Government announces priority devolution deals
Elections to eight English councils, due to take place this May, will be postponed until 2026 to help pave the way for six new devolution deals.
Funding for NICs confirmed
Overall funding for local government in England will increase by 6.8 per cent in cash terms compared with 2024/25, according to the final finance settlement, published in early February.
Right to Buy reforms ‘should go further’
The Government should go further with reforming Right to Buy to give local authorities more flexibility and control over how the scheme operates locally, the LGA has said.
Localising employment support
Transforming job centres from the country’s ‘most unloved public service’ into places where people can receive quality career support is a key ambition for me.
Democracy is about more than efficiencies
By-elections were thin on the ground in January, with attention in the local government community focused instead on the structural reforms proposed in the recent English Devolution White Paper, and the consequent postponement of some of this year’s scheduled county council elections.
SEND in state of emergency – MPs
MPs have warned that a ‘lost generation’ of children could leave school without having received the help they need, with the LGA calling for a plan for reform.