The Restructuring Thesis and the Study of Public Services

Pinch, Steven

doi:10.1068/a210905

Cited by 44 publications

(10 citation statements)

References 25 publications

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“…This reconstruction of the countryside arena within what is termed 'accessible countryside' or exurbia gives rise to new tensions and conflicts associated with the intersection of both production and consumption functions within the same geographical space (Cadieux 2005). Here, external pressures from diverse points of origin such as Common Agriculture Policy reform (Rickard 2004), centralisation of public services (Pinch 1989), variations in local housing markets (Gallent et al 2003), commuting, population change (Findlay et al 2001;Stockdale 2005) and leisure demands (Scott 1998), combine to make simple urban-rural conceptualisations redundant in favour of an approach that recognises the differing nature and extent of urbanrural interrelationships (Browder 2002;Hodge and Monk 2004;Scott et al 2008). However, whilst such views command significant support, Evans et al (2002) provide a powerful paper challenging evidence that such concepts have permeated the culture and behaviours of key rural stakeholders.…”

Section: Countryside(s) Of Production and Consumption?mentioning

confidence: 97%

What kind of countryside do the public want: community visions from Wales UK?

et al. 2009

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This paper assesses how far community led rural visions accord with the current thrust of rural planning policy delivery in the UK. Adapting conventional visioning methods, qualitative techniques were used on eight different communities across urban, exurban and rural Wales to elicit views relating to the kind of local countryside(s) that were desired. The results show that the communities' visions reflect an emerging consensus around local countryside priorities: multifunctionality, integration, wider countryside protection, development based on need, and local distinctiveness according with the thrust of current planning policy at national and local levels. However, there is a clear dichotomy between this and the reality of what communities actually experienced in developments affecting their countryside. Here, universal criticism was encountered over the type, pace and scale of development, the lack of rural specificity and the failure to take account of local community needs and priorities. It is hypothesized that tensions between national and local politics and stakeholder power relations are playing a crucial role in distorting the delivery of town and country planning. It is recommended that rural policy delivery must become more ''joined up'' and rural proofed at national and local levels concomitant with a change in the operational culture of agencies at the forefront of rural delivery. Essentially, effective engagement of top down approaches synergising with bottom up community led ideas is long overdue.

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Section: Countryside(s) Of Production and Consumption?mentioning

confidence: 97%

What kind of countryside do the public want: community visions from Wales UK?

et al. 2009

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“…Most economic geographers would probably agree with Pahl (1988, 4) when he notes that "we are living through a period of change that is qualitatively and quantitatively different from that typical of most of the twentieth century". Economic geography during the 1980s was concerned with the exploration of elements of this restructuring (Massey, 1984;Pinch, 1989), identifying the new international division of labour and technological change as two of the most important determinants of economic change. Much of the work on restructuring concentrated on manufacturing, ignoring the process within the service sector (Sayer, 1985) and the growth and development of small business service firms (Batstone, 1989;Keeble et al, 1991;Keeble and Bryson, 1996).…”

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confidence: 99%

Small Busingess Service Firms and the 1990s Recession in the United Kingdom

Bryson

1996

Local Economy: The Journal of the Local Economy Policy Unit

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During the 1990s recession, the UK experienced a dramatic growth in employment in information-intensive business firms. This paper explores this growth with reference to small management consultancy and market research firms. Business service firms continued to be established and to grow during the recession because of three related attributes: professional expertise, an existing reputation and a network of client contacts. These attributes are related to the theoretical work of Granovetter (1973; 1982; 1985) who argues that "weak ties" operate to connect different groups of people together. The implications of these attributes for local economic development are considered. Success for all companies at the level of the local economy will be partially dependent on efficient and effective use of available business service expertise. The three attributes make it impossible to develop successful mechanisms to encourage the formation of business service companies in areas with underdeveloped service infrastructure. Mechanisms, however, may be developed at the local level to encourage the establishment of “weak ties” between local companies and regional and national providers of business service expertise.

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“…Add to this the trend toward increasing policy heterogeneity, which has resulted from the uneven impact of restrictions on local autonomy and local council attempts to ensure that their policy preferences are implemented . In so far as there is scope to promote locally favoured initiatives within the confines of central direction, this has resulted in greater diversity in the style and tactics of public policy implementation (Pinch, 1989). Not surprisingly, the scene is set for greater disparities in local performance (with some major policy differences expressed without expenditure effects) .…”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 98%

Political Parties and District Council Economic Policies, 1978-90

Hoggart

1994

Urban Studies

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Strong political party effects have previously been found in local government economic policies in London. This paper assesses whether the same holds true for the 333 non-metropolitan district councils in England and Wales, as well as assessing whether the 1980s brought significant changes to linkages between socio-economic conditions and policy variation . Political party effects are found to be weak and, while the 1980s did see significant transformations in expenditure patterns, these were not translated into distinctive trends in policy co-variation . Among the few relationships of note, a clear urban centrality effect was recorded for spending on environmental enhancement and, for the same policy, Labour councils had distinctive expenditure patterns . The absence of consistent relationships is suggested to be a product of increasingly heterogeneous styles of policy enactment and the more homogeneous socio-economic compositions of district councils which encourage locally-grounded policy solutions .

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The Restructuring Thesis and the Study of Public Services

Cited by 44 publications

References 25 publications

What kind of countryside do the public want: community visions from Wales UK?

What kind of countryside do the public want: community visions from Wales UK?

Small Busingess Service Firms and the 1990s Recession in the United Kingdom

Political Parties and District Council Economic Policies, 1978-90

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