Urbanforum

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Managing Change in Challenging Times: How cuts and the Big Society

affect the VCS

Caitlin McMullin

www.urbanforum.org.uk

fromcommunitytopolicy Spending Review - overview

• £81bn cuts to public spending over next 4 years

• 19% reduction (on average) to Gov departments

•Significant variation across budgets (-51% at CLG and +37% for international aid)

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Spending Review - effects

• Poorest 10% of households affected the most

• 500,000 public sector job losses

• £7bn cuts to Welfare (in addition to £11bn)

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Public Service Reform

• £200m to support councils with reform (in 2011/ 2012)

• Merging ‘health’ with ‘social care’• Personalisation agenda and efficiency savings

• NHS to fund £1bn for new ways to provide services

•‘Payment by results’ ( part of the ‘Work Programme’)

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Welfare Reform

£18bn cuts (inc the 11bn in June)

No child benefit to higher income taxpayers – to save £2.5bn

Employment and Support Allowance limited to 1 year

10% cut to the council tax benefit budget

But-- Fuel allowance, bus passes and TV licences protected

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Localism & public service reform

• Local Authorities to get a General Power of Competence

• Public sector workers to get the right to form employee-owned co-operatives and bid to take over services

• Communities to get powers to take over local state run services and facilities

• Residents to get powers to instigate local referendums

• From targets to transparency – a new ‘right to data’

Decentralisation & Localism Bill Expected in November

Aim is to “devolve greater powers to councils and neighbourhoods and give local communities control over housing and planning decisions.”

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“The Big Society is about a huge culture change where people, in their everyday lives, in their homes, in their neighbourhoods, in their workplace don’t always turn to officials, local authorities or central government for answers to the problems they face ……but instead feel both free and powerful enough to help themselves and their own communities”

David Cameron, July 2010

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Opportunities£470m allocated to support:

• £100m Transition Fund (until 2012)

• Funding for Communities First• National Citizen Service pilot

Big Society Bank Regional Growth Fund

Cutting red tape for community groups task force set up

4 vanguard communities

Training 5,000 community organisers

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Assessment…Winners & LosersWhere’s the ‘Fairness’?

(poorest, NE, women, children)

Cuts not evenly spread (CLG)

Investment‘Transition Fund’Regional Growth Fund

Nef: need to take account of social justice, equality and cohesion.

Young Foundation: need to emphasise new rights, not government programmes

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Survival Tips

1. Remember- this is a long-term game

2. Reach out to local government

3. Things need to change

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Find out more:

Policy briefings: Spending Review, Big Society mini-briefings and more…www.urbanforum.org.uk/briefings

Whitehall Watch blog: the latest on what government is up to including reaction to the Big Society & the Spending Reviewwww.urbanforum.org.uk/whitehall-watch/blog

Big Society Policy Page: A collection of all our information resources on Big Societywww.urbanforum.org.uk/policy-pages/big-society