Scottish Government
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Partnership working
Joint working between central and local government has achieved more for Scottish communities than ever before, Finance Secretary John Swinney told delegates at a COSLA conference today.
He said the local outcomes approach, embodied in Single Outcome Agreements between councils, their local partners and the Scottish Government, had made a positive impact across Scotland.
His comments at the conference came as the Scottish Government and COSLA jointly published 'Local Matters: Delivering the Local Outcomes Approach', which highlights good progress made to date.
The three key messages of this overview commentary are:
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The local outcomes approach is the right approach: Overseas literature, including from the OECD and World Bank, validates the approach as being in line with international developments
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The local outcomes approach is working: Local partners are committed to making the approach work and there are already examples of positive outcomes emerging from their efforts
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There is still more work to be done to maximise the benefits of the approach and offset the difficult financial environment. But action is already taking place to address these challenges
Mr Swinney said:
"The last four years has clearly demonstrated what can be achieved when the Scottish Government works in partnership with local authorities.
"Local Matters highlights a number of areas where an outcomes approach has been successful. In Falkirk, for example, local partners are supporting the local economy by providing loans for businesses and training opportunities for unemployed people, while in Angus the local authority have worked with the police, voluntary sector and community to tackle antisocial behaviour in a community in Brechin, with positive results.
"In the face of the biggest reduction in public spending imposed by Westminster on any Scottish Government, we have worked with COSLA leadership to agree a council funding package for next year which delivers a further council tax freeze and key public service commitments.
"It also restricts councils' average funding reduction to 2.5 per cent - a greater degree of protection than other parts of the Scottish Budget, and superior to that for local government in England. The alternative would have been not to maintain delivery of key commitments to improve vital public services, from which the people of Scotland would undoubtedly have suffered.
"We are making progress on all fronts and have real achievements under our belt. We have shifted towards a focus on local outcomes that matter, protecting our people and communities from a tough financial climate and helping to achieve our longer-term vision and aspirations for Scotland."
