A recent publication by the New Local Government Network (NLGN) looked at how local councils are preparing for the future and suggests depressingly that “there is simply no way that local government can reach 2018 let alone 2020 while still delivering the full range and quality of services currently on offer”. (p6).
Simply put, we have an ageing population, with
associated increasing demand for care services and draconian cuts in
council budgets. The NLGN suggest we could be facing a future of
“private affluence and public squalor”. However, it is not all doom and
gloom. Perhaps austerity can be a strong stimulus for innovation? How
would this work I hear you ask?