There is new evidence of the growing confidence among local authorities about the Third Sector’s ability to deliver services. Research has found more than half of elected councillors believe charities can deliver public services as cost effectively as councils can.

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The Government is being counselled against using centralised policies to tackle gang violence and knife crime. A report from the New Local Government Network argues that focusing on Whitehall-driven targets fails to take account of the diverse nature of many gangs and it says local areas should be able to take action based on local factors.

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The Department for Children, Schools and Families report on 16-18 year olds shows that 78.7 per cent were in education, training or employment. This is the highest ever rate and an increase of 1.6 percentage points on the previous year. The total number increased by 36,000 to 1.59 million which is also the highest number ever.

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