ABSTRACT
The detailed study of the negotiations that took place between council officers, the Government Office for London and the Housing Corporation was undertaken to establish the scope within which local actors could negotiate policy and affect outcomes. The analysis of housing association and private sector building activity also provided evidence of other policy conflicts that have arisen for organisations participating in local service delivery. Local housing policy has therefore been presented as a dynamic process in which a range of factors interact to affect the actual outcomes. The case study of L. B. Hackney's Comprehensive Estates Initiative (CEI) established how central government has influenced the activity of local housing implementation, through the utilisation of financial controls and competitive funding arrangements. The CEI reflects the strategic aims of local actors to retain some influence, as well as to secure legitimacy and credibility in a new and fast changing policy environment.
