Book on to:

• our free event on 6 February in Birmingham to help councils prepare for the General Data Protection Regulation. Visit our website for details  
• our first commercial skills free masterclasses for councillors on 22 February and 16 March in Coventry. Contact jamie.osowski@local.gov.uk for details and bookings
• our using behavioural insights in local government event on 15 March in London
• our free Leadership Essentials Sport event for councillors on 22 - 23 March in Coventry including accommodation and food from the evening before. Contact grace.collins@local.gov.uk for further details and bookings
• our second get together of children’s local government procurement professionals on 23 March in Birmingham. Contact grace.abel@local.gov.uk for details
• the national graduate development programme as a council to take a management trainee with leadership potential and capacity to work on innovative and strategic projects. Visit our website
• the Commissioning Academy, a five-day development programme that equips commissioners and lead officers with insight, skills and networks to transform outcomes for communities. Contact paul@publicservicetransformation.org for details
• our Productivity Experts Programme if you are looking for new ways to generate income or struggling to find further efficiency savings. Watch our film and apply for your £7k grant here
• our Be a Councillor campaign’s Women’s Network, which brings together female councillors and women considering standing for election to discuss the issues and barriers to women entering (and staying in) politics, provides support to women in achieving their political aspirations, and creates new resources. We will be running events as part of this year’s centenary of the first women to get the vote. Email beacouncillor@local.gov.uk to join.

You might also be interested in:

• Public Sector Audit Appointments Limited (PSAA) proposing a 23% reduction in audit fees for next year, following national procurement that will also ensure audit quality is maintained
• adding your own data securely, depending on the geography chosen, to LG Inform, LG Inform Plus or the API (direct data feed). The data can also be shared with selected users
• the National Cyber Security Centre’s free Web Check, developed with councils and other public sector organisations to help identify out of date certificates or systems that need patching, reducing your risk of a cyber-attack. Contact siobhan.coughlan@local.gov.uk for further details
• our workbook to help councillors understand the signs of stress, develop strategies to deal with it and build up their own personal resilience in the role
• our facilitation and conflict resolution workbook to help councillors understand how they can play a pivotal role in keeping close to residents and understanding their needs, views and concerns 
• our latest polling on resident satisfaction with councils: December 2017, the eighteenth set of results in a series of regular LGA public polls on resident satisfaction with local councils
• Skills for Care’s guide about working and careers in social care commissioning.

To feedback on this format or suggest content, please contact webmaster@local.gov.uk. For further information about anything in this bulletin, please contact improvement@local.gov.uk. Cllr Paul Bettison OBE,  Chairman, LGA Improvement and Innovation Board