Thursday May 21st 2026
Midlothian Council headquarters
Written by Midlothian View Reporter, Liam Eunson
Scotland’s councils need greater ambition to redesign services, with financial pressures growing and demand continuing to rise, a new report from the Accounts Commission has revealed
Councils have been changing how they work and deliver services for years, making significant savings. The report has revealed the scale and pace of change must shift to match the challenges ahead, helping secure financial sustainability and meet increasing demand.
The Accounts Commission highlighted that as councils redesign services, they must learn from and work with each other, building on the many initiatives already in place. There remains, however, significant gaps in how councils are planning for the changes ahead.
They further highlighted that Councils need to set out clearly the benefits to communities of service redesign and show they have understood the impact on vulnerable groups.
Jennifer Henderson, member of the Accounts Commission said:
“Whilst councils have been changing how they operate and deliver services for many years, a shift in pace, scale and ambition is needed. Plans to redesign services must be sufficiently ambitious to meet the scale of current and future challenges. Delays could risk greater costs, tougher decisions and increased challenges in future years.
“Local and national collaboration is vital. Councils must learn from each other, and be clear with communities why change is needed, the benefits and impacts. This is vital given changes to services can significantly affect people’s lives. Failing to fully engage with communities risks councils having to withdraw plans, facing legal challenge and having to find savings elsewhere.”
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