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Government plans to make councils put all their items of spending above £500 online from next January were inspired by an initiative launched last year by Windsor and Maidenhead RBC. Michael Burton reports on the leafy borough which is also attracting national attention for its Big Society and recycling schemes. The leafy Berkshire borough of Windsor and Maidenhead is known for many fine qualities – the Thames, the Queen, the castle, Eton... But, perhaps it is less well known for being the pioneer of a simple online initiative which has so caught the imagination of the Government that from next January, every council must adopt it. The idea initiated at Windsor and Maidenhead was to place on its website every item of spending worth more than £500. Its chief executive, Ian Trenholm, explains: ‘The £500 idea was a manifesto pledge. Our leader liked the notion of transparency, and this was a simple idea. ‘Most public bodies don't get beyond talking about it. We just got on and did it and launched it last year. Why £500? We didn't want the figure to be too trivial. It's equal to a day's work for a consultant.' The £500 pledge has taken on a new dimension since communities secretary, Eric Pickles, announced the abolition of the Audit Commission in August. While the sector, through the Local Government Group, grapples with how to create a sector-led assessment regime, once the commission expires, CLG ministers believe transparency will drive self-improvement. It sees the £500 pledge as a cornerstone of the drive to create an army of local ‘armchair auditors', each scrutinising their council's spending. Indeed, this week, Mr Pickles launched the official consultation guidance on how to set up the £500 database. Mr Trenholm believes simplicity is at the heart of transparency, and that contrary to some critics, the process is relatively simple He explains: ‘We didn't need guidance or advice. We simply asked our financial system for details of spending above £500. If we can't put our own details online, then how can the sector inspect itself? Keep it simple. Can you explain it to the person on the top of the Maidenhead bus? If not, then don't do it.' So, what so far has been the impact? He admits residents haven't exactly crushed him in the rush to view the data. ‘We haven't been overwhelmed by queries. Residents liked it but didn't take a lot of notice,' he says. ‘We've had greater interest from other councils. But it enhances perceptions that the council is serious. Internally, people think carefully about what they spend money on.' Some critics argue it will lead to vexatious Freedom of Information (FoI) requests, which Mr Trenholm denies. ‘It's difficult to strip out the impact on FoI requests which, of course, are rising anyway. But there have been no press stories on the back of the data. Most queries are quite prosaic.' The data, which excludes information which could identify, for example, children in foster care or other sensitive details, is updated each quarter and put out in ‘common standard'. He adds: ‘We haven't bothered to prettify it. The challenge for us is that the data can appear on other websites, and some people have then tried to claim ownership of it.' The £500 idea is not its only initiative to have excited Mr Pickles. The Conservative flagship borough also recently pioneered a US initiative to boost recycling, in which residents gain points the more they recycle by weight, which can then be redeemed for vouchers worth up to £140 a year in local stores. It was a classic example of the so-called ‘nudge' theory, in which people are persuaded rather than forced to change behaviour. The pilot launched in July 2009, covered 6,000 homes, and drove recycling rates up by one-third. Says Mr Trenholm: ‘Residents were very interested and we were staggered by the uptake rate. If we'd hectored people about recycling, they wouldn't have done it.' Mr Pickles launched the main scheme being rolled out to 20,000 houses earlier this year. Incidentally, the council still maintains weekly collections. Yet another initiative involved the preservation of fire cover in Windsor. The local fire station was set to close at night. The council campaigned against closure, and mounted a bid to take over the fire service for the whole borough from the Royal Berkshire Fire and Rescue Service, under the terms of the Sustainable Communities Act. Discussions are still continuing. The council, which also launched an Adopt-a-street scheme manned by volunteers, is also one of the ‘vanguard' areas for Big Society. Mr Trenholm says: ‘We're making a reputation for being innovative, such as with participatory budgeting, and we're looking at wider incentivisation based on the recycling experience. ‘It's something which could be extended to volunteering, maybe encouraging people with vouchers or incentives to have better health.' He adds: ‘Big Society is not about money. In well-heeled areas, people are working and therefore, don't have the time. The lack of unemployment paradoxically is an obstacle. There are arguably better examples of volunteering in poorer areas.' Looking ahead, he sees the council's role as ‘that of catalyst, not necessarily handing out grants. Big Society can't be divorced from small government. ‘The danger is that councils mustn't be seen to head it, to be seen smothering it. Big Society also means more risk and the public don't quite get that. If we do innovate, then mistakes can be made.' He adds: ‘Over the last 15 years, people have assumed the state would solve problems. We've colluded with that. We've defined customer service in terms of expectation. ‘Yes, the public have rights, but must also contribute. Take the banks. They've channelled customers to ATMs, then telephone banking, then the web. I've got 75% broadband penetration and yet only 5% want to interact with me online.' Mr Trenholm studied at London University and started his career at the Royal Hong Kong Police Service, before moving to Surrey Police, and then working in the private sector. His first local government job was as a project manager for an outsourcing company. He later became strategic director of resources at Buckinghamshire CC, before joining Windsor and Maidenhead in May 2008. Together with the initiatives, he has to deal with the pressing issue of budgets. The council, a floor authority, has made £4m net savings this year and expects to have to save £15m-£20m over the next three to four years of the CSR. But, he looks forward to the challenge, saying: ‘Most of our service design is from the 1940s. Now is the time to address this and deliver services in a different way.'

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WHITEHALL

Transparency is no castle in the air

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