Feedback from the 13 Total Place pilots shows the current system of governance is ‘dysfunctional’ and failing the public, according to efficiency chief Sir Michael Bichard.

Sir Michael, chair of the Total Place high-level officers’ group, which met last Thursday, told an MJ/NSA conference the same day: ‘What the pilots show us is this governance system is not working. It’s pretty well dysfunctional.
‘The pilots have shown that too many people are receiving poor, unco-ordinated services which do not meet their needs.
‘The money is not well managed and agencies do not act together. We are failing to deliver on major social policy objectives.’
Sir Michael, who is also director of the Institute for Government, warned that the answer was not more restructuring.
He told delegates: ‘Total Place is not about structure, but nor is it a marginal, fleeting initiative. There’s a tendency to move on to a new idea before we’ve finished the old one. We can’t do that with Total Place. It’s not just another initiative. It marks a shift in the way we work.’
Birmingham City Council chief executive, Stephen Hughes, said Total Place was an answer to dealing with intractable social problems by focusing on whole families and individuals rather than their different needs.
In Birmingham, a pilot, he estimated early intervention with youngsters could save £400m for an investment of £42m. In the city, just two families involved in gangs cost £37m in public money over three generations. He added: ‘The difficult challenge is to convince the Treasury that upfront investment will lead to savings.’
His comments come after the 13 Total Place pilots submitted their final reports to communities secretary, John Denham, who this week claimed £20bn over 10 years could be saved in reducing costs by 5% to 6% in asset management alone.