Launch of Going Local in 2004 In 2004 Birmingham City Council significantly changed the way it managed and delivered services to local communities. The initiative - referred to as 'devolution and localisation' - gave local councillors devolved powers to run a wide range of services (devolution) and moved staff out to local offices to manage and deliver those services (localisation). This was a hugely significant initiative in terms of ambition, scale and scope and nothing as bold and innovative has been attempted anywhere else in the country. Over £100m of service budgets, and 2,500 staff were 'lifted and shifted' from centralised service departments and re-focused on meeting the needs of service users and local communities. Despite the massive upheaval, service delivery and standards were maintained throughout the transition period. The initiative aimed to : increase the number of people feeling able to get involved and influence decisions locally; improve key local services such as community safety and the environment, and introduce integrated ways of delivering services such as neighbourhood management; make it easier for the Council and other public agencies such as the Police and the Health Service to work together at a local level. Ten Constituencies have been established (originally there were eleven Districts but this changed in 2006). Each is the size of an average English district council, and covers the same geographical area as the new parliamentary constituencies will when they come into effect at the next general election. The Constituencies are responsible for a range of services including some that they manage directly such as libraries, neighbourhood offices, leisure facilities, community development and play; and others that are managed through Service Level Agreements with corporate or external service providers such as street and environmental services, and parks. Each Constituency is run by a Constituency Committee, consisting of the twelve councillors from the four wards in each Constituency, which meets in public on a regular basis - the ten are : Edgbaston Northfield Erdington Perry Barr Hall Green Selly Oak Hodge Hill Sutton Coldfield Ladywood Yardley Further details of each Constituency, and contact details for their offices, can be found under separate Constituency entries on this website. Constituency Strategic Partnerships have been set up across all ten constituencies, bringing together the Council, other public agencies, the business sector, and voluntary and community organisations to develop a shared vision for the area, and plan services for local people in a more co-ordinated way. Many have set up sub groups to focus on specific themes – like community safety – and are working with representative groups, for example, young people, the elderly, or estate residents. Each Partnership has produced a Constituency Community Plan for the area and these can be seen on the web site or through the local Constituency Office. In 2006, the Council’s Co-ordinating Overview and Scrutiny Committee reviewed the progress that has been made towards devolution and localisation. It recognised the achievements made to date, and made a series of detailed recommendations for the future development of the policy to ensure it is fully embedded, is operating as effectively as possible, and that the potential benefits are fully achieved. The Council is now working to implement those improvements. The Council has recently developed a series of proposals to ensure closer working between the Constituencies and the Housing Service. In the meantime the Council has made clear its on-going commitment to devolution and localisation as a key means of achieving the twin aims of radically improving services and achieving better value for money; and rejuvenating our suburban and inner city neighbourhoods.