RECORD INTAKE OF PLACEMAKING PROFESSIONALS COMES AFTER LOCAL AUTHORITIES RECEIVE £8BN FROM LEVELLING UP FUND AND TOWNS FUND BUT SAY ATTRACTING SKILLED STAFF IS THEIR LARGEST RECRUITMENT ISSUE
Public Practice has launched its largest ever cohort of placements and its first in the North of England as part of a geographic expansion to help ease the local government skills crisis.
The expansion into the north means the social enterprise has secured employment for 41 experienced place professionals in the public sector this autumn including a total of seven placements across the North West covering Manchester, Warrington, St Helens, Rochdale and Cumbria.
Out of the 41 placements, 25 stated it was a brand new role within the Authority, and 14 will be working on roles in Urban Design.
The geographic growth comes after local authorities across England have received more than £8bn of investment from the Government’s Towns Fund (£3.6bn) and Levelling Up Fund (£4.8bn) to create better places for people to live, work and visit.
The expansion of Public Practice has been funded by a £200,000 investment by Homes England supported by the Department of Levelling Up, Homes and Communities (DLUHC).
However, Public Practice’s survey revealed that four-fifths (79%) of local authorities said attracting skilled staff is their largest recruitment issue.
The Local Authority Resourcing and Skills Survey was designed by Public Practice to help understand the skills gaps and the impact that a lack of resources has on council officers and their teams across England.
Over the past decade the number of full-time employees in councils across the North West has fallen by almost a quarter (24%) from 190,100 full-time employees in 2012 to 144,900 in 2022.
Over the past five years Public Practice has attracted more than 2,500 professionals to apply to its placement programme, 92% of which have come from people currently working outside of the public sector. 73% of applicants have never worked in the public sector and 53% of applicants have never previously applied for a job in the public sector.
The not-for-profit social enterprise has a mission to rebuild skills and capacity in the public sector to help improve places and communities across England.
To date, Public Practice has had 264 place professionals in 73 public sector bodies across England.
Public Practice’s programme has resulted in a long-term transfer of talent and expertise into the public sector. Nine-tenths of Public Practice Associates have chosen to continue working in the public sector following the conclusion of the year-long programme.
Pooja Agrawal, CEO of Public Practice said: “We are proud to welcome our largest ever cohort of built environment professionals to new placements in local government. Our expansion into the North West comes at a very exciting time. Since 2019 councils across England have been able to start bidding for funding from the Towns Fund and Levelling Up Fund – a combined pot worth more than £8bn.
“This has created exceptionally interesting opportunities for placemaking professionals who now have a chance to help build better places and shape the future of towns and cities across England for generations.
“However, it is clear that local authorities have substantial skills gaps and are understandably concerned about delivering these projects on the ground amidst growing political and economic uncertainty. Our Resourcing and Skills Survey, shows that the biggest recruitment barrier councils face is attracting the right people with the right skills to meet their ambitions.
“Public Practice can help to fill that gap by bringing private sector placemaking expertise into the public sector. People who want to come in and make a difference to places local to them and towns and cities across England. More than nine-tenths of Public Practice associates stay in local government after their initial placement ends.”
Anna Rose, Director of Public Practice said: “These are exciting times for Public Practice, not only is this our largest cohort since launching in 2017 it is also the first time we have expanded our reach into the North West of England.
“These are also exciting times for placemaking professionals with more than 200 projects granted money through either the Levelling Up Fund or Towns Fund, unlocking new regeneration opportunities for places across the North West.
“However, councils are facing a crisis of funding and resourcing. Public Practice gives public sector bodies the chance to tap into private sector placemaking expertise on a time limited placement. We help councils to build capacity, benefit from new skills and find new local government champions from among our associates, the vast majority of whom go on to move from the private to the public sector.”
