The Editorial Team 
Patients who no longer need urgent hospital treatment will be helped to return home, making at least 30,000 beds available during the coronavirus outbreak, after councils received £1.6 billion in extra funding.
An extra £30 billion of public spending was announced in last month’s Budget – much of it aimed at local priorities including homes, roads, digital connectivity, flood resilience and devolution.
The Government has published its 60-page recovery plan, setting out how and when the UK will adjust its response to the coronavirus crisis.
Tenants have received discounts of nearly £5 billion to help purchase their council homes under the Right to Buy (RTB) scheme since the size of the discount was increased in April 2012, according to new LGA analysis.
Councils in England will receive a further £1.6 billion for their response to the coronavirus, taking total funding from government for the pandemic to more than £3.2 billion.
The Government has issued guidance for local authorities and local resilience forums on the system to support those who are medically extremely vulnerable to coronavirus.
All essential workers in England – and members of their household – will now be eligible for coronavirus tests, it was announced as first was going to press.
The Government is consulting on plans to make it illegal to put children in care aged under 16 in unregulated accommodation, amid concerns that some are being left at risk of exploitation.
The coronavirus pandemic has brought about fast-paced changes to the way we live and work.
The Government has launched an Action Plan for Adult Social Care, setting out the four key areas that underpin its approach to supporting social care during the coronavirus pandemic.