Since the demise of the Audit Commission nearly a decade and a half ago, and the abandoned Comprehensive Area Assessments, local government has been free of the much maligned ‘league tables'. Or it was, until recent attempts by the former Conservative government to create an early warning system in the shape of the Office for Local Government – or Oflog.

Earlier this year, The Times' attempt to use Oflog figures to rate local government demonstrated how use of flat figures does not always represent reality. Now that Oflog is on hold, IMPOWER, in association with The MJ, has produced a list of the top 10 most productive authorities, a list of those who have beaten the performance odds (Jon Ainger has explained the methodology below).