Policy making at the local level: Everyday policy making in our local councils

Dr Karl O’Connor (Ulster) If greater powers are to be devolved to our new super councils, what type of institutions will inherit these powers and how will these powers be used? Existing public administration research would lead to the expectation of greater bureaucrat involvement in the traditionally more mundane aspects of policy formulation, while in … Read more

Community Planning and Land Use Planning in Ireland’s Border Area

Mr Gavan Rafferty and Prof Greg Lloyd (Ulster) The convergence of local government reform in both Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland is occurring at a unique moment in the island’s history, allowing further consideration on how an inter-jurisdictional co-operative framework can foster collaborative decision making on cross boundary community planning issues. In Northern … Read more

Community Planning in Local Government – how do we do it?

Prof Colin Knox (Ulster) One of the key reforms in local government reorganisation is the statutory power of community planning, which has been described as the equivalent of Delivering Social Change (OFMDFM) at council level. There is however a dearth of information on how to take the principles of community planning from concept to practical … Read more