Police and crime commissioners (PCCs) and their chief executives are recent additions to the local governance scene. Michael Burton reports from a conference last week which looked at how the new, directly-elected PCCs and their officers will operate alongside local authorities.

There are new kids on the local government block. They are the 41 police and crime commissioners elected last November and their chief executives, with a remit which criss-crosses the local authority scene and yet is still in its infancy.