Government accused of 'failing to deliver' on council tax modernisation
09/04/2026 The Government has been accused of ‘failing to deliver’ on plans to modernise and improve the administration of council tax. |
Council to discuss New Forest flag proposals
09/04/2026 Proposals for a New Forest flag have been put forward by a district councillor to help preserve local identity. |
LCN chair: CCN existence 'illogical'
09/04/2026 The chair of the Local Councils Network (LCN) has suggested it seems ‘illogical' for the County Councils Network (CCN) to exist in light of reorganisation. |
Campaign launches to protect integrity of local elections
09/04/2026 Voters are being urged to safeguard their ballots as the Electoral Commission launches its annual anti-fraud campaign ahead of the May local elections. |
Think tank warns of Section 114 notices risk in Wales
08/04/2026 A think tank has warned that the current local government model in Wales is ‘no longer sustainable’ and urged immediate reforms to prevent service collapse. |
Conservatives pledge ban on council four-day work weeks
08/04/2026 The Conservatives have vowed to outlaw the practice of councils offering four-day working weeks on full pay should they win the next general election. |
Ricky Gervais secures council approval for new mansion
08/04/2026 Planning permission for Ricky Gervais’ new £5m home has been granted by the council following an agreement to contribute to the Carbon Offset Fund. |
Call for better blue badge supervision
07/04/2026 The AA has called for councils to pay more attention to the use of ‘illegitimate’ blue badges. |
Scotland’s housing emergency calls for strengthened council powers, COSLA says
07/04/2026 The management of the Affordable Housing Supply Programme should be devolved to councils to help combat the housing emergency in Scotland, COSLA has argued. |
'Hard to see' what underpins LGR other than politics, says Reform
07/04/2026 Reform has said it is ‘hard to see' what lies behind Labour's reorganisation plans other than ‘carving out places they think they can still win'. |
Council defends decision to twin with Palestinian city
07/04/2026 Brent Council has defended its decision to twin with the Palestinian city of Nablus, arguing the civic twinning was ‘strictly non-political.’ |
Council leaders call for acceleration of reorganisation decisions
07/04/2026 Council leaders have urged the Government to accelerate local government reorganisation, warning that delays are eating into time needed to deliver reform. |
Legal threat looms as counties oppose Whitehall LGR ruling
02/04/2026 Disgruntled county councils could slow down local government reorganisation with legal challenges to Whitehall's verdict. |
‘Better Connected’ strategy to expand tap-and-go travel unveiled
02/04/2026 A new national transport strategy aims to give councils greater powers to deliver seamless, contactless ‘tap-and-go’ travel across buses, trains and trams. |
Badenoch launches £112.5m pothole plan
02/04/2026 The Conservatives have proposed a £112.5m plan to fix the country’s pothole-ridden road network, which includes providing road-repair machines to councils. |
MPs call for safeguarding to ease pressure on Prevent
01/04/2026 MPs have called for the wider safeguarding system to ease pressure on the Prevent programme. |
Further devolution plans unveiled
01/04/2026 Council leaders in the Midlands and West of England have begun responding to a call from ministers to reveal their devolution plans. |
Concerns over Whitehall delay to grooming plea
31/03/2026 Home Affairs Committee chair Dame Karen Bradley has raised concerns over Whitehall delays in demanding councils preserve records related to grooming gangs. |
New Simpler Recycling rules come into effect
31/03/2026 A major overhaul of England’s waste system comes into force today, as the Government’s ‘Simpler Recycling’ scheme mandates consistent collection rules. |
Chief executive defends by-election integrity
30/03/2026 Manchester City Council chief executive Tom Stannard has defended the ‘integrity' of last month's by-election after police found no evidence of illegality. |
Half of approved homes remain unbuilt, council chiefs say
30/03/2026 Data from the Local Councils Network (LCN) reveals a significant 'build-out' gap, with only 52% of homes granted planning permission since 2012-13 completed. |
Renters rights backed by £400m mayoral funding
27/03/2026 A £400,000 investment has been confirmed by the Mayor of London to support tenants in the capital before the Renters' Rights Act comes into effect. |
London social housing system ‘opaque’, committee warns
27/03/2026 London’s social housing system has been criticised as ‘opaque, confusing and unfair’, in a new report by the London Assembly Housing Committee. |
£27bn plan launched to rebuild ageing roads
27/03/2026 The Government has unveiled a major £27bn investment to modernise England’s ageing road network over the next five years. |
Increasing homelessness blamed for council company failure
26/03/2026 London Councils has blamed ‘increased homelessness rates' for the failure of a company formed to procure properties to tackle the issue. |
Essex threatens legal action over reorganisation
26/03/2026 Essex CC is looking to mount a legal challenge to the Government's decision to reorganise the county into five unitary authorities. |
