Local authority anti-poverty strategies in Scotland

Published date01 January 1999
AuthorRob Ball,Vanessa Higgins
DOI10.1177/095207679901400105
Date01 January 1999
Subject MatterArticles
Local
authority
anti-poverty
strategies
in
Scotland
Vanessa
Higgins
and
Rob
Ball
University
of
Stirling
Abstract
This
study
examines
the
management
and
development
of
Scottish
local
authority
anti-poverty
strategies.
Whilst
studies
of
anti-poverty
strategies
have
been
carried
out
within
England
and
Wales,
nothing
of
the
same
depth
has
been
conducted
in
Scotland.
The
study
was
carried
out
immediately
prior
to
local
government
reorganization
in
order
to
understand
key
issues
and
gain
lessons
for
good
practice.
The
research
involved
the
distribution
of
a
postal
survey
to
the
chief
executives
and
leaders
of
each
of
the
then
65
local
authorities
in
Scotland.
In
addition
to
the
postal
survey
five
case
studies
of
anti-poverty
strategies
were
carried
out.
This
involved
conducting
semi-structured
interviews
with
members
and
officers
within
five
local
authorities
which
were
known
to
operate
such
strategies.
The
findings
of
the
research
illustrated
that
25%
of
the
responding
local
authorities
operated
anti-poverty
strategies.
The
study
identified
and
discussed
a
number
of
common
themes
generally
associated
with
such
strategies.
These
included
the
corporateness
of
the
strategy,
social
inclusion,
decentral-
ization,
partnerships,
differences
between
rural
and
non-rural
areas
and
differ-
ences
between
statutory
and
non-statutory
services.
The
study
also
investigated
and
reported
on,
strategy
development,
member
and
office
support,
resource
targeting
and
budgeting,
monitoring
and
evaluating
strategic
and
likely
implica-
tions
of
local
government
reform.
Introduction
Throughout
the
last
twenty
years,
the
problems
of
poverty
and
deprivation
in
the
United
Kingdom
have
increased
dramatically.
Demographic
and
economic
factors
such
as
the
rise
in
the
number
of
one-parent
families
and
an
increase
in
unemployment
and
low
pay,
have
resulted
in
an
increase
in
the
number
of
poor
households
and
a
situation
in
which
one
in
four
children
are
being
brought
up
in
poverty
(Save
the
Children
&
Glasgow
Caledonian
University,
1995,
p.v).
Research
by
the
Joseph
Rowntree
Foundation
illustrates
that
the
changes
in
the
taxation
and
social
security
systems
over
the
last
twenty
years
have
dramatically
Public
Policy
and
Administration
Volume
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No.
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Spring
1999
60
widened
the
gap
between
the
incomes
of
the
'rich'
and
the
'poor'.
Essentially
the
rich
have
become
richer
and
the
poor
have
become
poorer
(Barclay,1995).
The
former
Conservative
Government
denied
the
existence
of
this
problem,
took
little
action
and
would
not
even
commit
itself
to
establishing
an
official
poverty
line.
At
the
time
of
writing
(mid
1998)
the
new
Labour
Government
is
introducing
new
measures
(e.g.
welfare
to
work)
but
it
is
too
soon
to
comment
on
their
likely
effectiveness.
In
the
light
of
this
situation
it
is
not
surprising
that
Local
Government
has
made
much
greater
efforts
to
counter
increasing
poverty
and
deprivation.
This
article
outlines
research
on
Scottish
Local
Authorities
immediately
prior
to local
government
re-organization
in
1996.
Scottish
Local
Authorities
were
chosen
for
the
following
reasons:
(i)
As
we
shall
see,
there
is
little
published
research
on
work
in
Scotland.
(ii)
The
continually
declining
performance
of
Conservative
candidates
through
the
1980s
in
local,
national
and
European
elections
indicated
that
Scotland
had
not
embraced
Thatcherisim
and
the
individualism
of
that
period.
Such
political
trends
and
the
failure
of
other
initiatives
such
as
schools
opting
out
of
local
authority
council
(only
three
did
so
in
Scotland)
and
successful
resistance
to
water
privatisation
indicates
a
higher
level
of
social
solidarity.
This
kind
of
social
and
political
climate
might
be
expected
to
provide
a
favourable
environment
in
which
anti-poverty
strategies
and
other
policies
to
overcome
social
exclusion
might
be
developed.
(iii)
Scottish
Local
Government
reform
was
much
more
fundamental
than
that
in
England.
A
two
tier
system
was
to
be
converted
into
a
one
tier
one
with
considerable
changes
in
boundaries
and
around
thirty
new
authorities
created.
Since
no
existing
authority
would
continue
after
reorganization
there
was
no
guarantee
that
any
existing
policy
would
continue
either.
Thus
it
was
important
to
try
to
capture
lessons
of
good
practice
from
existing
authorities
before they
disappeared.
This
material
could
then
be
invaluable
to
new
authorities
who
were
considering
developing
their
own
anti-poverty
work.
Poverty
in
Scotland
and
Great
Britain
The
history
of
legislation relating
to
poverty
in
Britain
is
well
covered
by
R.A.
Cage,
(1991).
It
is
interesting
to
note
that
nineteenth
century
poor
law
was
signif-
icantly
different
in
Scotland
from
that
in
England
and
that
the
local
nature
of
poor
relief
in
Scotland
was
established
before
that
of
England.
Jones
(1994)
and
Briggs
(1961)
coherently
cover
work
by
Booth,
Rowntree,
Townsend
and
others
on
poverty
surveys.
These
surveys
established
the
extent
of
poverty
in
Great
Britain
at
different
times.
In
1901,
B.S.
Rowntree
made
one
of
the
first
attempts
to
define
poverty.
This
definition
was
based
on
minimum
incomes
required
by
families
of
different
sizes
for
mere
physical
survival
(or
subsistence).
This
theory
of
'absolute
poverty'
dominated
debate
throughout
the
first
half
of
the
twentieth
century.
Then,
in
the
1970s,
P.
Townsend
defined
poverty
in
terms
of
'relative
deprivation'
(1979,
p.915).
This
relates
not
only
to
Public
Policy
and
Administration
Volume
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No.
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Spring
1999
61

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