Source · Select Committees · Public Accounts Committee
Recommendation 15
15
Accepted
Significant challenges hinder ODP collaboration with local government due to differing models.
Recommendation
We asked several questions which explored how the ODP works with local government, given that local authority staff are not its members. The Departmental Head of Profession for the Home Office described some of the challenges created by the very different operating models, environments and customer sets across the country.23 The ODP told us about some approaches DWP has used to bring together the capacity and capability of central and local government in some areas, including trailblazer schemes to work with mayoral authorities to address the challenge of young people who are not in education, employment or training.24
Government Response Summary
The ODP agreed to encourage innovation and join up delivery between central and local government and the private sector. This will include placing members in local government roles, using capability development and learning offers, providing career paths, sharing learning, facilitating two-way secondment opportunities and knowledge sharing.
Government Response
Accepted
HM Government
Accepted
3. PAC conclusion: The ODP is not doing enough to join up with the wider public sector, including local government, which plays a large part in the delivery of public services, or with the private sector. 3. PAC recommendation: The ODP should set out how it will encourage innovation and join up delivery between: • central government and local government, by more routinely placing members in local government roles, using its capability development and learning offers to facilitate better connections, providing career paths, and sharing learning; and • central government and the private sector through facilitating two-way secondment opportunities and knowledge sharing. 3.1 The Profession agrees with the Committee’s recommendation. Recommendation implemented 3.2 The Profession is now actively working with the wider public sector, including local government, by sharing relevant elements of the profession offer, including the Professional Skills Framework and access to the Centre of Excellence. 3.3 The Profession will continue to promote development and collaboration opportunities through events such as ODP roadshows and the Senior Community of Practice (SCoP), where learning is drawn from across government, the wider public sector, and private sector organisations. 3.4 The Profession will continue to invite wider public sector colleagues, including those from local government, to participate in the OpDel Excel programme for Director and Deputy Director-level colleagues. It will also continue to collaborate with the wider public sector on aspects of the profession offer, such as the recent collaboration with local government to co- design the new operational delivery apprenticeship. 3.5 The Profession has explored and identified opportunities to increase public and private sector engagement, by working with the Whitehall and Industry Group (WIG) and departments will be encouraged to engage in programmes such as GovXchange, which encourages secondments between ODP colleagues and their counterparts in local government. 3.6 The Profession is also linking into departmental secondment activity and has launched an awareness and promotional campaign to highlight the benefits of loans, secondments, and 26 managed moves, particularly for Senior Civil Servants, between the civil service and the private sector.