pete murphy nottingham business school september 2013
TRANSCRIPT
2013 EGPA ANNUAL CONFERENCESTRATEGIC MANAGEMENT IN GOVERNMENT
PERMANENT STUDY GROUP XI
THE DEVELOPMENT OF THE STRATEGIC STATE:
Central management and intervention in locally delivered public services in
England 1997-2013
Pete Murphy
Nottingham Business School
September 2013
Introduction (and some contextual background)
Historically – Inspection services early 19th Century - education provision (Factory Acts 1833) Police in 1856 with HMIC
Post Second World War – plethora of new inspectorates e.g. Social Services Inspectorate.
Key modern milestones were the Audit Commissions’ establishment in 1983, and Best Value and continuous improvement being introduced in 1999 LG Act
This paper is concerned with the state (through inspectorates) overseeing the performance measurement, management and monitoring of locally delivered public services to local populations by local authorities and other locally based agencies.
It also shows how creating public value and public service innovation became evident in the performance management regimes and legislation after 2002
1997 – 2010 Labour Administrations A case for the development of the Strategic State?
The objectives, management and monitoring arrangements for the delivery of public services became more integrated across central and local government.
Local service delivery demonstrably improved, while the policy, support, guidance and monitoring by central government became both more effective and strategic.
This paper reviews the development of successive performance management regimes and in particular the most sensitive part of these regimes i.e. how they dealt with the significantly underperforming services and organisations.
It also looks at the states development of strategic collaborations and partnerships (although operational partnerships were also multiplying)
This period provides a clear case study of the development of a coherent and strategic approach from the central state in this particular area of government activity, gradually supported by all key stakeholders.
2010 – 2013 Coalition GovernmentPolitical Expediency or is the Strategic state re-emerging?
The initially post election period was characterised by theoretical and practical confusion which generated a very fragmented approach dominated by the fiscal cuts.
More recently the public service has seen the re-emergence of a more strategic approach in circumstances where the coalition government has engaged in consultation and discourse with the public and key stakeholders
It is not clear whether the latter is the result of political pressure or expediency – or part of the realisation of the potential of the Strategic State
1997-2010 How did the state get more strategic?
Performance Management Regimes where assessing and assuring increasingly joined up policy and delivery for continuous improvement in public services.
The regimes were continually becoming better integrated and mutually supporting across the various parts of the public sector.
Central and Local government acted as a proactive ‘entrepreneurial’ state – taking risks, and creating a highly networked policy and delivery system
State also acted as lead investor and catalyst for both improvement and innovation – not simply as safety net for failure.
Two fields - performance management regimes and creating strategic collaborations and networks
Theoretically or Conceptually
The strategic state
Improving Performance Management Regimes
Best Value Comprehensive
Performance Assessments Standards for Better Health Police assessments CPA 2 The Harder Test World Class
Commissioning Comprehensive Area
Assessments
Creating and Improving Networks Partnerships and Agreements
Comprehensive Spending Reviews and Public Service Agreements (1997-2010)
Local Public Service Agreements (Rounds 1 and 2)
Local Area Agreements – pilots 2004/05 – rolled out across country by March 2007
2nd round 2007/08 – 2010/11 2009 - Multiple Area Agreements
and Total Place
Practically
The demonstrable evidence or proof of the state becoming strategic and more holistic
Improvement Assessment and Intervention Regimes
From Service Assessments to Corporate Assessments to Area Assessments. Tools techniques and agents converged as they individually and collectively
learnt from their collective and increasingly shared experiences.
Improvement and Intervention Infrastructure
The evidence bases developed from data poor to data rich to intelligent data Post 2005 (in particular) the infrastructure became more economic, efficient and
effective with increasing returns on investment.
What about outputs and outcomes?
Each version of PSAs/LPSAs/LAA/MAA became more strategic in terms of scope, content and objectives.
Each version or generation of PSAs/LPSAs/LAAs/MAAs and the Performance Assessment Regimes required less resources to establish, operationalize and maintain.
Some indicative watchwords and catchphrases
In the performance management regimes ’beyond compliance’ and ‘continuous improvement’ to innovation and creativity
Jim Collin’s ‘Good to great’ became from ‘excellence to exemplary’
In the Intervention team - We will support improvement - we will not reward failure
Post 2010 Coalition GovernmentPerformance Assessment Regimes Reducing public expenditure not improving public services has become the
focal objective
Causing collateral damage as key parts of the improvement infrastructure (including independent agencies such as AC) have been abolished in the ‘bonfire of the QUANGOs’
Central Government confusion in retention of CSRs but not PSAs.
Local Government – localism and sector lead improvement and intervention.
Health – Performance regime strengthened (although the 2012 Health and Social Care Act was a governmental and administrative debacle).
Police – HMIC retained but now Police and Crime Commissioners and Policing Panels replace Police Authorities
Fire and Rescue – New National Framework and Commissioning model introduced
Post 2010 Coalition Government’sdiffering approaches to Intervention
Local Government – Intervention by LGA and local government peers rather than central government
Health – CQC and MONITOR regimes have been strengthened, and government has been more disposed to using them
Police – HMIC lead system retained but PCC imposed with little public support
Fire and Rescue – old system reaffirmed despite it being demonstrably inferior to later models
Post 2010 Coalition Governments Collaboration and Partnership
The example of Public Health and Health and Wellbeing Boards under the 2012 Health and Social Care Act
Post 2010 Coalition GovernmentShort term fragmentation/Long term re-emergence of the strategic state?Short Term
Fiscal reduction as the overriding policy towards public services
Policy based evidence making
Abolition and dismantling of improvement infrastructure
Jeffersonian/Thatcherite state rhetoric – government that governs least governs best
Long Term
Optimizing useful production in public, private and third sectors
Evidence based policy making
Promoting and developing systemic and organisational innovation and improvement
Re-emergence of the strategic and entrepreneurial state
Questions?
Contact details:
Pete Murphy
Nottingham Business School
Nottingham Trent University
Newton Building, Burton Street,
Nottingham NG1 4BU.
Tel 0 (+44) 115 848 8092
Mob 0 (+44) 77758 77949