By Kai Ruddat and Ruth Rennie.This report is the result of a project undertaken by the New Local Government Network and the Office for Public Management. The project involved ‘visioning events’ with 70 members of the public in three different localities: London Borough of Lewisham, Hartlepool and Buckinghamshire, which aimed to explore public visions for local governance in the year 2020 and the potential impact these visions might have on local governance of the future. 

The Audit Commission has proposed its own changes to the audit regime for smaller local councils, following complaints that the system is so burdensome it fails to add value to the work of the organisation being checked. 

The Government has announced its plans for stronger regulation of nurses and other health professionals.