Council ‘doing-tank’ looks to the future

OLDHAM Council’s cabinet is to consider founding a new organisation to support cooperation between local public services.

And council leader Jim McMahon has emphasised the proposed “Innovation and Reform Hub” would be not be a think-tank but a “doing-tank” able to offer practical improvements.

Creation costs of between £60,000 and £80,000 will come from existing budgets

On Monday councillors were told a new approach is needed to run public services, partly shaped by the council’s cooperative aims and partly by government reforms.

The report proposed the Innovation and Reform Hub, to bring together different groups but independent of any one of them.

Oldham College, University Campus Oldham, Oldham’s Clinical Commissioning Group and community relations organisation Unity Partnership have all expressed an interest in the idea.

Councillor McMahon said: “This is not a think-tank, it’s a doing tank, and it must provide value for money.”