Latest performance data from APSE shows councils improving productivity and value for money in the face of extreme pressure. With external costs increasing and budgets decreasing, ongoing measurement of the impact of austerity on frontline services is vital, say Mark Bramah and Michael Hughes.

We are all only too aware of reductions in council budgets. The Audit Commission's Tough times 2012 report gives us an overall picture of the size of cuts and how councils are responding to austerity.