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Implementing ‘Best Value’: Local Public Services in Transition
Author(s) -
Martin Steve
Publication year - 2000
Publication title -
public administration
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.313
H-Index - 93
eISSN - 1467-9299
pISSN - 0033-3298
DOI - 10.1111/1467-9299.00200
Subject(s) - local government , structuring , service delivery framework , business , best value , service (business) , value (mathematics) , service provider , government (linguistics) , public relations , public value , public administration , marketing , political science , computer science , finance , linguistics , philosophy , machine learning
This paper examines the impacts of the ‘Best Value’ regime on the management of local public services in the UK. It argues that the regime marks an important shift in the framework of national regulation of local authorities and the services they provide but that the initiatives developed by the councils which have been piloting the new framework reflect a variety of approaches to local implementation. This suggests not the arrival of a new, hegemonic ‘outcomes‐focused paradigm’ but a more gradual transition characterized by the co‐existence and interaction of hierarchical, market based and collaborative frameworks for co‐ordinating service delivery. The search for ‘citizen‐centred’ services is likely to lead to a shift in the ‘mix of governing structures’ with an increasing number of services structured around ‘cross‐cutting issues’, specific client groups or local communities. However, these more integrated approaches to local service delivery frequently require internal re‐structuring as well as more effective collabor‐ation with other local service providers and with local people. They may not therefore lead to immediate improvements in public services and will require local and central government to embrace new approaches to learning.