scholarly journals An evaluation of the information content of local authority websites in the UK using citizen-based scenarios

2007 ◽  
Vol 31 (98) ◽  
pp. 45-60 ◽  
Author(s):  
Wendy Olphert ◽  
Leela Damodaran
Keyword(s):  
Pilot Study ◽  
Local Government ◽  
Information Needs ◽  
Local Authority ◽  
Local Level ◽  
Real Life ◽  
Information Provision ◽  
Ease Of Use ◽  
Government Services ◽  
The Uk

The UK Government is pursuing ambitious targets for the delivery of e-government at the local level. As part of the implementation of local e-government, all of the 468 local authorities in the UK now have a website. Surveys show significant advances in the delivery of online local government services, but despite this the level of usage of e-government by citizens in the UK is low compared to other countries at a similar level of e-maturity. One reason hypothesised for this is that the websites do not meet citizens' information needs and consequently fail to engage them. A pilot study was undertaken to explore the use of real life scenario-based queries as a method for evaluating information provision on local authority websites. The findings suggest that even websites that perform highly in terms of accessibility, transactional capability and ease of use will not necessarily meet citizens' information needs. The authors conclude that a citizen-centred approach to developing e-government systems, including the identification of information needs, could generate the 'user pull' needed to stimulate uptake and achieve the intended benefits.

Local authorities: Powerhouses or scapegoats?

2020 ◽  
pp. 99-122
Author(s):  
John Sturzaker ◽  
Alexander Nurse
Keyword(s):  
Local Government ◽  
Urban Governance ◽  
Local Authority ◽  
Local Level ◽  
Local Authorities ◽  
History Of ◽  
The Uk

Some have argued that reforms to urban governance in the UK in recent years have “hollowed out” the local level, emphasising the levels “above” and “below” it. This reflects a broader perceived loss of focus on cities themselves, but a great deal of power and responsibility still remains at the local authority level. This chapter considers how local government autonomy has changed in recent years, within the context of a broader history of local government in the UK. It then reflects upon the “entrepreneurial turn” in local government, for some a consequence of reduced funding for local authorities, and considers recent evidence of a return to “municipal socialism” in England and beyond.

scholarly journals Review of the Commonwealth Local Government Good Practice Scheme

2012 ◽  
pp. 150-158
Author(s):  
Rachael Duchnowski
Keyword(s):  
Local Government ◽  
Millennium Development Goals ◽  
Local Authority ◽  
Local Level ◽  
Good Practice ◽  
Government Performance ◽  
Successful Implementation ◽  
Management Efficiency ◽  
Efficiency And Effectiveness ◽  
Development Goals

The overarching objective of the Commonwealth Local Government Good Practice Scheme (GPS) was to contribute towards the achievement of the Millennium Development Goals at the local level; there were four expected outputs:1. Increased capacity of local authorities to plan and deliver services, through successful implementation of CLGF-funded projects focussed on the following nationally agreed themes, relevant to the achievement of the MDGs;2. Measurable and/or assessable improvements in individual and/or departmental/local authority management efficiency and effectiveness delivered through the GPS projects;3. National local government associations possess effective knowledge management systems and dissemination networks working nationally - and internationally through CLGF;4. Utilisation of expertise of local government practitioners in partner countries to improve local government performance more widely.

Use and Perceptions of the Availability of Local Government and Nonprofit Services in Diverse Urban Settings

2019 ◽  
Vol 48 (5) ◽  
pp. 975-997
Author(s):  
Khaldoun AbouAssi ◽  
Lewis Faulk ◽  
Long Tran ◽  
Lilli Shaffer ◽  
Minjung Kim
Keyword(s):  
Local Government ◽  
Administrative Data ◽  
Local Level ◽  
Community Level ◽  
Demand Side ◽  
Individual Level ◽  
Government Services ◽  
Nonprofit Theory ◽  
Perceived Access ◽  
The Relationship