Government confirms 80 new Youth Hubs
26/03/2026 Government has announced 80 new Youth Hub locations, as part of a drive to tackle the nearly one million young people currently neither earning nor learning. |
Councils struggling to make EV charging accessible, research finds
26/03/2026 Half of UK local authorities are finding it difficult to make public electric vehicle (EV) charging infrastructure accessible to disabled drivers, study finds. |
Final reorganisation decisions for four priority areas announced
25/03/2026 The shape of local government reorganisation in four devolution priority areas has been unveiled by the Government today. |
Guildford council first to upgrade to top consumer housing rating
25/03/2026 Guildford Borough Council has become the first local authority in England to upgrade from a C3 to a C1 under new social housing standards. |
Brum leader loses vote of confidence
25/03/2026 The leader of Birmingham City Council has lost a vote of confidence during the last full council meeting before local elections in May. |
Council tax goes up by £10bn in five years
25/03/2026 England's council tax bill has gone up by more than £10bn in five years, new government data has revealed. |
New guidance announced to help councils boost street safety for women and girls
25/03/2026 One in three young women are deterred from walking locally due to safety concerns, research has found. |
Charity calls for end to council tax imprisonment threats
24/03/2026 Councils in England threatened 1,500 residents with prison over council tax arrears in five years, a debt charity has found. |
Monmouthshire CC becomes first Welsh county council to receive Council of Sanctuary status
24/03/2026 Monmouthshire has been declared the first Welsh county council to be awarded Council of Sanctuary status following an expert assessment. |
Top schools accused of shutting out pupils with SEND
24/03/2026 Top state schools admit far fewer disadvantaged special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) pupils than local averages, according to the Sutton Trust. |
Noise complaints fall sharply since Covid peak, data shows
23/03/2026 Noise complaints and enforcement action by local authorities in England and Wales have declined significantly since the Covid-19 pandemic, according to new data from the Chartered Institute of Environmental Health (CIEH). |
Uniform reuse scheme aims to cut costs for London families
23/03/2026 A uniform reuse initiative has been launched by four waste authorities in the capital. |
Shadow minister warns devolution Bill will 'die' without talks
23/03/2026 Opposition politicians have warned the English Devolution and Community Empowerment Bill will fall unless the Government listens to their concerns. |
West of England £1 bus fare cap to last until 2029
23/03/2026 The West of England Mayoral Combined Authority has extended the children’s £1 bus fare cap for a further three years. |
Over 300 schools to open nurseries in childcare cost drive
23/03/2026 The Government has announced that more than 300 schools across England will open or expand nurseries from September. |
Northamptonshire councils consider joint devolution plan
20/03/2026 North and West Northamptonshire Councils will align under a joint devolution proposal should their preferred option continue to falter. |
Liverpool City Region launches plan to reverse wildlife decline
20/03/2026 Steve Rotheram has launched the Liverpool City Region’s first Local Nature Recovery Strategy, setting out a plan to reverse decades of environmental decline. |
New waste action plan uses ‘zero-tolerance approach’
20/03/2026 New Government rules could see waste criminals face punishments of up to 20 hours of unpaid work to deter them from illegal dumping. |
Government tightens intervention in Tower Hamlets
20/03/2026 The Government has strengthened its Tower Hamlets intervention after accusations the council is more interested in protecting its image than reforming. |
Oxford approves £32m boost to temporary accommodation to cut hotel use
19/03/2026 Oxford City Council has approved a £32m investment to expand its temporary accommodation provision and reduce reliance on costly hotel placements. |
London councils collect just a third of fines issued to rogue landlords
19/03/2026 London councils have recovered only a third of fines imposed on landlords over the past two years, according to the NRLA. |
District Councils’ Network announces rebranding amid LGR
19/03/2026 The District Councils’ Network has relaunched as the Local Councils Network (LCN), marking a significant shift as local government undergoes reorganisation. |
Disabled man slept on floor after council failure, Ombudsman finds
19/03/2026 A disabled man was left sleeping on the floor after a council failed to properly respond to his homelessness application, Ombudsman finds. |
Bristol CC to overhaul tenancy procedures after Ombudsman ruling
19/03/2026 Bristol City Council has announced sweeping changes to its tenancy processes following a damning finding of severe maladministration by the Housing Ombudsman. |
Calls grow to fast-track reorganisation in Kent
New asylum housing inspection launched
Greens target Labour in local election campaign launch
Wales Green Party pledges ‘rent pressure zones’
