By Donald Hirsch People are living longer but on average leaving the workforce younger. This has important policy implications for employers and government, both for those in work and retirement. The author looks at the impact on the labour supply, the training and development of older workers, making the most of their talents, flexible working and the importance of bridge jobs. He also highlights the need for communities to become better at using the talents of a wide range of people once they have left career employment.

The Local Government Association is calling for a change to building regulations to ensure that all new schools are fitted with sprinkler systems and it has published the results of a poll of public opinion which shows almost one hundred per cent support for the idea once people are aware of the level of risk of school fires.The LGA says the modernisation of the fire and rescue service was heralded as a complete re-think on how best to allocate resources in order to prevent fires happening in the first place. The switch to a risk based approach, it says, should have resulted in building regulations to ensure all newly built schools have sprinkler systems. The LGA says sprinklers are by far the most effective and efficient way of protecting schools and the lives of those either in the schools or called upon to fight the fires but the Government’s 5.1 billion pound project ‘Building Better Schools’ includes no provision sprinklers as an essential design requirement in the new buildings.

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Research into the working of partnerships between local authorities and private and voluntary sector organizations has resulted in an upbeat assessment of what they can help to achieve and led to a call for all councils to consider strategic partnering as an option for delivering services.The call came from the Local Government Minister, Nick Raynsford, as he launched the final report of the Strategic Partnering Taskforce. The document is the culmination of two years research work into the feasibility and scope of partnerships. The Taskforce has brought together representatives from central government and seconded a range of experts from leading private sector companies, and professional organisations as well as from local authorities.

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