Category Archives: Comment

Big charities are spoiling things for us small ones

Posted on February 8, 2016 by

Stories abound in the press about charities. Many are critical. The stories I find most memorable are those focused on financial scandals, governance or data failings and where the high profile casualties don’t do much to change the tone of … Continue reading →

Posted in Comment, Uncategorized | Tagged , , , , | Leave a comment

In defence of Intelligent Commissioning

Posted on December 15, 2011 by

I’ve just seen The Argus article about Brighton & Hove’s Intelligent Commissioning programme, criticising work done to reform the way the City decides what it spends its money on. To me it’s a very one sided article, and makes a very common mistake. Commissioning … Continue reading →

Posted in Comment, Local Government | Tagged , , | Leave a comment

“We don’t measure impact as it’s too difficult” – Brighton & Hove Council

Posted on December 5, 2011 by

I have just received an email which has astonished me so much that I want to share it. It concerns the rhetoric of measuring impact, and why just not bothering is good enough for the local authority Economic Development Team. … Continue reading →

Posted in Comment | Tagged , , | Leave a comment

Making Open Data Real – my consultation response

Posted on October 27, 2011 by

The consultation questions are unclear, convoluted and somehow simultaneously too specific and too vague. So, this response below brings together the key issues from the DataBridge project, my own policy and practice experience within the voluntary sector, and wider conversations … Continue reading →

Posted in Comment, Open Data, Policy | Tagged , , | Leave a comment

Blogging against the clock

Posted on September 22, 2011 by

Can I do a blog in 13 minutes about the recent Best Value Guidance? If so, will it be coherent? Let’s see… CLG published new, ultra short Best Value Guidance on 2 Sept, NCVO published a useful report from their … Continue reading →

Posted in Comment, Local Government, Policy | Tagged , , | 2 Comments

A little bit of politics, Denmark style

Posted on September 19, 2011 by

I happened to be in Denmark on election day last week, and was lucky enough to have some Danish friends to both show us around and talk politics. A few things struck me strongly from dipping my toe into Danish … Continue reading →

Posted in Comment | Tagged , | Leave a comment

Where next for open data?

Posted on July 18, 2011 by

“Transparency is the most important policy lever we’ve got, and open data is the critical part of this”, so says Tim Kelsey, the government’s new Director of Transparency. At a Demos seminar this lunchtime the explained the vision and scope of the … Continue reading →

Posted in Comment, Open Data | Tagged , , | 1 Comment