Better outcomes for children depend not only on national policy, but also on how this is implemented locally.
Government relies on local authorities, alongside schools and others locally, to support hundreds of thousands of children.
Our work at the National Audit Office often comments on the need for strong government and local authority relationships, which are critical to understanding progress, managing costs and securing value for money.
Our latest report, ‘Strengthening relations with local delivery bodies in education’, uses our insights to give government eight actions to consider to get this right.
These insights also provide councillors with important considerations around what they should expect and how they can contribute.
The foundation is a whole-system approach with strong collaboration. Central government should set out roles, align responsibilities and provide clear objectives. But local authorities can also shape partnerships through leadership, transparency and constructive challenge.
A core theme is the need for better evidence on costs, outcomes and what works, to help local and national decision-making.
While the Department for Education (DfE) should not overburden local systems, it needs frontline insight.
Local authorities can strengthen their influence by improving how they evaluate services, understand costs and generate evidence.
Our report, ‘Responding to demand for school places’, provides a practical take on primary rolls, which have dropped 3 per cent in recent years, with a further 7 per cent fall projected by 2030, placing pressure on school finances.
We found the DfE could do more to help the system respond. Collaboration remains difficult, and there is no clear framework to help decide when, and how, to act.
Local authorities are key, by strengthening place planning strategies, shared with trusts and neighbouring areas, and improving data and forecasting by building in uncertainty and planning for flexibility.
Strong central-local relationships are fundamental to high-quality children’s services and value for money. We help government and local authorities understand what they each need to make these work.
- See National Audit Office website to find out more about the work of the National Audit Office and to access its reports.