Awards for councils attacked by Tories as costly gimmick

The Government was accused of ignoring large rises in council tax bills and red tape last night after it published a new list of England's top-performing town halls.

Forty-six authorities across the country were awarded "beacon council" status for their high standards on everything from child adoption to promoting racial equality to neighbourhood renewal.

Nick Raynsford, the Local Government minister, said the awards underlined the progress being made at a local level in delivering high-quality services to taxpayers.

However, with council tax bills rising by an average of 8 per cent from this month, the Conservatives pointed out that the public was more concerned with getting better value for money than "gimmicks".

Malcolm Moss, Conservative spokesman on local government, said that while his party recognised the good work of the winners, the scheme was expensive and time-consuming.

"Nick Raynsford's congratulatory words to beacon councils will be of little comfort to those forced to dig even deeper into their pockets this year to pay their council tax, which is rising by four times the rate of inflation," he said.

"It is just this sort of red tape and government-imposed bureaucracy that is helping to push up council tax bills.

"Along with best-value and comprehensive performance assessments, it represents the extension of ring-fenced funding, bureaucratic inspection and centralisation. It is yet another sign of Whitehall politicians trying to micro-manage local communities."

Mr Moss also pointed out that just 130 out of more than 400 local authorities had applied for beacon status.

But when Mr Raynsford unveiled the list of winning local authorities in London yesterday, he stressed that the beacon councils were leading the way in delivering some key services.

"These are services that make a real difference to the quality of life in local communities. Gaining an award is not just a way of marking the council's achievements, it is also a recognition of all the hard work by staff at the front line," he said.

"Beacon status is much more than a trophy. Becoming a beacon is just the start – the new beacon councils will now help other councils learn from their experience.

"By sharing their best practice with others, beacon councils can help to raise standards of public services across the country."

All councils will be subjected to even greater scrutiny under the Government's new ranking system, to be introduced next year, placing them in four bands: "top-performing", "striving", "coasting" or "failing". The winners in the beacon scheme will be keen to win places in the top category.

Better access for the disabled, community legal services, crime reduction in rural areas, fostering business growth and improving urban green spaces were among the themes recognised by the awards. Other main themes were libraries as a community resource, tackling fuel poverty and education.

As part of an effort to ensure that best practice is shared to other councils, government grants worth £1.7m will be paid to help the councils spread their success.

Mr Raynsford pointed out that nearly half of this year's winners had never had beacon status before and many of them were smaller district councils.

The objective of the scheme is to identify centres of excellence in local government from which other councils can learn. Each year, ministers from across government select themes in service areas that have a direct impact on the quality of life of local people.

Ministers hope that similar schemes for beacon schools and hospitals will also drive up standards.

The announcement of the winners, which were recommended by an independent advisory panel, came as Mr Raynsford unveiled the future themes for the next three years of the awards. Mental health services for children and adolescents, homelessness and benefits administration are among the new themes.

The new beacon councils will work with the Improvement and Development Agency to share their best practice with councils all over the country.