Working group publishes report setting out sustainable operating model for local government in Wales

The report, Local government fit for the future, follows the convening of an independent working group by the Wales Centre for Public Policy (WCPP), in collaboration with the Welsh Local Government Association (WLGA). Members included council leaders, chief executives and local government experts.

The report, which seeks to set out a sustainable operating model for councils in Wales, calls for closer collaboration across public services, a stronger focus on prevention and outcomes, and a greater voice for residents in the decisions that affect them.

“It also encourages councils to rethink how services are delivered and to develop new cultures and ways of working,” WCPP said.

The report suggests that sustainability in the sector depends on reforms to finance, governance, and workforce, paired with targeted investment in sector innovation capacity and a shared target.

It calls for an evolution from councils being predominantly service providers to becoming “democratic leaders of place”, still delivering essential services while increasingly convening, enabling and working alongside communities and partners.

The report outlines three targets, labelled as “cultural shifts”:

• Relationship with residents: Councils must work with communities rather than simply acting for them. Meaningful participation is essential to strengthen trust, improve decision making and build the public understanding needed to navigate difficult choices while maintaining democratic legitimacy.
• Relationship with the wider system: Councils must champion purposeful collaboration, overcoming institutional silos and rationalising complex partnership arrangements to focus on delivering shared outcomes. Local government, Welsh Government and partner organisations must work together to create the conditions for more preventative, place-based and effective public services.
• Sector leadership: Local government must take collective ownership of this transition. Building the council of the future is not a single reform event, but an ongoing process to develop, test, learn, and adapt.

However, the report warns that the necessary change cannot happen in isolation; it requires funding, execution, and accountability frameworks that incentivise progress towards a common aim.

It calls on the Welsh Government to match and support the changes as they come, with a recognition from the Senedd that transition must be realistic and phased, but the need to begin it is immediate.

Professor Dan Bristow, Wales Centre for Public Policy Director, said: “The Independent working group has enabled the local government sector to develop and agree a unified vision for its future and a clear pathway to realising that vision. 

“However, achieving those aims and ensuring sustainability becomes a reality will require both structural reform and culture change. Sector-led change needs to be matched by Welsh Government leadership. Reforms to local government funding, performance, and accountability frameworks will be essential ingredients if this plan is to be successful.”

Cllr Mary Ann Brocklesby, WLGA spokesperson for Health and Social Care said: “This vision asks us to think beyond individual services and focus on what people actually want for their communities: healthier lives, good opportunities and places where everyone can thrive. Achieving that means involving residents in the choices that affect them and working much more closely across organisational boundaries.

“We know there is no single answer that will work everywhere. What matters is giving councils the freedom, capacity and long-term confidence to learn, adapt and build on what works locally. This report gives us a shared direction and an opportunity to shape the next chapter of Welsh local government together.

“Local government is ultimately about people, the places they live, the opportunities available to them and the support they can turn to when they need it.”

Siân Gwenllian MS, Cabinet Minister for Local Government, Housing and Planning meanwhile announced last week that she had signed a renewed Strategic Partnership Agreement between the Welsh Government and local government in Wales.

She said: “Local government is central to the delivery of the services people rely on every day. The renewed agreement provides a clear framework for strengthening our relationship, supporting honest dialogue, and ensuring we are better able to respond together to the opportunities and challenges facing Wales.

“I want to thank local authority Leaders and the WLGA for their continued commitment to working in partnership. I look forward to building on this renewed agreement together, so that people across Wales can see and feel the benefits of a strong, trusted relationship between local and national government.”

Harry Rodd