Public Service Reform Council Report 24 September 2026
Renfrewshire Council · 24 September 2026
Back to Council — 24 September 2026 and its agenda
Text extracted from the council's PDF. Layout and reading order may differ from the original.
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1 PUBLIC To: Council On: 24 September 2026 Report by: Chief Executive Heading: Public Service Reform ___________________________________________________________________ 1. Summary 1.1 On 1 September 2026, the First Minister presented the Scottish Government’s Programme for Government 2026-2031. The Programme for Government notes the significant challenges facing Scotland public services including increased costs, complexity and demand for services across the population. It sets out a range of proposals to “rewire” public services in Scotland by reducing the number of public bodies that are operating across the country and specifically reducing the number of health boards from 14 to two. 1.2 Linked to these proposals, the First Minister also set out proposals to reform local governance arrangements more broadly, and to consider the implications for the provision of social care. 1.3 At present, detailed information has not yet been provided on the specific nature of the reform proposals although the Government have indicated they are currently considering how best to set this out and share this with COSLA and the wider local government community. A rapid period of engagement is also proposed by the Scottish Government over the next 3 months with relevant stakeholders. Initial information relating to the proposed engagement methodology in relation to local governance reform was shared with the Council Chief Executive on 15th September 2026. Elected members are asked to consider the invitation to engage as outlined at Section 4.3, and to advise the Chief Executive on the response to be provided to the Scottish Government.
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2 PUBLIC 1.4 Notwithstanding the engagement proposed, it is recognised that there will be an ongoing requirement to provide regular updates to the Leadership Board on the implications of any proposed reforms as further information becomes available. Elected members are asked to note that should time limited responses be required to any consultation and engagement processes being undertaken by the Scottish Government on reform proposals, a special meeting of the Leadership Board may need to be held to allow elected members to agree a formal response. 1.5 We are also committed to keeping our employees informed as details emerge, as well as to sharing information with communities and citizens in relation to the potential implications of reform proposals. 1.6 _____________________________________________________________________ 2. Recommendations 2.1 It is recommended that Elected Members: I. Note the content of the report. II. Consider the request received from the Scottish Government on 15th September for the Council to participate in the Scottish Government’s engagement process as set out in section 4.3. _____________________________________________________________________ 3. Programme for Government – Public Services Reform agenda 3.1 On 1 September 2026, Scottish Government published its Programme for Government 2026-2031. The Programme for Government sets out four overarching priorities: eradicating child poverty, growing the economy, tackling the climate emergency and delivering high-quality and sustainable public services. 3.2 There are a range of commitments within the Programme for Government which require direct local authority support to deliver, including in relation to housing and homelessness, education and childcare, economic development, community wealth building, climate adaptation, prevention and public service delivery. 3.3 In terms of “public service delivery”, the Programme for Government outlines several specific areas of focus which, depending on the scale and nature of implementation, may have a significant impact on the role and delivery of public services in Scotland. The document notes the significant challenges facing Scotland public services including increased costs, complexity and demand for services across the population, and sets out an ambition to 'rewire the state' around people rather than institutions, reduce duplication, rationalise public bodies, strengthen prevention and consider whether services and functions are being delivered at the most appropriate level.
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3 PUBLIC 3.4 Civil servants have been engaging with COSLA and professional organisations on public services reform for a number of years, in particular in relation to areas such as health and social care provision following the decision not to proceed with a National Care Service. Whilst it was anticipated that further exploration of health reform may be progressed within the Programme for Government, the level and nature of the reform proposed in relation to public services is much wider than expected. 3.5 A potentially significant degree of reform is proposed across the public sector, including replacement of the existing 14 territorial NHS Boards with two Strategic Health Boards, rationalisation of public bodies and greater consolidation of functions, digital platforms and shared services. Significant reform of social care is also proposed within the document. 3.6 Further to the publication of the Programme for Government, there has been no further release of information on the detail of the reform proposals, and what they mean for local authorities. In recent interviews, the First Minister has however noted a preference for “regional local government” with greater pooling of resources and strategic capacity at a regional level. In terms of social care, the First Minister has noted that a single line of decision making, accountability and funding for social care is preferred, led by the NHS. 3.7 The Scottish Government has indicated that a three month consultation process will be undertaken in relation to the proposals relating to local governance, and specifically in relation to social care reform. Initial information on the engagement process relating to local governance reform was sent to the Chief Executive on 15 September 2026, with further detail provided in section 4 below. 3.8 A special meeting of COSLA Leaders was held on Friday 11th September which was also attended by the First Minister, Deputy First Minister and Ivan McKee, Cabinet Secretary for Public Service Reform. Following the meeting, COSLA issued an agreed position statement: “Public service reform will only succeed if it is rooted in communities, not organisational charts. Local Government will engage with Scottish Government, but we will not support reforms that dilute local democracy, centralise decision- making or remove accountability from the people we serve. Decisions around public service reform must be made in agreement between Local Government and the Scottish Government and have the endorsement of councils on any issue affecting them.” 3.9 A full summary of the statement is available through the following link - Public Service Reform Must Strengthen Local Decision Making, Not Weaken It | COSLA.
