Public Service Improvement Lessons from Winnie the Pooh, Lessons from Coventry

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Public Service ImprovementLessons from Winnie
the Pooh, Lessons from Coventry
City Vision, Quality Services

• CIPFA 2006
• Stella Manzie
• Coventry City Council

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What I want to cover

• Current public service issues
• The missing ingredients
• Context and framework
• Understanding and valuing management
• A new public service settlement

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Public Services?

• Central government immigration service,
  Jobcentreplus, Customs and Excise
• Local government street services, education,
  social services, env health
• Health -GPs, school nurses, dentists, hospitals
• Uniformed services police,fire

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First things first

• Many public services have been transformed
• There is still more work to be done
• Much more emphasis on unit cost needed
• More slick,less clunky,more walking in other
  peoples shoes

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PMs Strategy Unit Discussion Paper 6 June 2006
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The Missing Ingredients

• Context of policy-making
• Link between policy and delivery
• Accountability issues
• Recognition of the nature of management

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Current Public Service Problems

• Immigration Service
• NHS Overspend
• Some Housing Benefits
• Transport
• Planning
• Integrated services to children

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Why?

• Some flawed policy making
• Disjuncture between policy-making,finance and
  delivery
• Mechanistic attempts to make change
• Inadequate attention to the quality of the public
  service experience
• Day to day management is organisational,
  repetitive,gruelling and often frustrating
• Lack of attention to productivity and cost

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What is it that improves Public Services?
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Is this the right route forward?

• Tony Blair
• The public sector will survive only if it
  embraces choice, competition and
  self-sustaining change
• 6th June 2006

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Lessons from Winnie the Pooh and Eeyore
Brains first and then Hard Work
THE HOUSE AT POOH CORNER A. A. Milne London 1928
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Lessons from Coventry

• Strategic thinking about the shape of services
  e.g. to older people, children
• Councillors attention to detail, the bridge to
  customers
• Clarity of purpose in simple terms
• Reliable and consistent appraisals
• Communication signalling priorities awareness
  challenge identification of blockages
• Measures of evaluation reflecting purpose,
  quality and value for money

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A few public service successes

• Transformation of our cities
• Education e.g. literacy hour, integration of new
  immigrants, greater focus on outcomes
• Londons congestion charging
• Community safety-police and local councils
• New hospitals
• Inland Revenue

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A new public service settlement (1)

• Civil Service - a Bains like structure - leader
  and chief executive style management
• Local Government - greater emphasis on value for
  money and quality
• Health more pro-active commissioning,
  management and financial modelling
• Uniformed services emphasis on community,
  customers and value for money

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A new public service settlement (2)

• Greater analysis and realism about objectives,
  costs and processes
• Increased levels of financial skills
• Politicians with experience of organisations
• Fewer levers, gimmicks and mechanisms
• More prioritisation of detailed processes and
  workforce management

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And finally.Public service values

• Right first time
• Value for money
• Social justice

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Greyfriars Green, Coventry