The State of Leadership in Local Government
Effective leadership and management significantly impact public sector performance, including in local government. This report, leveraging insights from an expert roundtable, recent survey data, and case studies, delves into the performance and challenges of leadership and management in local government.
Research reveals that while local government leaders recognise the crucial role of leadership quality in organisational success, only 67% deem their senior leadership effective. Other key challenges identified were low morale, limited performance management and inadequate recruitment, with only 45% of leaders feeling confident in their organisation's ability to attract talent.
The report proposes actionable recommendations and highlights four successful examples of organisations benefiting from strong leadership and management practices.
Key research findings
Only 67% think that senior leadership in their organisation is effective at ensuring the organisation succeeds, raising questions about how widespread good leadership is.
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Less than half (only 45%) of surveyed leaders and managers agreed that in 2022, the leadership in their council was effective at attracting talent.
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40% of leaders and managers said the senior leadership in their authority were poor at motivating staff or failed to do it at all.
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Only 44% think that their organisation is performing well in ensuring accountability for failure and just under a quarter (24%) think addressing staff underperformance is poor.
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Proposed Improvements
Focus on Management and Leadership
The Office for Local Government (Oflog) should prioritise leadership and management quality. Building an accurate picture of the current state and promoting the adoption of best practices can significantly improve leadership standards in local government.
10-year workforce strategy
The Department for Levelling-Up Housing and Communities (DLUHC) should collaborate with stakeholders to create a 10-year workforce strategy for local government. The strategy needs to include a funding increase for councils to improve recruitment and retention of staff across all levels.
Establish a leadership academy
To aid the development of leaders and managers, DLUHC should establish a leadership academy, so that all levels of management in local government can have access to consistent high quality leadership and management training.
Diversify the workforce
The workforce strategy should recognise the wealth of experience that can come from outside the local government. Introducing a direct entry system for experienced leaders seeking a career change can bring fresh perspectives from other industries.
We have annual awards…an employee representative team that we use constantly to develop our policies and consult with them, early….we have staff networks…we really do focus on engaging with our staff.
Robin Tuddenham, Chief Executive (CEO) of Calderdale Metropolitan Borough Council
…a lot of skill sets have been lost in local governments and the approach over the past 10 years is very ad hoc and disjointed in relation to how we develop leaders…often it isn't aligned to the priorities and goals of the organisation.
SMF local government roundtable participant
Our ability to be successful depends on our people…our performance is dependent on the ability of individuals to make the right decisions every single day. That does not come from…a directive…that comes from staff and what drives them.
Damian Roberts, Chief Executive (CEO) of Surrey Heath Borough Council