Title

SOCIAL CARE

A system of finance that's ready for extinction

Heather Jameson says the current system of local government finance ‘looks more and more like it was designed by dinosaurs and is due for extinction’.

I once heard Kensington and Chelsea LBC chief executive, Barry Quirk, talk about evolution. The temptation is to think of a slow process, as we gradually evolve. But it is a misconception – evolution is not always a slow process. From the big bang to the dinosaur extinction, evolution owes more to swift catastrophic events than it does to incremental change.

The coronavirus crisis is the catastrophic event of our time. The impacts – economic, institutional, community and personal – will resonate for many years to come.

Any local government transformation plans underway before the pandemic – and the associated budgeted savings that went with them – are incremental compared with what is to come. Already, we have started to see the green shoots of ambition of a new deal for local government.

As central government responses look increasingly shambolic, local authority delivery on the ground looks far more impressive and the confidence of the sector is buoyed. There is already a new relationship across the public, community and voluntary sectors, boosted by necessity, but set to last into the future.

As Rob Whiteman told MPs this week, the crisis has exposed the gaping holes in council finances and the weakness of covering essential services – including social care – on the back of two meagre property taxes and a rag-bag of fees and charges.

More than ever, the limitations of local government autonomy have been tested. An initial promise from ministers to cover the costs of the pandemic, wavered – adding financial anxiety to an already arduous task. The sector is at the whim of a handful of ministers as local communities need more support than ever.

It's no surprise that the announcement of the latest tranche of cash caused a scramble of lobbying from different factions of the sector, arguing why they deserved more when we all know the truth: the problem is not the size of your slice, the cake is just not big enough.

Local government shouldn't have to go cap in hand to Government to cover the costs of a national emergency, to look after UK citizens at a local level. They should have control over their own tax-raising powers.

The current system of local government finance, of top down bureaucracy and central control, looks more and more like it was designed by dinosaurs and is due for extinction.

SOCIAL CARE

Make AI a booster, not a blocker

By Vivek Behl | 22 August 2025

Without a co-ordinated approach to AI adoption, councils risk causing confusion and frustration rather than improving productivity, says Vivek Behl.

SOCIAL CARE

Dealing with the rising tide crisis

By Wayne Scott | 21 August 2025

Wayne Scott explains why public sector leaders must plan for supplier failure.

SOCIAL CARE

Fair funding must reflect real need – not just population growth

By Cllr Tracey Dixon | 21 August 2025

Any fair funding formula must reflect not just how many people live in an area, but the depth and breadth of their needs, says the leader of South Tyneside C...

SOCIAL CARE

Farage: Put pressure on councils to follow Epping Forest

By Dan Peters | 19 August 2025

Reform UK leader Nigel Farage has urged people to 'put pressure' on councils to go to court after a High Court ruling.

Heather Jameson

Popular articles by Heather Jameson