Virtual meetings ‘under review’
The Government is considering changes to the rules around councillors attending meetings virtually – something the LGA has been calling for since 2021.
The Editorial Team
LG Challenge winner announced
Islington Council’s Faith Scott Deuchar has won the LGA’s Local Government Challenge 2024, with a project seeking to understand why some families disengage from early help services.
Cross-party working
LGA Chair Cllr Louise Gittins met her predecessors over the summer to discuss “all things local government” and the importance of cross-party working.
Fear of pharmacy ‘deserts’
Rural areas of England are at risk of becoming ‘pharmacy deserts’, with nearly all seeing at least one close in the past two years, according to the National Pharmacy Association.
Cross-party governance
Elected members provide strategic direction to the LGA.
LGA staff changes
Sally Burlington, the LGA’s Director of Policy and Deputy Chief Executive, is leaving the organisation to become Chief Executive of the Association of Directors of Adult Social Services.
BAME leadership
The LGA is celebrating 20 years of its annual leadership programme for ethnic minority councillors, with applications now open for its 2024/25 BAME councillors weekender events, taking place in October 2024 and February 2025 in Coventry.
Audit backlog
The Government has announced measures to tackle the backlog in the auditing of local bodies’ accounts, pending longer-term plans to fix local audit, expected this autumn.
Pay awards
The Government is to fund pay awards for parts of the public sector, but its announcement over the summer did not provide any additional funding for pay in local government.