Society daily 18.02.10

Today's top Society stories Mental health provision for looked-after young 'inadequate' Parties row over Tory plan for elderly care insurance The future for local authorities: is it John Lewis or easyCouncil? Happiness reduces risk of heart disease, research finds Government 'changed rules' on council executives' pay after pressure All today's Society stories Other news * The British Association of Social Workers is calling for full publication of serious case reviews, the Times reports . * Hospitals face fines under the Tories if patients are sent home too quickly, according to the Telegraph. Dealing with the downturn There's an interesting survey out tomorrow from the Institute of Leadership & Management which will dispel the myth that the public sector has remained so far untouched by the downturn. It will reveal that despite the fact that almost two-thirds of managers had experienced budget cuts in the past 18 months, they are positive about taking on the challenge of working through the downturn as it begins to bite ever-deeper. John Foster, chief executive of the London borough of Islington, said the debate would have to get beyond "simplistic political" distinctions between frontline services and back office functions, which could, he predicted, lead to "disastrous" decisions. The findings reflect the feeling from the recent Guardian Public Services Summit , in that leaders in the public sector are tired of the "phoney war" between politicians over public services budgets and want to start proper planning for the shape of services to come, even if that means having to cut services. Those who express surprise at the willingness of managers to step up and take on the difficult tasks of cutting jobs - the survey will say that 99% of managers expect budget cuts and, therefore, job losses in the next 12-18 months - may be overlooking a significant demographic factor. Many of heads of Whitehall departments and council chief executives are due to step down over the next year or so, and while that may leave a gap in experience, it also provides an opportunities for a new cadre of leaders to come forward, with the chance to implement new ideas. They will certainly have a major task on their hands. The managers in the ILM survey almost universally describe the prospect for public services as "challenging" and many believe existing senior managers are ill-equipped to deal with those challenges. SocietyGuardian events Family Futures conference 2010: what's next for services supporting children, young people and families? London, Wednesday 24 February. Speakers include: Dawn Primarolo, Claire Tickell, Tim Loughton, Sue Berelowitz. Managing New Realities 2010: integrated places — health, housing and social care for the community. London, Tuesday 2 and Wednesday 3 March. Speakers include: Lord Warner, Sir Bob Kerslake, David Halpern, Polly Toynbee. Society links Sign up to Society daily email briefing Society on Twitter SocietyGuardian.co.uk Public - The Guardian's website for senior public sector executives Get ahead: the Guardian's public and voluntary sector careers page Hundreds of public and voluntary sector jobs Email the SocietyGuardian editor: [email protected]