Archives for January 2004

GPs TO GET EXTRA MONEY FOR IT

Headlines, PublicNet: 30 January, 2004

Family doctors will learn next week how much extra money their Primary Care Trusts are to get for IT equipment. The letters will be sent from the Health Minister John Hutton, who has announced that an extra 30 million pounds is being made available to ensure that general practitioners’ IT systems are ready for the implementation of their new contracts in April.The money comes in addition to the 20 million pounds already committed to primary care IT under the new contract agreement. It means that all family doctors should be able to have in place the systems necessary to process the clinical data that is central to the quality-based contracts. This is expected to bring about improvements not only to patient care but also to GPs’ rewards.

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COMMISSION POINTS TO MISSED OPPORTUNITY IN SERVING COMMUNITIES

Headlines, PublicNet: 30 January, 2004

Public bodies are missing a valuable opportunity to improve their services through a failure to meet the needs of their diverse communities, according to a new report on race equality from the Audit Commission. It says too many organisations focus on setting up systems that merely comply with the letter of the law.The report, “Journey to Race Equality – Delivering Improved Services For Local Communities”, says that many public organisations are unsure of what they are trying to achieve in terms of race equality. It calls for managers and front-line staff to have the appropriate training and resources and for service providers to prioritise and integrate equality in their organisational culture.

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Public Management – Time for a Re-launch

Features, PublicNet: 30 January, 2004

By Francis Terry Reproduced by permission of the Public Management and Policy Association. The path of public management reform in the last two decades has led through privatization, contracting out, the rise of inspectorates, the decline of professionalism, proliferation of targets and the growth of technology. The author calls for government to make a serious review of how things work in the public services and make an impartial assessment of the instruments at its disposal. He proposes a national initiative to promote training, career development and leadership in public management.

ON CREATIVITY, INNOVATION AND RENEWAL: A LEADER TO LEADER GUIDE

Book News, PublicNet: 29 January, 2004

By Frances Hesselbein and Rob JohnstonThe book features the best thinking from top experts on strategic innovation, sparking creativity, and transforming organizations. Written in a concise style, it presents a stellar roster of contributors. The book is one of the titles that have appeared in Leader to Leader, the Drucker Foundation’s award-winning journal.

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EXTRA MONEY FOR YOUTH WORKER TRAINING IN WALES

Headlines, PublicNet: 29 January, 2004

Almost half a million pounds is being made available to train youth workers in Wales. It follows the introduction of a new policy, which places councils under an obligation to set up systems for working with young people, which include listening to their needs.The extra money, announced by Jane Davidson, the Welsh Assembly Minister for Education and Lifelong Learning, will help people at all levels of youth work to get training to obtain a range of qualifications and to ensure that they receive adequate continued professional development. The Minister said the money was an indication of the important part played by youth workers in the implementation of “Extending Entitlements”, the Welsh Assembly Government’s policy for young people from 11-25. Under the policy every local councils in Wales is required to set up a Young People’s Partnership, with representatives from the statutory and voluntary sectors. They are charged with working collaboratively to develop and maintain a young people centred strategy which will ensure that 10 entitlements set out in the policy are delivered, that the effectiveness of delivery is monitored, and that the views of young people are listened to.Jane Davidson said provision for young people now had a statutory basis and the Young People’s Partnerships would develop a network of services, support and opportunities to enable young people to access their entitlements.

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COUNCILS BID FOR HOUSING PFI CASH

Headlines, PublicNet: 29 January, 2004

New figures apparently show increased interest from local authorities in Private Finance Initiatives in housing. Nineteen councils have bid for a share of the 600 million pounds available and the government is claiming this bolsters the role of PFIs in delivering decent homes.Housing Minister Keith Hill said PFI played an important part in improving homes and the communities in which they stood. Schemes could range from the regeneration of whole estates to the refurbishment of tower blocks or other properties.

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REVIEW LOOKS AT GOOD PRACTICE IN MIXED TENURE SCHEMES

Headlines, PublicNet: 28 January, 2004

There is a call today for stronger cooperation between housing associations and private house builders in a guide to good partnership practice for developing mixed tenure communities. The review of mixed-tenure agreements is being made available free of charge as part of the Joseph Rowntree Foundation’s work on easing the increasingly severe shortages of housing predicted for the next 20 years.It has been produced by Martin Willey, of the strategic regeneration consultants YTP and colleagues at specialist solicitors firm Bevan Ashford. They note evidence from JRF research that ‘planning gain’ procedures are not as effective as they could be in securing a plentiful supply of affordable housing. The guide then demonstrates how housing associations can establish a more positive relationship with house builders and cooperate with local authority planners in creating sustainable, mixed tenure developments.

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NAO HIGHLIGHTS KEY ISSUES IN USE OF INCREASED RESOURCES

Headlines, PublicNet: 28 January, 2004

A report today is highlighting five critical issues to which government departments must pay careful attention if the extra 61 billion pounds to be spent on improving public services over the next three years is to have its full impact. The report from the head of the National Audit Office, Sir John Bourn, says it is too early to tell whether the increased funding will deliver all the planned improvements.The report looks at the preparations made by the sections getting the three largest increases – the Departments for Education and Skills, Health and Transport – to use their extra resources. This study will provide a baseline for future NAO reports assessing the actual improvements that are achieved, as the additional funding begins to take effect.

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ENTERPRISE ZONES

Abstracts, PublicNet: 28 January, 2004

Enterprise Zones have featured in the United Kingdom’s urban regeneration policies since the early 1980’s. Many of the 38 zones have reached the end of their life-cycle and the programme is due to end in 2006. The zones provide a range of benefits to the developers, investors and occupiers of industrial and commercial properties.This study by the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister shows that Enterprise Zones have succeeded in stimulating new enterprise and in encouraging the growth of existing enterprises. One of the main conclusions is that in order to have any real impact on the regeneration of deprived areas through attracting private investment, the benefits offered to investors have to be significant. Tax based incentives are essential if developers are to be encouraged to construct buildings in areas of perceived low demand and if investors are to be encouraged to invest. The general view of people in the areas was that without the zone approach the economic and social conditions would have been far worse.

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COURSES HELPING TEACHERS IMPROVE SCHOOL STANDARDS

Headlines, PublicNet: 27 January, 2004

Teachers who take part in postgraduate courses help bring about significant improvements in their schools, including in the standards of pupils’ work, according to a new report from Ofsted. It found that all but a small minority of teachers who followed courses leading to recognised qualifications were proving to be real assets to their schools and to the wider teaching profession.The Government’s strategy for supporting teachers’ professional development includes making money available to higher education institutions, local education authorities and professional associations to enable them to supply postgraduate in-service training courses. Her Majesty’s Chief Inspector of Schools David Bell said the new report’s findings highlighted how important this form of training was to both the professionalism of teachers and the improvement of schools.

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