Society daily: 15.09.10

• The public sector is plagued by "bone-idle staff", and an epidemic of people taking time off sick, according to Tony McGuirk, chief fire officer of Merseyside Fire and Rescue Service, reported in the Daily Telegraph

• There will be a review of local government finance "this time next year", according to communities secretary Eric Pickles, reported in Public Finance.

• Councils are planning to deny social care support to all but the most needy, according to Community Care

On my radar...

• This powerful critique of Ofsted's controversial report into special educational needs provision in schools, by blogger Guerilla Mum

"What this report does is entirely in keeping with current coalition thinking. It targets the most vulnerable children in the education system. As part of the spin process it demonises Special Educational Needs education and will now make it more difficult for all Special Educational Needs children to get the help they need. SEN is suddenly a 'lifestyle choice', the children are akin to 'benefits cheats' and the parents 'grasping, 'greedy' and 'sharp-elbowed' middle class parents."

• Consultant John Harvey's 10 top tips for the police on how to make 25%-40% cost savings

• Cuban leader Fidel Castro, is showing George Osborne the way when it comes to bold attempts to shrink the state . Up to a million public sector workers laid off within a year – a decision formally announced by a trade union!

"Our state cannot and should not continue maintaining companies, productive entities, services and budgeted sectors with bloated payrolls [and] losses that hurt the economy," the union, which has 3 million members, said in a statement.

• The Young Mind's children's book award shortlist 2010, which includes a novel by former Sun editor David Yelland

• How cheap is free? An interesting post by Angela Kail on the New Philanthropy Capital blog on the hidden costs of volunteering (see also NCVO's analysis of volunteering trends)

• RSA boss Matthew Taylor's reflections on the 20-20 Commission's report into the future of public services

• The emerging genre of "post-public sector" blogs by public servants who have either lost their job in the cuts, or are about to. This one, I was a Public Sector Worker, looks highly promising

• Regeneration and Renewal's interactive guide to cuts in regeneration funding since the coalition took office in May

• A thoughtful lament for the doomed Audit Commission by Kensington and Chelsea council chief executive Derek Myers (thanks @tomstannard)

• New guidance from government on counting rough sleepers. It's now optional for councils, as The Pavement Magazine reports

Events

Driving efficiencies in public sector ICT, 30 September, London: a one-day conference for senior IT professionals to re-examine the way they work, cut costs and deliver vital efficiency savings

Public sector online, 4 October, London: a one-day conference examining how public sector professionals can engage with their audience to deliver services more effectively and strategically online