Ann McGauran
Arithmetic matters
The new director of IPPR North, Zoë Billingham, speaks to Ann McGauran about taking on the role at a time of political and economic turmoil, and gives her verdict on how the Government’s flagship levelling up policy is shaping up.
Centre has 'poor understanding' of what works on local growth, says NAO expert
A large proportion of Government spending is ‘not robustly evaluated’ and there is poor understanding by the centre about the approaches to local economic growth that work best, an expert from the National Audit Office has said.
Squaring the circle
Newly installed Association of Directors of Adult Social Services president Sarah McClinton tells Ann McGauran how she plans to ensure care workers receive the funding they require to do their best.
Queen's Speech: Government brings back measures to stop protestors 'locking on'
Boris Johnson’s government will bring back measures thrown out by the House of Lords in January to stop protesters ‘locking on’ to infrastructure.
London could lose out if new infrastructure levy is pooled
There is ‘real fear’ London will lose out if the Government decides to replace Section 106 agreements with a nationally-pooled infrastructure levy, a think-tank chief has warned.
Telling London’s story
There are votes to be had from ‘bashing the city’ and the story that levelling up has to mean taking resources away from London needs to be challenged. Ann McGauran reports from a panel discussion.
Playing the long game
Rachael Wardell speaks to Ann McGauran about the capacity issues facing social workers, the need for staff to stay long enough to build long-term relationships, the pressures of intervention, and spiralling agency costs.
Doing the right thing for children
With the direction of the Government’s policies for schools and SEND becoming clearer, the new president of the Association of Directors of Children’s Services Steve Crocker speaks to Ann McGauran about his priorities for the next year.
EXCLUSIVE: Kerslake backs new UK body to help rebuild Ukraine
Lord Bob Kerslake has backed the idea of the UK setting up a publicly owned body to help rebuild Ukraine, but he believes it should be the country’s own people who take the lead on reconstruction.
Putting people first
At a time when innovation and behaviour change are needed, a number of barriers are making it harder for councils to play a strategic role within system-wide partnerships to improve health outcomes. Ann McGauran reports.
Call for national review of children's mental health services
The new president of the Association of Directors of Children’s Services (ADCS) has called for a post-pandemic national review of children’s mental health services.
A way of doing politics differently
Can we do politics in new ways that engage people rather than being alienating, adversarial and fraught? Ann McGauran listened to the views of a Stronger Things panel.
Pushing on for community power
The Government has ‘disabled communities and then blamed them for their own inability to prosper’, according to Labour’s deputy leader Angela Rayner. Ann McGauran reports from this week’s Stronger Things event.
Labour's ideals for communities are 'security, prosperity and respect'
The ideals of security, prosperity and respect for everyone, in every community are at the heart of Labour’s mission to lead this country, says deputy leader Angela Rayner.
Future Forum North: Bid funds for levelling up 'isn't working' for coastal communities
The existing approach of bid funding for levelling up isn’t working for coastal communities, a council chief has told Future Forum North (FFN).
Future Forum North: local government still lacks a plan for delivering sustainability
Local government still lacks both a plan for delivering sustainability and a way of measuring the impact of investment, says a Northern council director.
Future Forum North: Link is ‘very likely’ between leaders’ attributes and levelling up success
A link is ‘very likely’ between key behavioural attributes of local government leaders and their success in pursuing the levelling up agenda, says an executive search expert.
Future Forum North: Investment in skills ‘comes without guarantees’
Investment in improving skills and qualifications ‘comes without guarantees’ that workers will stay local rather than move away once qualified, a council chief told Future Forum North.
Future Forum North: Government must take ‘a much more strategic view’ on funding
Central government needs to adopt a ‘much more strategic’ approach to funding local areas that places less reliance on bids for small pots of cash, says a council chief.
The chance to reclaim communities starts here
Will Tanner is a key speaker at this month’s New Local Stronger Things event. He talks to Ann McGauran about his belief in the power of communities.
