Public services are a key election battleground. The NHS is consistently cited in surveys as one of the top two issues facing the country, while social care and schools have played a critical role in deciding recent elections. Rishi Sunak made improving NHS performance one of his key pledges, Keir Starmer included healthcare and schools in his six “first steps”, and both the Conservatives and Labour will use their manifestos to set out their public services policies.

So just how well are public services performing across the country – and what impact could they have on the election campaign?

In this expert briefing, the Institute for Government and Ipsos UK presented analysis of how public service performance and public satisfaction have changed over this parliament.

What are the key public services challenges facing an incoming government? How much variation is there in public service performance across the country? And how does public satisfaction with services differ by constituency?

To discuss these questions and more, we were joined by an expert panel, including:

Nick Davies, Programme Director at the Institute for Government

Zoë Grünewald, Westminster Editor of the Lead UK and a freelance political journalist and broadcaster

Gideon Skinner, Head of Politics, Public Affairs at Ipsos UK

Phillip Woolley, Partner at Grant Thornton

The event was chaired by Emma Norris, Deputy Director at the Institute for Government.