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The Chartered Institute of Public Finance and Accountancy (CIPFA) has released a new report in partnership with Capita which warns that councils, businesses and communities could lose out on vital financial support from the government.
The report outlined the recent trend towards bidding processes, arguing that such methods of allocation can result in areas with “less resource or experience being excluded”.
Following the huge sums of grant funding distributed over the course of the pandemic, the report also calls for “strong governance” and a balance to be struck between “speed and due diligence” to protect public funds from the risk of fraud.
Rob Whiteman, CEO, CIPFA, said: “The landscape for local authority grant funding, particularly following the chaos of Covid-19, is increasingly complex and inefficient.
“The need for improvement is clear. This is why CIPFA is pleased to be working with Capita to provide solutions to councils that free up resources and smooth out processes to enable them to focus their attention on local needs.”
Markus J Becker, digital growth director, Capita, added: “As we rebuild following the Covid-19 pandemic, there is a significant opportunity for local authorities to improve the way they disburse public funds.
“We know that the digitisation and automation of these processes reduce fraud and save money on administration, which can instead be invested in creating better outcomes for communities.”
