Below are some links to websites of that may be of interest to you.
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Audit Commission An independent public body responsible for ensuring that public money is spent economically, efficiently, and effectively in the areas of local government, housing, health, criminal justice and fire and rescue services.
Wales Audit Office (WAO) – Mission Statement – “Our work is to promote improvement, so that people in Wales benefit from accountable, well-managed public services that offer the best possible value for money.”
Scrutiny: A Hard Nut to Crack. Important suggestions for the scrutiny function.
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Birmingham University (INLOGOV) - INLOGOV is a leading centre for the applied study of local and community governance. Over 1,150 policy-makers and managers from across the public and non-profit sectors attended their seminars and development programmes last year.
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Centre for Public Scrutiny - The Centre for Public Scrutiny has been created to promote the value of scrutiny in modern and effective government - not only to hold executives to account but also to create a constructive dialogue between the public and its elected representatives - to improve the quality of public services. A number of their publications are included in this A-Z. The CfPS site is very useful and has a number of publications available to download free of charge subject to copyright and printing conditions
CfPS: Good Scrutiny Guide A guide to help the councillors involved in scrutiny. copyright and printing conditions
CfPS: Why Scrutiny Matters - A publication from the Centre of Public Scrutiny. copyright and printing conditions
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DCMS stands for Department for Culture, Media and Sport. "We aim to improve the quality of life for all through cultural and sporting activities, to support the pursuit of excellence and to champion the tourism, creative and leisure industries."
DEFRA Defra's core purpose is to improve the current and future quality of life.
The Development of Overview and Scrutiny in Local Government. - Publication by the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister.
DFT Department for Transport. The Prime Minister has decided to create a new Department for Transport to focus solely on transport issues. This will have new leadership under Alistair Darling, with Rachel Lomax taking over as Permanent Secretary
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Evaluating Local Government Team - Evaluation of New Council Constitutions and the New Ethical Framework (Consortium of University of Manchester, Birkbeck College, Goldsmith’s College, Salford University).
External scrutiny: the voice in the crowded room (CfPS publication) - The second in a series of policy papers from the Centre for Public Scrutiny, 'the voice in the crowded room' outlines the landscape of external scrutiny across all tiers of government in the UK and makes an assessment of its ability to provide effective accountability and influence powerful executives in the wider arena of policy development.
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Fourth Option Councils - "Guidance for fourth option councils" (CfPS publication) - This guidance document looks at the specific lessons for councils operating under "alternative arrangements" since the introduction of overview and scrutiny. Examples are provided throughout. copyright and printing conditions
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Guidance for fourth option councils (CfPS publication) - This guidance document looks at the specific lessons for councils operating under "alternative arrangements" since the introduction of overview and scrutiny. Examples are provided throughout. Copyright and printing conditions
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HMSO - Her Majesty's Stationery Office publishes all UK legislation and related official materials.
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IDeA - The Improvement and Development Agency for local government. IDeA helps councils, individually and collectively, to get better at what they do now, and to keep that improvement happening in the future.
Info4local.gov.uk This site provides the first, online, one-stop gateway for local authorities to get quick and easy access to local government-related information that is published on the web sites of central government departments and agencies.
INLOGOV INLOGOV is a leading centre for the applied study of local and community governance. Over 1,150 policy-makers and managers from across the public and non-profit sectors attended their seminars and development programmes last year.
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LGA - Local Government Association. The LGA represents all of the local authorities in England and Wales. The work they do is currently focused around their six commitments initiative (See also Welsh Local Government Association).
lfg The Local Futures Group is a research and strategy consultancy that provides a geographical perspective on economic and social change. We introduce this perspective into public policy and corporate strategies, both in the UK and internationally.
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National Assembly for Wales (NAW) - To find out about Welsh Assembly Government including information on all the policies and programmes for which it is responsible. Also to find out what is happening in the Assembly and its Committees and to contact Assembly Members or to find out more about how the Assembly works go to this site.
