The Capacity Building Programme for English local government: evaluating mechanisms for delivering improvement support to local authorities

The Capacity Building Programme for local government in England has employed a variety of different mechanisms to support local authority improvement. Like other central government initiatives to improve local government performance, the CBP has been the subject of evaluation of its progress. This article draws on the findings from the evaluation, to compare Direct Support and a series of National Programmes. It concludes by suggesting that the CBP's most recent changes herald an exciting new era for the CBP in which it might better develop the capacity of the 'whole system' of local governance and public service delivery to meet locally determined objectives.