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4 PUBLIC Wider transformation discussions 3.10 Local authorities have been progressing transformation programmes to address the significant financial and demographic pressures facing the sector and wider public services for many years. A national transformation programme lead by the Improvement Service and SOLACE has over the last few years in particular, been working to progress opportunities for joined up working and shared services across local authorities. Renfrewshire Council also has its own transformation programme – Reshaping Renfrewshire – which is being progressed to improve outcomes within the resources available to the Council and its partners. 3.11 As reported previously to Leadership Board, discussions have also been progressed by Glasgow City Region (GCR) in relation to developing regional economic growth opportunities within the context of both Scottish and UK Government’s stated commitment to the regional empowerment and devolution agenda. GCR has been progressing a range of workstreams to develop a potential regional empowerment proposal that could be considered and supported jointly across member organisations for engagement with national governments which was expected to be subject to future reporting to the Leadership Board. How the Scottish Government’s emerging proposals for reform will integrate with the GCR work being progressed in the context of the regional agenda is not clear at this stage and is expected to be subject to subsequent clarification during the engagement process over the coming months. 3.12 Regular updates in relation to both the Reshaping Renfrewshire transformation programme and GCR related work on regional devolution, will continue to be provided to the Leadership Board. ___________________________________________________________________ 4 Next steps 4.1 As noted above, the public services reform agenda is now moving at pace and there remains considerable uncertainty in terms of the potential implications of reform for local authorities. 4.2 On 15th September 2026, the Chief Executive received notification from the Acting Director of Local Government and Communities, setting out the Scottish Government’s broadly anticipated approach to the engagement process over the coming months, which is focused on securing engagement at political, officer-level and wider stakeholder engagement activities across Scotland, including: • Ongoing ministerial engagement with COSLA leadership and political groups. • Targeted discussions and roundtables involving Ministers and Council Leaders, including with groups of councils where there is interest in facilitating regional/clustered discussions.
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5 PUBLIC • Discussions with local government and Scottish Government officers on the overall programme and specific thematic areas to explore the issues, options and the evidence available/required which are likely to be facilitated through COSLA. • Wider dialogue events bringing together local authorities, public service partners, communities, the third sector, business representatives, trade unions and others. • Targeted discussions with a range of sectoral stakeholders and representative bodies. • Opportunities for broader public engagement through digital channels 4.3 As part of this correspondence there was a request to consider and express and interest in assisting and supporting Government in terms of the planned engagement process with respect to three key strands of the planned engagement: Invitation to participate – Dialogue on Local Governance reform 1. Political engagement o Whether there is an interest in helping to facilitate a ministerial discussion or roundtable involving elected members, including where it may make sense to do so with other councils; o Whether there are existing political forums, regional groupings or arrangements that would provide a useful setting for such discussions. 2. Wider dialogue events o Whether your council, or a cluster of neighbouring councils, would be interested in working with the Scottish Government to host one of a small number of wider engagement events (presumed to operate across Scotland) from mid-October to mid-November. o These events would bring together a broad range of local partners, including public bodies, communities, the third sector, business interests and trade unions, to contribute to the wider listening exercise. o The Scottish Government have indicated a particular interested in identifying areas where there is enthusiasm to convene a diverse range of local voices and perspectives. 3. Additional opportunities o Any other suggestions you may have regarding engagement activity, stakeholder groups we should involve, or approaches that would help ensure the dialogue is as inclusive and productive as possible.
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6 PUBLIC 4.4 Scottish Government officials have requested a quick response to this invitation, and elected members are asked to consider this request and to advise officers on the level and nature of engagement to be supported. 4.5 Over and above this specific participation request, officers will ensure that information in relation to public service reform proposals and the consultation process itself is shared timeously with elected members. Regular reports will be provided to the Leadership Board, however given the likely pace and intensity of the reform agenda going forward, elected members are asked to note that it may be necessary to hold special meetings of the board to consider time limited matters such as a formal consultation response to any proposals. 4.6 As we move forward, a particular focus will continue to be engaging with the Council’s workforce and local trade union representatives to ensure that information is shared openly when this becomes available. It is recognised that proposals in relation to public service reform, and the wider reporting of these within the media, will require the organisation to provide reassurance and clarity on information available in the public domain to our employees as a priority. 4.7 Information on reform proposals and implications for communities and service users will also be provided as this becomes available. _________________________________________________________________ Implications of the Report 1. Financial – The reform of public services is intended to deliver more efficient service delivery, however further information in relation to the financial implications of the reform agenda, is not yet available and would require to be robustly assessed as and when this is provided. 2. HR & Organisational Development – As noted within the report, as further information becomes available on proposed reforms, it will be important to share this with the Council’s workforce, and to provide an opportunity to engage in relation to the impact of any planned reforms. 3. Community/Council Planning – the Programme for Government notes that the promotion of wider community empowerment principles will be a key element of the wider reform of public services. 4. Legal – At present there is no specific information on the reforms proposed for local authorities and the provision of social care in particular, or the legislative basis upon which any reforms would be progressed. 5. Property/Assets - none 6. Information Technology - none 7. Equality and Human Rights - The Recommendations contained within this report have been assessed in relation to their impact on equalities and human rights. As the detail of the proposed reforms is not available, it is not yet possible to
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7 PUBLIC undertake a detailed assessment of equality implications. Detailed equalities and human rights assessments would be required to be undertaken at both a national and local level, when full information is made available to local authorities. 8. Health and Safety - none 9. Procurement – none 10. Risk – none 11. Privacy Impact – none 12. COSLA Policy Position – none 13. Children’s Rights – As the detail of the proposed reforms is not available, it is not yet possible to undertake a detailed assessment of children’s rights implications. 14. Climate Risk – none ___________________________________________________________________ Report Author: Laura McIntyre, Head of Policy and Partnerships