It's no fun being in the middle, whether middle child, middle aged, squeezed middle. The question is whether the no-fun rule also applies to being a middle manager, that frequently maligned species that is neither one of the workers or one of the top tier, and is often despised by both.

A report this week supported by SOLACE recognises this unloved, forgotten, part of the local government management hierarchy. Indeed the authors recognises this lack of love by calling their document Middle managers: dinosaurs or key innovation allies.

There are plenty of top tier managers and private sector providers who would recognise the first epithet rather than the second.