This analysis tests fundamental nonprofit theory using individual-level demand-side data, which complements existing studies that have relied on organizational- and community-level variables alone. We use survey and administrative data to test the relationship between individuals’ perceptions and use of local government services and their reported use of nonprofit services, controlling for the density of organizations around respondents’ addresses. Individuals who report being better served by government services are significantly more likely to report using nonprofit services—while individuals who report being unserved by government are also less likely to report access to nonprofits, despite the actual density of organizations around them. These findings support theories of interdependence between government and nonprofit sectors. However, income-based disparities in perceived access to nonprofit services highlight persistent gaps in serving all individuals on the local level.

scholarly journals New CLGF Four-Year Grant to Help Local Government Service Delivery and Boost CLGF’s Research Capacity

2012 ◽  
pp. 136-138 ◽  
Author(s):  
Lucy Slack ◽  
Susan Rhodes
Keyword(s):  
Local Government ◽  
Service Delivery ◽  
International Development ◽  
Policy Making ◽  
Regional Policy ◽  
Local Level ◽  
National Policy ◽  
Research Capacity ◽  
Government Service ◽  
The Uk

The UK Department for International Development (UK AID) has agreed £4.5 million funding for a four-year CLGF programme to improve governance and service delivery at local level in several areas of the Commonwealth including Africa and Asia from 2012-16. It will also help to support national policy frameworks for local government service delivery, and increase engagement of local government in regional policy planning and implementation. CLGF will continue to work with its members, UN partners and others to mobilise more resources towards the support of local government in the Commonwealth. The new programme will focus on local government pilot projects in LED, supporting ministries and local government associations in strengthening their national policy making for local government, and establish regional forums to enable local government to engage in and influence regional policy making to reflect the needs and priorities of local government. It will also boost CLGF’s research capacity with targeted research to strengthen CLGF’s policy making and advocacy, including more sustained engagement in international policy debates on key issues affecting local government, such as climate change.

scholarly journals Determinants of E-Government Implementation Based on Technology Acceptance Model

2020 ◽  
Vol 11 (2) ◽  
pp. 184-197
Author(s):  
Nurkholis Nurkholis ◽  
Rosalina Yuri Anggraini
Keyword(s):  
Technology Acceptance ◽  
Technology Acceptance Model ◽  
Information Needs ◽  
Ease Of Use ◽  
City Government ◽  
System Quality ◽  
Government Services ◽  
Acceptance Model ◽  
The City

This study aims to examine Technology Acceptance Model (TAM) on the implementation of E-Government. Data for this study were collected through a questionnaire survey on the people of Malang City who have used E-Government services. Structural model analysis was performed using smartPLS. The results showed that intention was the main determinant of the use of E-Government services. The determining factor of intention to use E-Government services is positive attitude towards E-Government. Other factors such as system quality, its ease of use, and quality of information do not affect people’s interest in using E-Government services. In other words, E-Government application developed by the City Government has been deemed not easy enough to be applied and not informative enough to meet the information needs of the community. This is a challenge for the City Government to be able to improve and develop the quality of systems and information from its E-Government services so that people are increasingly interested in applying it, for the realization of Malang as a smart city.

Overcoming austerity effects through local authority direct action?

2020 ◽  
pp. 83-122
Author(s):  
Janice Morphet ◽  
Ben Clifford
Keyword(s):  
United Kingdom ◽  
Local Government ◽  
Local Authority ◽  
Direct Action ◽  
Government Funding ◽  
Local Authorities ◽  
The United Kingdom ◽  
Uk Government ◽  
Political Act ◽  
The Uk

This chapter deals with the application of austerity since 2010 as a political act designed to transform the way in which local authorities in the United Kingdom operate and are funded. It explains how the local authorities have been dependent on government funding as the UK is considered as one of the most centralised states in the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD). It also recounts how the UK government in 2010 decided that the Revenue Support Grant (RSG) funding paid to councils would be removed through annual tapering to zero by 2020. The chapter probes the intention of the UK government to replace RSG with each of the council's retention of 75 per cent of the local business rates. It analyses the system of local government funding that operated until local government reorganisation in 1974.

