This is great news. Place-based budgeting could help to substantially reduce duplicative spending by different public bodies, allowing a greater focus on prevention and delivering much better outcomes
These (and other) pilots are really positive. Govt must use SR27 to make this way of working BAU
26.11.2025 15:09 β π 17 π 6 π¬ 0 π 0
Really pleased to see a new commitment to place-based budgets today. Further progress towards the implementation of 'Total Place' principles as urged with @jesstud.bsky.social a couple of years ago. www.newlocal.org.uk/publications....
26.11.2025 15:00 β π 17 π 11 π¬ 1 π 1
How can technology support place-based public services?
We'll be kicking off our next #Lab25 event in Clyde Room, Arena Floor at 12:00 β join us to hear from John Denham, Councillor Susan Hinchcliffe, @pwc-uk.bsky.social @jesstud.bsky.social zurl.co/CbUyF
29.09.2025 10:45 β π 0 π 1 π¬ 0 π 1
How can technology support place-based public services?
Another IfG fringe event at the Labour Party Conference, with Cllr Susan Hinchcliffe
@pwc-uk.bsky.social
@jesstud.bsky.social @wearenewlocal.bsky.social
@stuarthoddinott.bsky.social
www.instituteforgovernment.org.uk/event/ifg-la...
12.09.2025 09:05 β π 4 π 2 π¬ 0 π 1
Here we goβ¦
@jesstud.bsky.social & @vibrantkatiekelly.bsky.social open #StrongerThings 2025 π
βWe gather at a time when the outlines of change have been drawn, but now itβs time for us all to bring some colour to the canvas.β
03.06.2025 08:22 β π 4 π 3 π¬ 0 π 1
Five reasons the Government should launch Total Place 2.0 - New Local
John Denham and Jessica Studdert make the case for Total Place 2.0 - to shift public investment for better outcomes.
βThere is one policy option open to the Government which would lay the groundwork for a deep shift in how public investment secures better outcomesβ.
@jydenham.bsky.social⬠& @jesstud.bsky.social⬠set out 5 reasons the Government should launch Total Place 2.0.
29.05.2025 09:45 β π 7 π 5 π¬ 1 π 2
Great summary of the case for Total Place. As the article says, there's a wide coaltion of organisations who support this.
This was @instituteforgovernment.org.uk's contribution from earlier this month: www.instituteforgovernment.org.uk/publication/...
29.05.2025 10:38 β π 12 π 7 π¬ 0 π 0
Itβs a very big day for me β @wearenewlocal.bsky.social launches Where People Meet: Where People Meet: How We Celebrate, Sustain and Reimagine Community Centres.
www.newlocal.org.uk/publications...
07.05.2025 08:37 β π 13 π 10 π¬ 1 π 2
Returning from unintended mini bluesky hiatus to make the niche but relevant point that the mayors of North Tyneside and Doncaster are *not the same* as the other mayors up for election on Thursday.
29.04.2025 19:34 β π 9 π 0 π¬ 1 π 0
The radical plan for a futuristic age-friendly neighbourhood in Manchester
Β£1.5bn of funding has been granted to transform a hospital into a neighbourhood designed for people to thrive as they age
This looks v. interesting.
This isnβt rocket science but far too few neighbourhoods do it well:
βThe humble bench β improved with armrests, numbered to aid in a medical emergency, or placed strategically for wellbeing and intergenerational conversation β can be transformativeβ¦β
18.04.2025 18:50 β π 20 π 12 π¬ 2 π 0
Design Thinking, Digital Divides and Radical Decision Makers: An Interview with Ben Unsworth - New Local
In a career spanning councils, digital agencies and central government, TPXimpactβs Ben Unsworth has been at the forefront of reshaping local government. We speak to him about why councils are ripeβ¦
"The problems councils face are deeply interconnected. Traditional hierarchical structures donβt work well for solving these complex issues"
@benunsworth.co.uk @tpximpact.com on the revolution in local gov leadership (+ design thinking & digital transformation).
27.03.2025 12:27 β π 4 π 1 π¬ 0 π 0
Q: What can England learn from the approaches in devolved nations?
@jesstud.bsky.social: lots to learn in England e.g. Welsh future generations act and Scottish empowerment of communities act. The scale creates better system working. Would like to see more of this at sub-regional level in England.
28.03.2025 17:01 β π 8 π 3 π¬ 0 π 2
Q&A
- @jesstud.bsky.social funding local govt properly leads to investment in things that matter to people β the fabric of community life
- @rodriguez-pose.bsky.social economic success stories do not always come from biggest cities
- T. Walker: need an environment that incentivises long-termism
28.03.2025 16:51 β π 9 π 2 π¬ 0 π 0
@jesstud.bsky.social says that there is an opportunity with the devolution agenda to shift to a different way of governing.
At the moment hasn't been holistic enough. It needs to be about community-led policymaking, not just a repatriation of a function to a different level.
#BennettInst
28.03.2025 16:12 β π 6 π 4 π¬ 0 π 0
A new leadership model is transforming local government - New Local
Jessica Studdert shares four fundamental shifts that are taking local government leadership into new territory and explains why the changing sector landscape demands a common understanding ofβ¦
"National policy has a bias towards structural reform as a tool for change. Radical leadership cannot be legislated for, but the culture change it reflects no less impactful."
@jesstud.bsky.social writes about a new leadership model emerging in the public sector.
24.03.2025 12:27 β π 10 π 4 π¬ 0 π 3
Minister for Local Government Jim McMahon MP giving a speech to the District Councils Network Conference.
