WIREDGOV

Home Office: A new model of policing in which the police service direct their resources specifically to areas that will have the biggest impact on reducing harm to communities has been proposed by Sir Ronnie Flanagan.

 

Better management of resources, less paperwork and greater use of technology could help free up valuable police time and transform the police - giving individual officers more discretion, delivering efficiencies and enabling police forces to focus on the specific threats to their communities. The report estimates that between five and seven million hours a year - the equivalent of 2,500 - 3,500 police officers - could be refocused on front line duties if the changes he recommends are made.

Press release ~ Home Secretary’s response ~ Police Reform final report & related documents ~ Evaluation report on National Reassurance Policing Pilots ~ Literature review of community engagement in policing - Community Engagement in Policing ~ Reassurance Policing ~ Association of Chief Police Officers (ACPO) ~ Neighbourhood Policing Programme website ~ HMIC report - Closing The Gap (Public Copy) A Review Of The ‘Fitness For Purpose’ Of The Current Structure Of Policing In England & Wales (1.4Mb) ~ Guide to community engagement in policing ~ Neighbourhood Policing - your police, your community; our commitment ~ The Home Office policy paper Building Communities, Beating Crime: A Better Police Service for the 21st Century

 

DfT: New research reveals that more than 90% of those entitled to the free England-wide bus pass are ‘eagerly’ awaiting its introduction on 1 April 2008, when people aged 60 & over and eligible disabled whose principle residence is England will be able to take advantage of free off-peak local bus travel anywhere in England.  Off-peak is 9.30am to 11pm on weekdays and anytime on weekends & Bank Holidays.

 

The new statutory entitlement will (in theory) give up to 11 million eligible people more freedom & independence, greater access to vital services such as hospitals & shops and the opportunity to travel more economically when visiting friends & family living in other parts of England.

Press release ~ DfT – Bus Concession survey ~ New England wide Bus Concession

 

CIOB: A new report – ‘Key trends in the European and US construction marketplace’ - has been produced through a research partnership between McGraw-Hill Construction in the USA and the University of Reading’s Innovative Construction Research Centre (ICRC), with support from the Chartered Institute of Building (CIOB).

The research highlights that advances in technology, the shifts in the construction workforce and increasing global competition are key concerns among industry leaders across Europe and the US.  It emphasises the driving influence of governance & legislation, environmental pressures, global project finance, new procurement methods and the increasing cost of materials.  It also explores how these trends are shaping the increasingly interconnected construction marketplace.

Press release ~ Chartered Institute of Building (CIOB ~ Key trends in the European and US construction marketplace’ ~ McGraw-Hill Construction in the USA ~ University of Reading’s Innovative Construction Research Centre (ICRC) ~ Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC)

 

NAO: The Department for International Development’s (DFID’s) use of budget support is helping developing country governments to build their capacity and expand basic services.  But, according to a report published by the National Audit Office (NAO), evidence on whether budget support has yielded better value for money than other forms of aid is not conclusive, as weaknesses in setting objectives mean that DFID does not always set out what it expects to achieve or by when.

 

While budget support has some advantages compared to other forms of aid, it also carries significant risks which need to be better managed. It has allowed developing country governments to increase expenditure in priority areas and to expand access to essential public services such as health and education, but the significant expansion of basic services has often been accompanied by a deterioration in service quality.  

Press release ~ Department for International Development - Providing budget support to developing countries (1.85 MB) ~ Executive Summary  ~ Results from survey of DFID country teams ~ DFID: Poverty Reduction Budget Support