What now for deprivations of liberty?
What will the effect of the postponement of the Liberty Protections Safeguards be on local authorities? Local Government Lawyer asked 50 adult social care lawyers for their views on the potential consequences.
SPOTLIGHT |
SPOTLIGHT |
The government should enable councils to work in partnership with the charity sector, ensure there is a more consistent commissioning process and reduce the regulatory burden on the third sector, charity finance directors have urged.
In a submission to the Treasury’s comprehensive spending review, the Charity Finance Directors’ Group (CFDG) said: “Local authorities should be enabled and encouraged to work in partnership with the charity sector, rather than simply ‘turning off the tap’, transferring the bulk of spending cuts onto the services currently delivered by charities.”
The group argued that greater consistency in the commissioning process, allowing full cost recovery and removing some of the barriers to participating in public service delivery would help to level the playing field for charities in bidding for contracts.
Other key recommendations included:
The CFDG said charities have a significant part to play in bringing the government’s Big Society to life within communities.
Calling on the government to take into account the longer term impacts on the charity sector of any cuts, it added: “Furthermore, while the government has expressed that frontline services will be protected, there also needs to be recognition of the role that charities play in identifying local needs and in working with vulnerable and difficult to reach groups.”