Programme summary
IPEG has been commissioned by NWIN to undertake a three year knowledge creation and transfer programme for local government in the region. The research focuses on local governance and leadership challenges being faced by local government and will run between 2006-2009.
NWIN is a network of the 46 local authorities in the North West . It has received £8m from central government to support its members to improve performance. The aims of the Network are to: facilitate mutual learning between authorities in the region; to stimulate innovation and new practices; to help North West authorities develop their community leadership roles. Our work is overseen by an NWIN panel chaired by Joyce Redfearn, Chief Executive of Wigan MBC.
The theme of the research programme is to underpin NWIN members' ability to meet its local governance and leadership challenges, particularly in view of the local government white paper . We use the concept of governance and leadership to include:
- Strategic partnerships - creating vision and strategic direction for a local authority area or sub-region, strengthening the ability of authorities and their partners to deliver innovation and change, delivering community leadership
- Community engagement - getting effective participation and developing community relations, delivering community leadership
- Responsive services, responsive clients - challenging and scrutinising public services, in partnership with communities to create more responsive services, plus proactive measures to change negative citizen behaviours and see more responsive service users
The University of Manchester is also offering a range of other services to NWIN through the Centre for Local Governance (CfLG), which includes researchers from IPEG, Manchester Business School (MBS), and Centre for Educational Leadership (CEL). There is more information about the services offered by CfLG here.
There are several individual research projects within the knowledge creation programme.
Year Two Projects in the NWIN Knowledge Creation and Transfer Programme
Theme 1 - Strategic partnerships
- 1.1 Strengthening leadership; managing tensions
- 1.2 How can local government help create economic prosperity?
Theme 2 - Community engagement and cohesion
- 2.1 Partnerships with the voluntary and community sector - where next?
- 2.2 Facing up to the community cohesion challenge - the moral and political agenda
- 2.3 Neighbourhood accountability - the 'many sizes' and how they fit
- 2.4 Rediscovering the civic and achieving better outcomes in public policy (part funded by NWIN)
Theme 3 - Responsive services, responsive clients
Year One Projects in the NWIN Knowledge Creation and Transfer Programme
Theme 1 - Strategic partnerships
- 1.1 What is the role of good practice in innovation?
- 1.2 Achieving innovation in local authority organisations
Theme 2 - Community engagement and cohesion
Theme 3 - Responsive services, responsive clients
- 3.1 Shifting entrenched behaviours: smart solutions to the 'wicked' issues
- 3.2 Choice in public services - a review of the evidence
Project investigators
Relevant links
- Centre for Local Governance (CfLG)
- Manchester Business School (MBS)
- Centre for Educational Leadership (CEL)
- North West Improvement Network (NWIN)
- Department for Communities and Local Government (DCLG) (local government white paper)
Publications
Executive summaries:
Event reports:
Literature reviews: