Mutual and Co-operative Approaches to Delivering Local Services

Book excerpt: This report finds that efforts by the Cabinet Office to promote the development of employee owned cooperatives must be married more effectively to the work of DCLG to deliver localism reforms before mutual models of local service delivery can flourish. In its report, the CLG Committee concludes that a number of significant barriers must be removed. Advice - Government and local government itself should provide "off-the-shelf" models and guidance to reduce confusion and risks that deter local authorities currently from considering using mutual or co-operative models for service delivery. Leadership - co-ordination between the Government's Mutuals Support Programme, the DCLG and the Local Government Association must be improved to gather and disseminate evidence on the operation of mutuals and co-operatives in delivering local services. Financing - Government must do more to inform and educate financial institutions about lending to mutuals and co-operatives and it must examine tax support for mutuals and co-operatives. Accountability - all new organisations must remain accountable to the local Council (usually through a contract) and be transparent in their operations. Through commissioning and oversight processes authorities must prevent services from fragmenting and protect the operation and ownership of local public assets. Procurement - rules must be drafted to confer maximum flexibility in tendering for services so that mutuals and co-operatives can compete fairly with large companies and in-house providers.