Gove launches Oflog in bid to improve council scrutiny and performance

Levelling Up Secretary Michael Gove this week officially launched the Office for Local Government (Oflog), saying it would provide targeted data and analysis to improve accountability and transparency in local government, and identify where councils need targeted support.

Announcing the launch of Oflog in his speech to the Local Government Association's annual conference on Tuesday (4 July), the Secretary of State said he also wanted the office to ensure a "wider appreciation of the innovation and excellence displayed every day by local government".

Oflog is an office of the Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities (DLUHC) with strategic objectives that promise to "empower citizens" with information about their council, increase local leaders' and councils' understanding of their performance, and increase central government's understanding of local government performance.

According to the DLUHC, its activities will include presenting data on local government performance, celebrating the success of high-performing councils, and identifying local authorities at risk of potential failure.

Oflog will also help arrange support for councils on the brink of failure.

Almost every type of local authority in England will come under the scope of Oflog, including districts, borough and city councils, county councils, unitary councils, London boroughs, metropolitan boroughs, and combined authorities (including those led by elected Mayors).

In his speech on Tuesday, Gove said: "Oflog is about supporting you to get on with the job of running local government and delivering for residents and communities.

"And we will work with you to establish the best indicators of performance that will be upheld via Oflog."

He added: "And Oflog should also support us and the department in another vital way. And that is identifying potential problems in councils earlier.

"We all know that there have been local authorities where problems have arisen – notably Thurrock, Liverpool, Croydon, Slough and most recently Woking.

"A handful of cases, the exception… but the problems did not happen all at once – they were there for some time, and they worsened over time.

"We, collectively and in the department, I think, need to be able to respond to the warning signs."

Lord Morse has been appointed as the first chair of Oflog, while Josh Goodman, a civil servant who set up the Covid Shielding programme, has been appointed interim chief executive.

A recruitment campaign for the permanent role of chief executive is currently underway.

Oflog's launch was accompanied by the release of its 'Local Authority Data Explorer', which displays data on council performance in adult social care, waste management, adult skills and local authority finance.

According to the site, further service areas will be added to the tool.

A report written ahead of Gove’s announced but published this week (5 July), called on the government to broaden the intended role of Olfog "from a reductive focus on data".

In the report, Localis urged the Government to "clearly articulate the goals of performance audit”.

It also stated that the purpose and goals of Oflog “should be clarified and designed to prevent an oversimplification of local governance, ensuring that its role aligns with the broader of objectives of public service delivery and the levelling up missions”.

Adam Carey