New models of service delivery and creative councils

Even before the financial settlement, councils were considering new ways of delivering services. With the reduction in central funding, this is now an imperative for most councils. New organisational models that deliver services in fundamentally different ways have the potential to unlock major savings.

Councils are looking at delivering services through mutuals, joint ventures, local authority trading vehicles, social enterprises and many more different ways.

How we are helping councils

The LGA is already working with a number of councils that are exploring new ways of working to deliver significant savings. We will work with these councils, support their work and share their learning with others. We will focus our work on the decision making required, the efficiency savings expected and how the new model will improve outcomes for local people.

Creative Councils is a new programme from the LGA and NESTA to support councils to develop and implement radical innovations that meet the challenges of tomorrow. Our ambition over the next two years is to work with a small group of pioneering councils and their partners to develop, implement and spread transformational new approaches to meeting some of the biggest challenges facing communities and local services.

We have worked with councils and other public sector bodies to design and pilot workshops to explore new models of service delivery that will save money and keep local citizens at the heart of services. A practical toolkit enabling councils to undertake their own Futures Summits to simulate and rehearse future challenges and policy changes with their partners has been produced.

The Productive Council of the Future report (PDF, 36 pages, 465 KB)

The Productive Council of the Future - Facilitators' guide (PDF, 82 pages, 834 KB)

Get involved

If you are undertaking a different model of service delivery and would like to share your learning and experiences please do contact us at productivity@local.gov.uk

Contact us

To find out more about our offer to councils please email us:

email: productivity@local.gov.uk

Additional information

Creative councils

NESTA – National Endowment for Science Technology and the Arts