On the eve of Labour’s spring conference in Birmingham this weekend, Nathan Yeowell says that it’s time to celebrate the effectiveness of Labour’s own winning central:local partnership
Over recent weeks, the prime minister has warmed to his theme of the ‘opportunity revolution’.
Speaking at the Welsh Labour conference in Llandudno, he declared that ‘only progressive forces in our country can open up the opportunities, remove the barriers created by privilege, and equip all our people to make the most of their abilities’.
He could have also added that Labour local government – working together with the Labour Government at Westminster – is best-placed to help promote greater fairness and economic opportunity. In fact, Labour councils thoughout the country are doing it all ready.
There are a number of areas where Labour locally is working hand-in-hand with Labour, nationally, to deliver better lives and brighter opportunities for the people they serve and represent. Take the cities strategy, for example. Pilots in Labour places such as Greater Manchester, Tyne and Wear and South Yorkshire are championing new and innovative ways of tackling worklessness.
Manchester City Council has already pumped more than £1.75m each year of Neighbourhood Renewal Fund money into a Stepping Stones Project which has helped more than 1,000 people on incapacity benefit get back to work – by pooling the support of Jobcentre Plus, and the Employment and Regeneration Partnership with that offered by the council itself. A second area is housing. Since 1997, the Labour Government has invested billions of pounds in social housing in an attempt to reverse the chronic under-investment of previous years.
The implementation of the Decent Homes Standard has seen the number of non-decent homes fall by at least one million since 1997, and the rolling out of ALMOs will allow councils to finish off this process over the next decade.
Labour councils are at the forefront of providing housing strategies which are truly responsive to their needs of their communities.
The three-star Sheffield Homes ALMO is providing ground-breaking services to more than 43,000 tenants, and is on course to deliver the largest Decent Homes programme in the country, investing the best part of £700m in local homes.
Wolverhampton Homes has led the way in providing joined-up customer service to its tenants, resulting in 87% customer satisfaction. And in Torfaen and Rhondda Cynon Taff, Labour authorities have transferred their housing stock into the hands of new ‘community mutuals’ – housing co-ops which will bring greater community engagement into the heart of housing provision.
The Labour group at the LGA has done a lot of work with successive housing ministers to help shape and promote these policies, and continues to act as a crucial link feeding through new and distinctly Labour approaches to housing. The recent publication of the Children’s plan gives us another opportunity to champion Labour’s central:local partnership. The plan sets out the Government’s ambition to deliver a world-class education for every child, support parents in managing the new pressures they face, and tackles the social barriers which hold some children back.
Each of these aspirations will be realised by Labour local government. Not only are Labour councils already at the forefront of delivering school buildings fit for the 21st century through the Building Schools for the Future programme, they are also leading the way in providing proactive support services for children and young people who need help post 16.
Lewisham’s NEET programme, for example, gives youngsters with no obvious way forward the chance to challenge themselves and develop the skills and self-confidence needed to win a traineeship or take up a college course.
Local government is on the frontline when it comes to changing people’s lives for the better. The partnership between the Labour Government and Labour local government puts us in a unique position to improve people’s life chances and opportunities.
We need to celebrate this partnership – and campaign on its successes as we look forward to 1 May n
Nathan Yeowell is acting head of office at the LGA Labour group
Speaking at the Welsh Labour conference in Llandudno, he declared that ‘only progressive forces in our country can open up the opportunities, remove the barriers created by privilege, and equip all our people to make the most of their abilities’.
He could have also added that Labour local government – working together with the Labour Government at Westminster – is best-placed to help promote greater fairness and economic opportunity. In fact, Labour councils thoughout the country are doing it all ready.
There are a number of areas where Labour locally is working hand-in-hand with Labour, nationally, to deliver better lives and brighter opportunities for the people they serve and represent. Take the cities strategy, for example. Pilots in Labour places such as Greater Manchester, Tyne and Wear and South Yorkshire are championing new and innovative ways of tackling worklessness.
Manchester City Council has already pumped more than £1.75m each year of Neighbourhood Renewal Fund money into a Stepping Stones Project which has helped more than 1,000 people on incapacity benefit get back to work – by pooling the support of Jobcentre Plus, and the Employment and Regeneration Partnership with that offered by the council itself. A second area is housing. Since 1997, the Labour Government has invested billions of pounds in social housing in an attempt to reverse the chronic under-investment of previous years.
The implementation of the Decent Homes Standard has seen the number of non-decent homes fall by at least one million since 1997, and the rolling out of ALMOs will allow councils to finish off this process over the next decade.
Labour councils are at the forefront of providing housing strategies which are truly responsive to their needs of their communities.
The three-star Sheffield Homes ALMO is providing ground-breaking services to more than 43,000 tenants, and is on course to deliver the largest Decent Homes programme in the country, investing the best part of £700m in local homes.
Wolverhampton Homes has led the way in providing joined-up customer service to its tenants, resulting in 87% customer satisfaction. And in Torfaen and Rhondda Cynon Taff, Labour authorities have transferred their housing stock into the hands of new ‘community mutuals’ – housing co-ops which will bring greater community engagement into the heart of housing provision.
The Labour group at the LGA has done a lot of work with successive housing ministers to help shape and promote these policies, and continues to act as a crucial link feeding through new and distinctly Labour approaches to housing. The recent publication of the Children’s plan gives us another opportunity to champion Labour’s central:local partnership. The plan sets out the Government’s ambition to deliver a world-class education for every child, support parents in managing the new pressures they face, and tackles the social barriers which hold some children back.
Each of these aspirations will be realised by Labour local government. Not only are Labour councils already at the forefront of delivering school buildings fit for the 21st century through the Building Schools for the Future programme, they are also leading the way in providing proactive support services for children and young people who need help post 16.
Lewisham’s NEET programme, for example, gives youngsters with no obvious way forward the chance to challenge themselves and develop the skills and self-confidence needed to win a traineeship or take up a college course.
Local government is on the frontline when it comes to changing people’s lives for the better. The partnership between the Labour Government and Labour local government puts us in a unique position to improve people’s life chances and opportunities.
We need to celebrate this partnership – and campaign on its successes as we look forward to 1 May n
Nathan Yeowell is acting head of office at the LGA Labour group
