Housing is one of the fundamental services districts and unitary councils provide, and the provision of good quality housing is a basic need, which impacts on the quality of life. It remains a priority for many local authorities, both in terms of provision of affordable housing and meeting Regional Spatial Strategy requirements. Recently in Warwickshire there has been considerable debate between the local Government Office and a colleague chief executive over the introduction of a target into the Warwickshire Local Area Agreement. Locally we did not want a target for the building of new housing units for various reasons - not least the near close down of the work by housing developers. The Government wanted this target because of the priority placed by the Government on new-build housing. The Public Service Board unanimously agreed the position put forward by my colleague. So why is this of any import? This instance shows how the ‘one-size fits all' approach put forward by civil servants (not from the Government Office, I hasten to add) has impacted on our everyday work in districts. It also showed how important it was for those on the Public Service Board (and those leading discussions on targets with Government Office officials) to know the views of colleagues and what is happening in the market place. We had also learned locally what can happen when targets that cannot be achieved are imposed on us, as was the case in LPSA2 for violent crime. Since the introduction of CPA, local government has improved its performance management with few exceptions. We can rightly have confidence therefore to stress to Government when targets are considered, that we will agree the need for step change, but will not agree unachievable targets. Mind you, an alternative thought crossed my mind that in the spirit of closer public sector working, every time a Government official insists on a target being ‘agreed'- commonly called imposed- that official must be seconded to the local authority concerned to deliver the target. Naturally they would have to work within the framework of rules we have. I wonder how long imposed targets would exist then…. Paul Lankester is chief executive of Stratford upon Avon DC
