The job of the S151 Officer in local government has never been more challenging – after eight years of austerity, many local authority budgets are now cut to the bone, and with no clear funding strategy for adult social care, unprecedented pressure on children's services and homelessness, and no clear line of sight on business rates and fair funding, the job is not for the faint hearted.

Much has been written about Northamptonshire CC and the reasons for their problems, and we don't want to go into that here, it is fair to say though, that something has to be done. A local authority that becomes financially unsustainable means vital local services provided to the most vulnerable people in our communities will fail too. That can't be acceptable in the twenty-first century.