England is unusual in relying so heavily on central government to finance its social services. Citizens expect to be able to access services of similar standards wherever they live. This raises difficult theoretical and practical issues which are analyzed in this text.

England is unusual in relying so heavily on central government to finance its social services. Citizens expect to be able to access services of similar standards wherever they live. This raises difficult theoretical and practical issues. How are the needs of different areas to be measured? How are the different costs of providing services in very different parts of the country to be assessed? This book reviews the economic theory that underpins thinking about the problem. It then traces the way governments have distributed resources from the end of the last century until today. It critically analyses current methods for three services - the National Health Service, schools, and housing.

Part I: Introducing and Analysing Formula Funding
Introduction
Political principals and economic theories
Needs-based funding from the nineteenth century to the 1980s
Funding in the NHS: Life after RAWP
Part II: Formula Funding in the
1990s
The Development of education needs formulae
Allocating social housing subsidies
Three services, eight formulae: Common themes and differences
Part III: The View from the
Ground
Shared values: Views from within the NHS
Central and local views of the education funding system
Struggling to identify objectives: Local authority housing
A runaway train? Housing associations
Part IV: The Overall Pattern
Common Patterns
Here to now.