After 15 years of austerity, the sector hoped that the new Government might herald some improvement in its dire financial position. Ten months on, we find positive steps and likely further progress in next month's Spending Review, but some key nettles remain to be grasped.

Behind the headline figures, there has been some shift toward more preventative investment. While we await the outcome of the essential work by the Chartered Institute of Public Finance and Accountancy and the Health Foundation on how to measure preventative investment in local government, the Budget's £250m for social care reforms, such as the Kinship Allowance pilot, £233m for homelessness prevention, and £90m investment in council-run children's homes are positive steps.