From Taunton and Torbay to visiting neighbours across Cheshire and Merseyside, one of my greatest pleasures as LGA Chair is visiting our member councils to find out firsthand about the incredible work they are doing every day for local residents.
Our adult social care sector is in desperate need of sustainable investment and a proper plan for long-term reform.
Last year was another extraordinary one for local government – one of challenge, but also of real progress.
Last month’s Budget coincided with the LGA’s National Children and Adult Services Conference, held this year in Bournemouth.
Last month, the Government announced its Pride in Place programme, which includes new powers and £5 billion in funding for more than 330 of our most deprived neighbourhoods in England.
It’s almost a year since the first Leaders’ Council was held at the LGA’s 2024 annual conference in Harrogate.
The LGA’s annual conference is always a wonderful opportunity to catch up with old political friends, make new ones, and grow our support and information networks to help in our work as councillors.
One of the great pleasures of attending the LGA’s annual conference as Chair is being able to dip in and out of sessions at our Innovation Zone.
Following the 1 May local elections, I want to recognise and send my personal commiserations to colleagues across the political spectrum who were unsuccessful at the ballot box.
With less than a week to go until the 1 May local elections in England, I wanted to put on record my thanks to all those colleagues who are standing for re-election or standing down.