Introduction
 
Local government in the UK is currently undergoing significant changes and modernization. A family of public service reforms is aimed at putting citizens firmly at the center of public service provision. With increasing investment in IT, this Datamonitor report analyzes the market opportunity for vendors targeting UK local government.
 

 
Scope
 
Forecasts the opportunities for technology solution deployments by authority type, technology type as well as region within the UK.
 
Analyzes the drivers and inhibitors for the adoption of technology within local government, paying particular attention to specific deployments.
 
Assesses some of the initiatives that are impacting local government technology spending as well as focusing on the market's competitor dynamics.
 
Provides a framework for conceptualizing the local government opportunity and recommends specific go-to-market approaches for vendors.
 
Highlights
 
The factors that are driving technology investment in local government include eGovernment initiatives, improved citizen services, government spending, security and public safety, cost savings, decentralization and legislative changes.
 

 
There is a wide difference between councils in terms of their size and potential IT budgets, though UK local government authorities typically have higher budgets than their counterparts in France and Germany.
 

 
The UK is the largest market for local government ICT spending in Europe and this will continue to remain the case going forward. Datamonitor forecasts that local government external ICT spend will grow at a CAGR of 12% in the UK between 2003 and 2007, from $2.88 billion in 2003 to $4.53 billion in 2007.
 

 
Reasons to Purchase
 
Quantification of the technology revenue opportunities to 2007 will enable vendors to focus their sales efforts effectively.
 
Strategic and tactical success factors will ensure that vendors and their channel partners gain a competitive advantage.
 
Assessment of pertinent market issues, such as the impact of IEG requirements, will enable vendors to improve their solution positioning.
 

TABLE OF CONTENTS
 
CHAPTER 1 EXECUTIVE SUMMARY 3
 
1.1 Profiting from local government in the UK 3
 
1.2 Market context 3
 
1.3 Customer focus 4
 
1.4 The future decoded 6
 
CHAPTER 2 INTRODUCTION 12
 
2.1 What is this report about? 12
 
2.2 Who is the target reader? 12
 
2.3 How to use this report 12
 
2.4 Forecasts and assumptions 12
 
2.5 Scope of the report 13
 
CHAPTER 3 MARKET CONTEXT 14
 
3.1 Introduction 14
 
3.2 Key findings 14
 
3.3 Local government modernization 15
 
3.4 Technology deployments 24
 
3.5 What are the market drivers? 31
 
3.6 Market inhibitors and challenges 34
 
3.7 The competitive landscape 37
 
CHAPTER 4 CUSTOMER FOCUS 44
 
4.1 Introduction 44
 
4.2 Key findings 44
 
4.3 Defining and identifying the local government opportunity 45
 
4.4 Reference sites 49
 
4.5 Go-to-market approach 55
 
4.6 Local government decision-making 63
 
4.7 The importance of ROI and TCO 65
 
CHAPTER 5 THE FUTURE DECODED 67
 
5.1 Introduction 67
 
5.2 Key findings 67
 
5.3 Market development in comparison to France and Germany 68
 
5.4 Spending variations by type of authority 70
 
5.5 Regional trends in the UK 73
 
5.6 Trend by type of IT expenditure 75
 
5.7 Summary 77
 
CHAPTER 6 APPENDIX 78
 
6.1 Research methodology 78
 
6.2 Further readings 79
 
6.3 SPP writing team 79
 
6.4 How to contact experts in your industry 80
 

 
LIST OF FIGURES
 
Figure 1: Core technologies and channels in UK local government 4
 
Figure 2: Local government institutions in the UK by type 5
 
Figure 3: Local government external ICT spending by country, 2003 to 2007 ($ millions) 6
 
Figure 4: Area definition for primary outcomes 16
 
Figure 5: UK local authorities that share technology resources with other agencies/authorities 23
 
Figure 6: Core technologies and channels in UK local government 24
 
Figure 7: Local authorities involved in a shared regional network 28
 
Figure 8: Vendor presence in UK local government 43
 
Figure 9: Local government institutions in the UK by type 45
 
Figure 10: Local government external ICT spending by country, 2003 to 2007 ($ millions) 68
 
Figure 11: UK local government external ICT spending by type of institution, 2003 to 2007 ($ millions) 70
 
Figure 12: UK local government external ICT spending by region, 2003 to 2007 ($ millions) 73
 
Figure 13: UK local government external ICT spending by type of expenditure, 2003 to 2007 ($ millions) 75
 
Figure 14: Datamonitor’s market expertise and research and analysis methodology 78
 

 

 
LIST OF TABLES
 
Table 1: Services offered by local government institutions in the UK 27
 
Table 2: Local government external ICT spending by country, 2003 to 2007 ($ millions) 68
 
Table 3: UK local government external ICT spending by type of institution, 2003 to 2007 ($ millions) 71
 
Table 4: UK local government external ICT spending by region, 2003 to 2007 ($ millions) 74
 
Table 5: UK local government external ICT spending by type of expenditure, 2003 to 2007 ($ millions) 75