Social accounting in the local economy

High levels of unemployment have stimulated contemporary interest in social accounting. Decisions taken on the basis of private profitability, without regard for the wider economic and social consequences, may not be in the interests of the local community and the workforce. Traditionally such social consequences do not feature in accounting procedures for decision making or control purposes. But while local authorities are now showing more interest in social accounting, conceptual and practical problems must be addressed. This article highlights some of the major issues and calls for experimenting and publication of results to speed the development of useful techniques.