Devolution, I soon discovered, is often an opaque process around which there is much uncertainty. For example, the unique 'devo-manc' deal, as it is has been dubbed, is still very much being figured-out by everyone involved. One pragmatic Manchester-based Arts in Health co-ordinator, trying to get to grips with it, told me: 'Devolution is a bit like Brexit, We didn't ask for it. We don't know what it involves or how it will work out. But we do know it's going to happen anyway'.
Meanwhile, it has taken a lot of reading - and sometimes guessing - to imagine how policy pronouncements and think-tank theories will impact on people's lives. Aside from the power-brokers involved, most ordinary people seem unaware of the 'devolution revolution' or have little inkling as to how it might affect them, for good or ill.