Fascinating discussions at #dcnconf2025- reorganisation top of agenda- but questions re purpose & outcomes at heart.
@jimmcmahon.co.uk was clear about challenges but stressed importance of imagining the future & public service reform that combines benefits of scale w/ being rooted in communities.
13.03.2025 13:58 β π 3 π 0 π¬ 0 π 1
Fed up with whatβs going on in the world but still wanna change it? Come and work with usβ¦
05.03.2025 17:01 β π 6 π 4 π¬ 1 π 0
ICON Commissioner @jonrouse.bsky.social sets out how the only level at which it is possible to join up public services, vcs & wider support that matters to people is the neighbourhood.
This cannot be done from on high, must be based on deep understanding of the dynamics of different communities.
05.03.2025 10:14 β π 1 π 1 π¬ 1 π 0
Good to be at the launch of the Independent Commission on Neighbourhoods interim report launch with Alex Norris MP.
The report urges recognition of βmission-critical neighbourhoodsβ- most deprived areas that do worst on outcomes associated w/ Govtβs missions on growth, health, opportunity & safety.
05.03.2025 10:08 β π 10 π 6 π¬ 1 π 0
Really looking forward to hosting this event in Manchester with @carnegieuk.bsky.social to discuss their latest Life in the UK report and the role of collective wellbeing, with @andywestwood.bsky.social respondingβ¦
26.02.2025 19:54 β π 2 π 1 π¬ 1 π 0
Thanks so much, and for sharing Andrew!
24.02.2025 12:11 β π 1 π 0 π¬ 0 π 0
Radical Leadership: Power, Possibility and Public Service - New Local
What does it take to lead in local government today? Weβve explored these questions alongside trusted friends in our council network. Together, weβve identified a new model of Radical Leadership.
Great paper by @jesstud.bsky.social, Shaheen Warren, @annarandle.bsky.social.
Four shifts in local govt leadership:
1 Community as well as organisation
2 Mobilisation as well as management
3 Compassion as well as decisiveness
4 Resilience as well as efficiency
www.newlocal.org.uk/publications...
24.02.2025 11:26 β π 3 π 2 π¬ 1 π 0
Thanks Brendan!
20.02.2025 20:40 β π 1 π 0 π¬ 0 π 0
New Public Mobilisation is the answer
Old habits die hard. While New Public Management (NPM) might have fallen out of fashion in the think-tank community, it is alive and well in Whitehall. Its core...
New Public Management is not fit for purpose (though it is alive and well in many parts of Whitehall).
We need New Public *Mobilisation* if mission-led government is to have impact.
My latest MJ column⦠www.themj.co.uk/public-mobil...
15.02.2025 09:18 β π 17 π 9 π¬ 0 π 1
The pressures facing #localgov are real and complex- different forms of leadership are required to not just survive, but thrive in this context.
Our new report Radical Leadership: Power, Possibility and Public Service sets out the shifts we are seeingβ¦
13.02.2025 16:06 β π 3 π 3 π¬ 0 π 0
Director of think tank Civil Exchange, expert on government and civil society, political commentator, former senior civil servant and Private Secretary to two PMs, first feminist book on Thatcher, People Like Us. Also on X.
Sitting on the sidelines is for Waldorf and Statler. Promoted by Tim Dexter on behalf of Labour both at 23 Orford Rd E17 9NL.
Director of The Rayne Foundation, London cyclist, formerly CEO @CPRE; @TheCCT and @revdoors; former chair of @londoncyclingcampaign and @stokeyschool OBE; he/him
Research & evaluation on criminal justice, social innovation, education, youth wellbeing, poverty, work, housing & homelessness. Working in UK & EU. #MMUPERU
mmuperu.co.uk
Located at Manchester Metropolitan University
Social Care, ADASS, Camden
π π©· Proud Northerner, hobbyist writer + outdoorsy dog woman
π΅οΈββοΈResearcher at @ipprnorth.bsky.social.
π¬ All things housing, MVAWG, health, regional equality, devo.
Views=own / repost not an endorsement
Professor of Public Policy, Inaugural Director of the Bennett Institute for Public Policy, University of Cambridge, Author
Senior Policy Advisor at JRF (@jrf-uk.bsky.social) focusing on communities and place
she/her
Views my own.
Director of Public Health, Stockport; views my own
Historian, researcher, and co-editor of @renewaljournal.bsky.social
not on a βmini-retraiteβ any more
Writer, editor, #healthpolicy nerd. Loves evidence, humans, the NHS, equity. NUJ. Green. Grew up on free school meals.
Surprisingly good at identifying plants. Stroud-based. π§caroline.molloy@cantab.net
Economist, formerly a physicist. Head of UK Economic Policy & Modelling @ Cambridge Econometrics, Visiting Researcher in Innovation Systems @ Oxford Brookes, & Associate @ CityREDI. Also interested in cricket, baseball and metal. Displaced Salopian. Vmo
Ex-Financial Times Assistant Editor. Ex-editor Scotland on Sunday. Author of 'Made in Manchester' and 'Northerners: A History'. 'These Isles' due Feb 2026.
Partner at Public Digital, co-founder Government Digital Service, ex-BBC. Expect occasional small boat sailing.
Health inequalities, inclusive economies, devolution, employment & welfare
@healthfoundation.bsky.social
Previously working on disability, social care & carers policy
Asst CEX at Rotherham Council. Interested in local government, public policy, leadership, workforce issues/ opportunities, community engagement. Plus yoga, travel, food & coffee.
We're a specialist digital transformation consultancy. We help governments, businesses and companies change their ways of working and thrive in the digital era.
https://public.digital/