Whatever the outcome of the forthcoming election, one thing remains almost certain - austerity measures and spending cuts for local government will continue.

Local authorities have been burdened with reducing budgets for some time, with seemingly no end in sight following George Osborne’s comments that austerity measures would have to continue until 2020. Labour has also committed to adhere to government spending plans in the near future.

With staff employment costs representing the lion’s share of most budgets, staff numbers will remain a target for reductions. There is likely to be a continued emphasis on recruitment freezes, reduced hours contracts, reduced spend on agency workers and managing staff absences. Many local authorities have sought volunteers to reduce staff pay bill and may have to make redundancies.

Whilst clearly  unsettling for staff, the need to balance the books may present an opportunity for local authorities to implement more dynamic approaches.