Strengthen partnerships with charities to deliver public services

The Chartered Institute of Public Finance and Accountancy has said that there are three ways local authorities can support greater involvement of the charity and voluntary sector in public service delivery.

The organisation’s new report, Unlocking Potential: Realising the role of local charities in public service delivery, looks at the relationship between local authorities and charities and how, by building on the progress local authorities have already made, better opportunities can be created that will make a lasting impact on service users during a challenging moment in history.

In it, CIPFA outline three key changes for local authorities to consider: service co-design, capacity building in the market and changes to the commissioning process.

Service co-design enables commissioners to collaborate with both suppliers and service users to tailor services to community needs. Capacity building and changes to commissioning would help de-mystify the process surrounding complex procurement methods, allowing local authorities to get the best from their local voluntary sector.

Rob Whiteman, CIPFA CEO, said: "Local authorities have long worked together with charities to create change in the lives of vulnerable members of their communities. This has never been more evident than over the past year when communities were at breaking point. Covid-19 resulted in local authorities needing to find effective solutions to the new and complex challenges they were facing. Charities have provided local insight and knowledge to meet these challenges head on.

"We can use the momentum created by the pandemic to strengthen meaningful partnerships between local authorities and charities. This would not only achieve value for money, but also provide communities with the valuable public services they need to flourish."