A campaign to involve tens of thousands of tenants in fighting crime and anti- social behaviour has been launched today by Home Office Minister John Denham. The Home Office in collaboration with the Tenants Participation Advisory Service, designed a new training programme to help residents groups tackle the issues that most affect their communities. 

The Audit Commission has found that local councils, NHS trusts and the police have a long way to go to meet the modernizing agenda demand for involving service users. User involvement is crucial because people benefit most from public services that are based on a real understanding of their needs. 

By Martin Knox, David Alcock, Anna Roderick and John Iles Involving people in community governance at neighbourhood level has become a priority. Because of the ‘right to buy’ and the growth of housing associations, large estates of exclusively social rented dwellings have all but disappeared. The authors look at governance mechanisms for empowering residents across the tenure divide between tenants and property owners. They explain their preference for an independent legal vehicle such as a company limited by guarantee, rather than a parish council.

In a move to further reduce the boundaries between health and social care, two new inspectorates are to be created. 

Town hall managers are set to benefit from an on-line strategic leadership programme launched today. The programme is a joint venture between the Cabinet Office and the Improvement and Development Agency. It also involves a public-private partnership with Epic Group plc and iMPOWER plc.An online leadership programme for central government, known as PRIME: Leadership, was launched in March 2002 and has proved very successful. 

By Peter C. BrinckerhoffUntil very recently, popular belief held that business skills were not needed at charitable organizations. No longer. In order to deliver services charities need techniques such as marketing, cash flow analysis, property management, and good use of technology. The successful not-for-profit is really a mission-based business. 

The magistrates’ courts have been waiting for a new IT system for ten years, and the wait goes on. The National Audit Office sets out the ten year saga in a critical report which highlights management failures in the Lord Chancellor’s Department.IT systems in magistrates’ courts have been inadequate for many years and current systems do not allow information to be shared electronically with other courts. 

Procurement has a low profile in local government with a short term focus on costs. A strategy to produce a radical change in thinking about procurement is being developed by the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister and the Local Government Association. A key aim will be engaging decision makers and winning the “hearts and minds” of members, Chief Executives and officers. 

By Mark L Lengnick-Hall and Cynthia A Lengnick-HallMore organizations are recognizing the importance of intellectual capital and knowledge management to success, yet the field of human resource management continues to be criticized for its operational and bureaucratic focus. Human Resource Management in the Knowledge Economy examines how it must change if it is to remain a vital part of the organization. 

In a move to shift the focus of service delivery away from the provider and towards the customer, a pilot to join up local councils and Jobcentre Plus has been launched. Jobcentre Plus staff in Calderdale and Kirklees, Buckinghamshire and Gateshead and South Tyneside will collect information and verify new claims for Housing and Council Tax Benefit at the same time that they deal with applications for Jobseekers Allowance, Income Support and Incapacity Benefit.