Initiatives for joint working across boundaries will be eligible for funds from the Invest to Save Budget in 2000/2001. The Treasury is now inviting bids for the 45 million pound budget. Bids will only be accepted if two or more public bodies make a joint submission. The last bidding round was restricted to central government departments, but the current invitation has gone to all public sector organisations including local government and the health service.
Donnelly M
Managing Service Quality, (UK), 1999 Vol 9 No 1. Start page: 47 . No of pages: 6
Examines responses to quality initiatives in the UK public sector and points to a change in outlook since the election of a Labour government in 1997; briefly outlines the ‘Best Value’ approach to which public sector organizations are now supposed to work. Discusses the aims of public-sector services which have broader societal aims than just direct service provision. Explores the logic of quality as it may be applied to public services and states that practical circumstances and aims differ from those in private enterprises. Looks at the nature of public services, the customers and the decision makers, and the complex nature of the relationships and goals. Argues that in spite of the high uptake of quality awards and initiatives in the public sector, the quality movement has yet to provide a model which addresses the true nature of public services.
