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This paper provides a critical interrogation of government-led reform of higher education (HE) in England. Its focus is marketisation, and in particular, the concepts of 'value for money' (VFM), teaching excellence, and students as educational consumers. Hitherto, research on VFM in HE has been largely quantitative in nature and primarily focussed on student perceptions. This qualitative research study contributes to existing knowledge, by comparing the perceptions of students and university lecturers in the social sciences. Undertaken at a Northern university between 2017 and 2019, it highlights key concerns around changing student expectations, managerialism and the potential instrumentalisation of learning and teaching. The issues explored here lend themselves to a broader based study across different types of Higher Education Institutions (HEIs) and different cognate areas. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper, we explore some of the keywords around which the practice of school inspection is ordered in England. As part of a project that explores the role of inspection in governing schooling in England, Scotland and Sweden, we have examined some of the key sources through which Ofsted (The Office for Standards in Education, Children's Services and Skills) publicly announces its role and purpose. In considering these texts, we have turned to Raymond Williams' conception of "keywords" (1988) to frame our analysis. We suggest that these sources are marked by the presence of a series of such keywords that underpin and legitimise the practice of school inspection by Ofsted. We conclude by considering some of the changing terminology that followed from the Coalition Government that took office in the UK in 2010 and which made education reform a centrepiece of its first period in power. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Public procurement has a significant impact on economic development in regions and localities. Previous research in the UK has focused on variations in government spending across regions, the effects of competitive tendering processes and EU State Aid rules on regional economies. Empirical studies of procurement at the level of local authorities have received less attention. Increasing pressure to be ‘efficient and effective’ in use of public resources can contradict the need to support local communities, particularly through a period of economic downturn. Until recently, there has been a paucity of relevant data at a local level to examine the impacts of procurement. This paper analyses the combined patterns of spend of eight Local Authorities in the County of Cumbria in North West England. The characteristics of the supply base are investigated using a two-stage survey of businesses that secure local authority contracts. Results show the characteristics of suppliers and their level of dependency on local authority contracts. Managers’ evaluation of the advantages and disadvantages of contracting with the public sector are also analysed. The findings suggest that many small and medium enterprises (SMEs) in Cumbria rely upon local authority contracts for business stability. The interviews confirm the vulnerability of SMEs to the current trend towards more formal approaches to public procurement and the use of a narrow definition of ‘value for money’. The paper concludes by considering the implications of the findings for the extent to which local authorities have retained a capacity to act to support local economic development. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article identifies the broad reasons why costs in children's care services might vary, illustrating them with examples from research literature relating to England. An intentionally broad use of 'costs' is employed. The literature has been neither systematically nor comprehensively reviewed but does include most of the recent work in the social care field. Articles have been selected to illustrate particular cost associations. This article finds that there is as yet insufficient research into the costs, cost variations or cost-effectiveness of children's services. However, the findings provide guidance for decision-makers as they try to understand how resources are currently deployed and why this might be. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Lay health workers have been utilized to deliver health promotion programmes in a variety of settings. However, few studies have sought to determine whether these programmes represent value for money, particularly in a UK context. The present study involved an economic evaluation of Wellbeing for Life, an integrated health and wellbeing service in northern England. The service combined one-to-one interventions delivered by lay health workers (known as health trainers), group wellbeing interventions, volunteering opportunities and other community development activities. Value for money was assessed using an established economic model developed with input from a panel of commissioners and providers, and the main data source was the national health trainer data collection and reporting system. Between June 2015 and January 2017, behaviour change outcomes (i.e. whether client goals in relation to diet, physical activity, smoking or other behaviours, had been achieved) were recorded for 2433 of the 3179 individuals who accessed one-to-one interventions. The level of achievement observed gave an estimated total health gain of 287.7 quality-adjusted life years (QALYs). In addition, there were 4669 health-promoting events, five asset mapping projects and 1595 occurrences of signposting to other services. Combining the value of individual behaviour change with the value of these additional activities gave an overall net cost per QALY gained of £3900 and a total estimated societal value of at least £3.45 for every £1 spent on the service. These results suggest that the Wellbeing for Life service offered good value for money. Further research is needed to systematically and comprehensively determine the societal value of similar holistic, asset-based and lay-led approaches. • Lay health workers are widely used to deliver health and wellbeing-related services. • These services can represent good value for money. • In this example, the estimated societal value was at least £3.45 for every £1 spent. • Targeting disadvantaged groups also offers potential to reduce health inequalities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]