Councils are being “forced to play along” with the Government’s “top-down” devolution programme or “face the threat of local government reorganisation without consent”, according to Kevin Hollinrake, former Shadow Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities.
Reform UK is on a mission to “save Britain… and our many broken councils”, according to Cllr Jaymey McIvor, the party’s Director of Local Government.
Local government is living through political change and an “age of shocks”, including climate shocks, the LGA’s annual conference heard.
The Government needs to do more to address local government’s three ‘Horsemen of the Apocalypse’ – adult social care, special educational needs and disabilities (SEND), and housing.
A workaround allowing councils with responsibility for special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) to balance their books will continue after March to 2028, the Government has confirmed.
A major report on sentencing does not appreciate the significant role councils play in managing risk and supporting offenders outside custody, the LGA has warned.
The LGA says more children with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) should get the care and support they need in schools and other mainstream settings without the need for a statutory plan.
Increasing the number of occupational therapists working in councils would help meet government health goals, a new report by the LGA says.
Housebuilders will have to commit to delivery timeframes before they get planning permission, and submit annual reports to councils showing their progress, under new rules to ensure homes with planning permission are built out.
The Government is set to give local authorities the flexibility to allow councillors to attend council meetings remotely, almost nine months after Deputy Prime Minister Angela Rayner promised the move at the LGA’s 2024 annual conference last October.