The Local Government sector is going through another period of rapid evolution. The next five years will see even greater cuts to local government funding, consequently the sector is looking for ever more innovative ways to fund capital and revenue programmes.
Whilst the greatest pressures and perhaps the greatest levels of innovation are likely to emerge in the adult and social care sectors there will also be substantive change in the urban regeneration arena. A good example is the government announcement yesterday in relation to a £6bn fund for potholes. This money has been the subject of a local authority bidding process. To get the cash Councils have had to show a wider impact, not just the number of holes being filled in. For example in Manchester the pothole money will be combined with other capital to fund a wider area based regeneration programme.
With a such a strong requirement for capital in the sector, even the most straightforward investment programmes will be stretched to deliver more than a 'single' investment model would ever produce. We are therefore going to see more local authority bespoke funds established – but with fairly wide parameters where capital can be deployed on a loan basis across a number of different investment areas. We see these funds being established widely across the sector to support and be used alongside other finance streams, for example the European Investment Bank. The canniest Councils able to illustrate smart use of the potholes cash are likely to win out in this latest bidding process – it is a sign , we think of things to come.
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