A Model for Connected E-Government in the Digital Age

2019 ◽  
pp. 233-243
Author(s):  
Qiuyan Fan
Keyword(s):  
Local Government ◽  
Information Integration ◽  
Local Level ◽  
Third Party ◽  
Government Services ◽  
It Architecture ◽  
Proposed Model ◽  
Digital Channels ◽  
Delivery Approach

Local government in Australia plays an important role in local economies and communities. The chapter reviews e-government development at the local level in Australia and proposes a connected e-government model that aims to increase the quality of government services and improve the effectiveness of local government operations. A framework for developing more connected and responsive e-government at the local level is of paramount importance. Connected government requires not only a user-centric focus for the development of e-government services but also government business process and information integration. Reusable services and connected IT architecture are essential characteristics of connected e-government. The proposed model links to third party efforts, which provides more effective way of developing a more connected e-government by potentially breaking down bureaucratic barriers. As technology evolves, people are demanding access to local government via digital channels. The proposed model adopts an integrated multichannel service delivery approach to connected e-government.

scholarly journals Exploring the ‘Shadows’ in the Implementation Processes for National Anti-fraud Strategies at the Local Level: Aims, Ownership, and Impact

2019 ◽  
Vol 26 (3) ◽  
pp. 313-333 ◽  
Author(s):  
Michael Levi ◽  
Alan Doig
Keyword(s):  
Local Government ◽  
Crime Control ◽  
Central Government ◽  
Local Level ◽  
Implementation Process ◽  
Strategy Implementation ◽  
Implementation Processes ◽  
The United Kingdom ◽  
Effective Delivery ◽  
The Uk

Abstract This article studies the development and implementation of a nationally drafted strategy for fraud in local government in England. The purpose, relevant to other countries which also face (or evade) problems of policy outreach, is to consider what is required to achieve effective implementation through three broad aspects: aims, ownership, and impact. There is a particular focus on the assessment of the strategy implementation process and what mechanisms translate strategies into effective delivery or what other factors may subvert that delivery. The empirical research draws on the UK government’s 2006 policy review on fraud and the consequential changes between then and 2019, including a number of fraud strategies initiated by the United Kingdom central government. To review implementation in practice, it focuses on the 2011 local government strategy and uses a local-level case study to assess issues concerning aims, ownership, and impact, as well as the effect of other nationally determined policies and agendas. It concludes that without an ‘owned’ strategy implementation process as a whole, national strategies concerning the prevention and policing of fraud in England in the twenty-first century have had—and continue to have—modest impact on practice on the ground at the local level. We find it plausible that this is true elsewhere in the world, not only for crime control but also for other ‘change’ strategies in the public sector. However, testing that proposition is for researchers in other countries. Our aim here is to use this superficially parochial study to raise more universal questions about how policy designers (and academic researchers) need to take better account of circumstances on the ground, the management of strategy implementation and legitimacy, if their strategies are to be more than merely symbolic rhetoric.

scholarly journals Alternative Forms of Taxation to Achieve Equitable Levels of Educational Expenditures

1973 ◽  
Vol 5 (2) ◽  
pp. 7-13
Author(s):  
Fred C. White ◽  
Bill R. Miller
Keyword(s):  
Local Government ◽  
Low Income ◽  
Public Services ◽  
Local Level ◽  
Property Tax ◽  
Property Taxes ◽  
Real Property ◽  
Government Services ◽  
Educational Expenditures ◽  
Low Income Families

Pressures are increasing for reforms in financing of local government services. At the local level, the property tax is a major source of concern. Two major charges leveled against the property tax are (1) that the property tax is regressive and (2) that financing local government services through the property tax leads to inequities in services received.The charge that the property tax is regressive stems from the fact that it is a tax on wealth and not on income. The amount of real property owned by a person is not necessarily proportional to his ability to pay taxes. Several studies have shown that property taxes are regressive; i.e., that low-income families pay a greater percentage of their income for public services than do middle- and upper-income families.

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