

- Jun 3, 2016
- 3 min
Social impact bonds - an untried model masked by political rhetoric
Dr Les Huckfield, Glasgow Caledonian University
Social Impact Bonds represent “peak New Public Management”. Social Impact Bonds have nearly a ten year history, starting from the Prime Minister’s Council of Social Action in December 2007.
Co-operation and competition are uncomfortable bed fellows, unless being faithful is so last century
/ Cheryl Barrott
The Aizlewood Group is a collective of experienced people who are passionate about the co-op movement. We came together as we believe in co-operatives and trade unions working together in co-operation. We work in partnership by writing research papers, speaking at seminars and conferences and to policy makers to defend co-operation against competition. We warn against Public Service Mutuals and believe ownership of public services should be in the public sector while enabling a multi-stakeholder approach to decision making.
Consider what the desired outcome is before creating the model to achieve it. Consultants are often at fault here. They copy and paste the model to deliver a cheaper service without first looking at the local economy and the organisations/council's long term goals. What is a council hoping to achieve and how does this fit into the medium term financial strategy?