McMahon urges joint working on social care by new unitaries in local government reorganisation letter

In a letter to council leaders sent on Friday (25 July), Local Government Minister Jim McMahon said joint working across new unitary councils on social care will be just one example of how service delivery could be reformed under reorganisation.

A separate document published alongside the letter, which sets out how the Government envisages shared working to play out, says that partnership working between new unitary authorities could support authorities in managing the continuity of adult social care and children's social care services during reorganisation.

"It could also maximise opportunities for future collaboration at a strategic level, such as on health and care integration and with other public services," the document adds.

McMahon also shared further information on the local government reorganisation process once final proposals have been submitted, including a full timeline on the process and an explanatory note on financial decisions.

The financial note stated, among other things, that in the lead up to reorganisation, the Government expects councillors and statutory officers "to be mindful of their responsibilities".

"Councils should maintain strong accounting and governance disciplines, prepare their accounts on a timely basis, and work closely with their auditors to rebuild assurance where accounts have been disclaimed and to ensure that all assets, liabilities and key risks are correctly identified and reported," the note said.

It also set out expectations that all councils in an area work together in sharing information and making decisions that are in the best interests of the whole area.

Elsewhere in the letter, McMahon said that he "continue[s] to be asked about population size", adding: "I know that proposals are being developed with a population size of more than 500,000, and for a population size of less than 500,000, and it is right that areas have the flexibility to put forward proposals that they believe are right for their area."

He said that all proposals should set out the rationale for the proposed approach clearly, whether there are at the guided population lever, above it or below it.

McMahon continued: "We will continue to work closely with you, the LGA and other sector bodies. I recommend you make use of the wealth of information on the LGA hub, which includes recent updates to the FAQs.

"My officials are in place to support areas in developing their LGR proposals over the summer and going forwards, as we are doing with councils in Surrey as the statutory consultation progresses."

Adam Carey