Park homes could help solve the housing crisis
Park homes are becoming increasingly popular, yet almost no councils make provision for them in their local plans.
In the latest issue:
Invest local to save
After months of LGA and council warnings that growing funding gaps would lead to cuts in services, the Government announced in January that an additional £600 million will be included in the final local government finance settlement for 2024/25.
An admission of total failure
Just days before many councils set their most difficult budgets in years – and many months after the LGA warned that soaring demand for social care and temporary accommodation was posing an existential risk to council budgets – the Government has finally backtracked on its catastrophic provisional local government finance settlement for 2024/25 and announced £600 million in extra funding.
Flooding, finances and food waste
The past few weeks have been a whirlwind for local government, not least because of the announcement of the provisional finance settlement, but also because of the outstanding work that our colleagues across the sector have done in response to the flooding and damage caused by recent storms (including Henk, Isha and Jocelyn, as the February edition of first was going to press).
TV dramas highlight government scandals
Do all government scandals need a television drama for people to take notice? ITV’s ‘Mr Bates vs The Post Office’ horrified the public and triggered outrage.
Tough decisions as costs rise
As Independents and members of smaller parties, we need to take important – sometimes life-changing – decisions on behalf of all our residents, including the most vulnerable.
No extra funding for English councils
Councils in England still face a £4 billion funding gap over the next two years after no extra support was announced in the provisional finance settlement for 2024/25, the LGA has said.
‘Outlook remains bleak’ for council services in Wales
The Welsh LGA has warned of “extremely turbulent times ahead” for local services in Wales, after councils were awarded a 3.1 per cent increase in core revenue funding in 2024/25.
CQC assurance begins
For a number of councils, the taking down this month of office Christmas decorations may well be swiftly followed by the putting up of flipcharts, timelines and checklists on office walls.
Ensuring building safety
In 1968, a gas explosion in an 18th-floor flat at Ronan Point in east London led to the building’s partial collapse and the death of four people.