National Assembly for Wales (Publications Page) - The Publications Centre is a National Assembly for Wales service from which the public can obtain any document produced by the National Assembly for Wales. Members of the public can make an appointment with the Publication Centre if they wish to view National Assembly for Wales documents within the library.
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Office of the Deputy Prime Minister - The job of the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister is to help create sustainable communities, working with other Government departments, local councils, businesses, the voluntary sector, and communities themselves.
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Parent Governor Representatives - (CfPS publication). This pack has been designed for new parent governor representatives elected to serve on the local authority overview and scrutiny committee dealing with education matters copyright and printing conditions
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Shared intelligence: redefining scrutiny (CfPS publication) - Uses examples of experiences from eight London boroughs. In it they show that five years since being established, overview and scrutiny is being used by councils to improve the health of local democracy and modernise council culture. copyright and printing conditions
Statistics - The government department that provides statistical and registration services. ONS is responsible for producing a wide range of economic and social statistics. It also registers life events and holds the decennial census of the population.
Society Guardian the latest news, analysis and comment about Local Government and more....
Scrutiny in Welsh Local Government (CfPS publication) This is a joint paper between the Audit Commission in Wales and CfPS on Scrutiny in Welsh Local Government copyright and printing conditions
Successful Scrutiny (CfPS publication) - This is a new CfPS project, designed to grow over time, providing examples of effective outcomes from scrutiny reviews in local government. copyright and printing conditions
Scrutiny - External scrutiny: the voice in the crowded room (CfPS publication) - The second in a series of policy papers from the Centre for Public Scrutiny, 'the voice in the crowded room' outlines the landscape of external scrutiny across all tiers of government in the UK and makes an assessment of its ability to provide effective accountability and influence powerful executives in the wider arena of policy development. copyright and printing conditions
The Development of Overview and Scrutiny in Local Government. Publication by the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister.
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University of Birmingham (INLOGOV) - INLOGOV is a leading centre for the applied study of local and community governance. Over 1,150 policy-makers and managers from across the public and non-profit sectors attended their seminars and development programmes last year.
University of Cardiff - The Centre for Local and Regional Government Research (CLRGR) at Cardiff University is at the forefront of current policy developments and academic debate at local, national and international level. It is leading a multi-million pound programme of research on performance improvement in local government and has particular expertise in performance management and improvement.
UK online gov.uk - Directgov is the place to turn for the widest range of government information and services. Browse by audience groups such as 'disabled people' and 'parents' or by topics including 'money, tax and benefits', 'employment', 'education and learning' and 'motoring'. Or you can access definitive government directories or use the search engine. As well as government departments, the site links through to relevant third parties which can offer additional trusted advice and support.
UK Parliament on-line - This website includes information about the House of Commons and House of Lords in the UK.
Upmystreet.com To find out everything you could want to know about an area - from actual property prices to the neighbourhood's favourite newspaper.
UCL Constitutional Unit - The Unit’s website is an excellent resource for those interested in British and comparative constitutional studies. It includes details of their publications (some of which are available free online), an online archive of their regular newsletter, their quarterly devolution monitoring reports, plus news of their current projects, publications and events, and links to related outside organisations.
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Welsh Assembly Government (WAG) - To find out about Welsh Assembly Government including information on all the policies and programmes for which it is responsible. Also to find out what is happening in the Assembly and its Committees and to contact Assembly Members or to find out more about how the Assembly works go to this site.
Welsh Assembly Government (Publications Page) - The Publications Centre is a National Assembly for Wales service from which the public can obtain any document produced by the National Assembly for Wales. Members of the public can make an appointment with the Publication Centre if they wish to view National Assembly for Wales documents within the library.
Wales Audit Office (WAO) – Mission Statement – “Our work is to promote improvement, so that people in Wales benefit from accountable, well-managed public services that offer the best possible value for money.”
Welsh Local Government Association. The Welsh Local Government Association represents the interests of local authorities in Wales. The three fire and rescue authorities, four police authorities and three national park authorities are associate members.
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