NCB Now: Comment - Long-term investment in services must be our goal

But is ringfenced money really the best way to ensure the long-term provision of key services?

Of course, there are times when ringfenced funding is both appropriate and necessary. It can help establish new or under-resourced services, as venture capital can kickstart a business until such time as it moves into profit. Children's play, for example, is a service that has never really had its moment in the sun, and which needs a sustained burst of investment to secure its future. That is one reason why ensuring that play receives the promised 200m of Lottery money is such a critical issue.

There is also an argument for finding ways of nursing services through the transition from ringfenced to mainstream funding. For instance, many local authorities have had difficulty in maintaining the provision developed for care leavers with the money that followed the Children (Leaving Care) Act. This situation may be repeated in 2006 when dedicated funding for teenage pregnancy programmes is due to end.