Understanding how local authorities work

Basic guides

How your council works: a handy guide for community groups and What are local area agreements? give excellent, basic introductions to how local authorities and local area agreements (LAAs) work.

Local authority websites

These give you a lot of basic information, including details of local strategic partnerships (LSPs). Talk to your local authority arts, cultural or third sector support officer.

Directgov

The Oneplace website provides a clear overview of local authority performance in any particular area.

Understanding Commissioning

Improvement and Development Agency

The IDeA website gives guidance on needs assessment, options appraisal, building capacity and developing competencies. Understanding commissioning: A practical guide for the culture and sport sector is a useful toolkit with a set of practical exercises.  

Kindle

Kindle's Commissioning and the Community Sector is a more detailed introduction to commissioning with a focus on children and young people. It includes an excellent set of recommendations for organisations interested in engaging in commissioning.