Councils can steer away from the path predicted by the Graph of Doom by following a new guide on preventative spending.

The technical guide, Building a Business Case for Prevention, which has been produced by the Local Government Association, Big Lottery Fund and Social Finance, admits it is ‘not surprising that prevention gets squeezed' in a climate of increasing demand and decreasing budgets.

But it argues that ‘prevention is need now more than ever and should be a catalyst for change'.