Shapps : Central Government isn’t giving power to councils to then see it recentralised locally Localism Act: new right of contestability to allow organisations to challenge councils to consider new ways of working

20. What does the ‘Localism Act offer councils? • Introduces a range of new powers (general Power of Competence) as well as duties and direct intervention by local people; organisations (CRTC) and communities (neighbourhood planning) • Also reserves 80+ powers to the Secretary of State. So goal-posts can change. Two examples of Freedoms and Restrictions

21. Freedoms: General Power of Competence • Framed as though local authorities can act as an individual (i.e. anything not expressly illegal) • Duties still exist around e.g. competition, equalities; ‘reasonableness’ and Human Rights • Secretary of State reserves the power to make orders preventing specific activities using the power • E.g. no abolition or variation of any tax.

22. Restrictions: Council Tax Referendums Requirement for local authorities to hold a referendum if they seek to set a level of council tax that this above the threshold considered ‘excessive’ by reference to regulations made by the Secretary of State A centralising mechanism for the SoS to set the amount of council tax.

23. It takes three to Tango?

24. It takes three to Tango? Lack of clarity around: - decentralisation to local councils - decentralisation to communities - role of national regulations and detailed control from the centre shaping this relationship

25. Just the beginning • Within the possibilities and constraints of the legislation elected members must map out their own political direction: • There is no ‘blue print’

26. But the Localism Act is only part of the story • Must be seen as part of an even larger landscape encompassing - Welfare Reform - Open public Services White Paper - Health Service & Police reforms - Reform of Local Government Finance - Education reforms – Academies & ‘Free Schools’ A number of which have strong ‘localist’ characteristics

27. Understanding the bigger picture

28. Devolving contentious issues • Welfare Reform changes • Housing reforms • Budget reductions • Local Government Finance Reform

29. The Change Timeline

30. Governance Issues Councils will have more choice around governance arrangements but will need to have an eye to public sector reforms - Health and Well-being boards - Police & Crime Panels - Plurality of service providers (CRTC) - Local Enterprise Partnerships (LEPs) Trend in the direction of more scrutiny. Need to rewrite the council constitution?

31. Leadership and “Community Rights” The Right to Bid; the Right to Challenge; Neighbourhood planning

32. The idea is more power to local people so they can run local services Such as manage a park, run a transport service, or provide social care Introducing the Community Right to Challenge

33. Community Right to Challenge • Enables a ‘relevant body’ to challenge the provision of services provided by a council. • These are community or voluntary bodies, charities, parish councils or two or more council staff. • If successful a procurement process must be undertaken.

34. A complaints procedure A way to save a service that has been closed by the council - it is not a way to require a council to continue running a service it has decided to stop. What the Right to Challenge is not…

35. DCLG Consultation February 2011

36. Community Right to Challenge • Act does not prevent “for profit” bodies seeking to express an interest (use of SoS reserve powers) • “Civil Society” organisations as ‘can-openers’ for large commercial organisations through triggering a procurement process under the Public Contracts Regulations 2006 – where the value of a service exceeds the threshold of £156,000 for local authorities or unless the service is otherwise exempt.

37. Community Right to Challenge Reasons for rejecting an expression of interest - ‘In-house comparator (?)/Best Value - ‘Public Services Social Value Act’ – consideration of wider community interest. - Well-being of the area. Likely to generate some case law…..

38. Services run by the local the local authority (unless excluded e.g. core Fire and Rescue services) Services already commissioned out by the council Not the NHS but may be extended to other bodies carrying out ‘a function of a public nature’ What can be challenged?

39. Council wide – whole service area Locally based - or part of a service Two levels of ‘challenge’

40. Next stage • If the expression of interest is accepted a procurement process is triggered. • Procurement triggered by a Right to Challenge now needs to include ‘social value’ as part of the criteria, a term defined by the authority. • Within that, open to any organisation to bid

41. Community Right to Challenge Issues to consider: • Unknown number and scale of challenges and subsequent procurement processes (use of ‘challenge windows’) • ‘Included’ and ‘excluded’ services • Possible fragmentation of service delivery • Cost • Democratic deficit ? • ‘Trojan Horse’ for major private sector contractors to secure more of the local government services market. • Impact on the workforce where services contracted out to new providers.

42. The Right to Bid • The provisions aim to make it easier for community groups to take over buildings and land. On average nearly 300 pubs and 400 village shops have closed each year. • Already councils can transfer assets to community groups. • The Act broadens this to properties that are privately owned and owned by other public bodies.

43. Sometimes buildings come up for sale but groups find out too late or need more time to get a bid ready. The new Act tackles this by suggesting: There is a List set up by each Council of ‘assets of community value’ A period of time is available for groups to get a bid ready What’s the problem?

44. The Right to Bid: Assets of Community Value • Duty to maintain a list of assets designated as being of ‘community value’ and those which have failed nomination • Restricts timing of sale of such assets to give communities a right to bid (not buy) • Does not guarantee the service, simply the asset from which that service was delivered • Councils liable for compensation to landowners for associated costs

45. Assets can be ‘nominated’ by a voluntary and community body whose primary purpose is in the local authority’s area or the neighbourhood (incorporated or unincorporated) Or Parish Councils The council then considers whether it meets the definition of ‘community value’ If it does, it goes on the ‘List of assets of community value’ and stays on it for five years By nominating an asset, it does not oblige a community body to make a bid How will it work?

46. How will it work? • Draft regulations published in July to come into force 12th October 2012. • Distinction between organisations able to apply for a property to be listed and those treated as potential bidders. • Neighbourhood forums can nominate buildings to be listed; but can’t be bidders.

47. How it will work • Bidders are – Parish & Town Councils; not for profit organisations and charities • Bidders must demonstrate a local connection with the land /asset and must reinvest any surplus for the benefit of the local community • Potential costs to the local authority in administering the scheme.

48. Definition of ‘Asset of Community Value’ Asset of community value is building or other land which: • Furthers social wellbeing and interests of local community • As it’s current use, or in recent past (not potential use) • As it’s main use, not ancillary use • Where it is realistic to think will continue to further social wellbeing and interests

49. The nomination can not include private houses, except where the accommodation is tied to or integral to the asset e.g. flat above a pub What sort of buildings and land?

50. Community Organisation Neighbourhood Planning Forum Parish Council Local Authority asks owner for comment Identify Land or Building of Community Value Local Authority decides to list asset List of land nominated by unsuccessful community nominations Local Authority decides not to list asset List of Assets of Community Value No objection from owner Owners objection unsuccessful Owner’s objection successful Added to list of Community Value Local Authority publicises and maintains list