The study concentrated on the experience of the subjects in the developing recession, service efficiency demands, and focussed on:
The effect of the recession on individual teamsHow the recession has changed working patternsThe reality of (on-going) efficiency demands on practitionersWhether the upcoming election will change service deliveryOptimism about the futureWhether (additional) training would help local practitioners
 

The recession:

It was striking that only just over a quarter of those questioned saw an effect of the recession on their work (28%), whilst the majority saw no effect of the recession on their customers or clients.

In addition just under a quarter of those questioned confirmed that they had downsized their service as a result of the recession, while only a third had made any change to their service as a direct result of the recession.

Efficiency demands:

More than half of those questioned (59%) had experienced demands for efficiency savings, with these demands coming from line management. Almost the same percentage (57%) responded with attempts at innovative working, with such innovations coming from within the teams themselves.

In contrast, hardly any of those questioned (2%) had sourced such innovations externally, and none had received demands for greater service efficiencies from their customers or clients.

Finally, when asked if LT&RC could help in dealing with ongoing efficiency demands, more than half were in agreement that it could (57%), with the majority of these responses focussing on the potential of Collaborate & help to improve their service delivery.

Collaborate & help:

What was striking about the responses to these questions was how they revealed the sense of isolation felt by most schemes (only 32% felt connected to what is happening in other parts of the country, for example), and their interest in collaborative working (63% were interested in the possibly of assistance from another scheme or agency, while 69% thought mentoring could help them).

With regard to the potential of additional training being useful in the present challenging environment, interest in this was low (only 19% thought that additional training would be helpful in meeting the demands of the efficiency agenda).

Looking forward:

It was striking that in response to both of these questions the consensus amongst the majority of interview subjects was generally upbeat. Respondents were positive about the immediate future (66%), while predictions as to the outcome of the coming general election was for little change, regardless of which party is returned to power (74% anticipated no change).

In order to gain a comprehensive spread of informed opinion, research subjects were selected from a wide spread of London boroughs, and areas outside of the capital, all of which had trained with LT&RC, as follows:
 LB of Hackney (Shoreditch Warden Scheme)LB of Southwark (Nunhead & Peckham Rye Wardens)LB of Merton (Safer Merton Wardens)Luton Borough Council (Community Warden Scheme)LB of Islington (Street Environment Wardens)LB of Camden (Camden Wardens)LB of Croydon (Croydon Housing Warden Service)Neighbourhood Training & Resource Centre (South East)Cambridge Council (Rangers Scheme)