Councils click into the future of planning
In town halls across the country, planning officers are racing to update their Local Plans — but this time, the process looks very different.
Newport to set up company for property maintenance
26/03/2025 Newport CC is planning to set up an arm's-length trading company to take over the maintenance of its properties. |
Haringey accused of ‘culture of apathy’
04/07/2023 There is a ‘culture of apathy’ at Haringey that has led to a lack of accountability and intrinsic motivation when handling complaints, Housing Ombudsman says. |
Kent councils take back control of housing stock
05/10/2020 Four councils in East Kent have taken back control of housing management services. |
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Council-owned housing companies increase housing targets in past year
28/04/2020 The lifting of the Housing Revenue Account (HRA) cap has helped council-owned housing companies increase their new-build housing targets by 70% in the past year, a new survey has revealed. |
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ALMOs unable to replace 31% of Right to Buy sales in 2018
05/04/2019 Local authority housing companies were unable to replace 31% of properties sold under Right to Buy, a new survey has revealed. |
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Westminster to bring housing almo back in-house
21/09/2018 Westminster City Council has confirmed it will take back control of the arms-length organisation it set up in 2002 to manage its housing. |
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Councils should give ALEOs ‘careful consideration’ before use, watchdog warns
17/05/2018 The local authority spending watchdog in Scotland has acknowledged the benefits of arms-length external organisations (ALEOs) but warned they require ‘careful consideration’ before adoption. |
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Kensington & Chelsea announces ‘far-reaching’ review of Grenfell management
02/01/2018 The Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea Council has announced a ‘thorough and far-reaching’ review into the arms-length organisation that managed Grenfell Tower. |
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Examining the future of almos
07/12/2017 In the wake of the Grenfell Tower tragedy, Kensington and Chelsea Council decided to terminate its housing almo. Neil Merrick explores if other councils will now review how they manage their housing stock. |
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Kensington & Chelsea Council terminates contract with Grenfell Tower managers
28/09/2017 Kensington & Chelsea RLBC has decided to terminate its contract with the arms-length organisation that managed the Grenfell Tower, where 80 people died in a deadly blaze in June. |
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Scottish Parliament launches probe of arm’s length council operations
23/09/2015 The way in which councils in Scotland use arm’s length bodies to deliver local services is to be examined by MSPs to ensure they are accountable and provide value for money. |
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Staff vote in favour of new council company for bin collections
12/08/2015 A council-owned company to deliver waste collection services is to be set up in Liverpool, after staff voted in favour of the move. |
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Council signs 30-year deal with ALMO
05/06/2015 Cheltenham Borough Council and Cheltenham Borough Homes have signed an agreement securing their successful partnership for the next 30 years. |
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Maude: £2bn saved in quango cull
11/11/2014 Reforming and abolishing public bodies has saved more than £2bn since 2010, according to minister for the cabinet office Francis Maude. |
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MPs attack the 'mess' of quangos and agencies
10/11/2014 The current system of arms-length government has been blasted by MPs as 'confused' and lacking accountability despite recent reforms. |
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Government vows to protect forests from transfer to housing body
06/11/2014 Publicly owned forests will be exempt from house building plans put forward by government bodies, following last minute pressure in the House of Lords. |
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Report: bedroom tax widens north-south divide
20/10/2014 The bedroom tax has hit council tenants in the north of England far harder than those in London, research has revealed. |
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Council tenants vote for housing transfer
20/08/2014 Durham County Council is set to transfer ownership of its housing stock following a positive ballot of residents. |
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Hackney plans to take back management of housing
16/07/2014 The management of social housing in Hackney could be returned back to the council in April 2016 following the completion of its Decent Homes programme. |
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Government agrees £65m debt write-off for Salford
29/05/2014 The Government has given the go-ahead for Salford City Council to transfer the ownership of its social homes, in exchange for writing off £65.1m of historic housing debt. |
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Gloucester housing deal will see £50m debt written off
09/04/2014 Approval has been given for Gloucester Council to transfer ownership of all its social homes to a housing association in exchange for the government wiping out £50m of historic housing debt. |
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Durham County Council looks to transfer ownership of homes
25/03/2014 Durham County Council has been granted permission to proceed with its plans to transfer ownership of 19,000 homes to housing management organisations. |
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Make better use of ALMOs
20/01/2014 Why the National Federation of ALMOs is calling on the Government to make council housing a priority. |
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Councils urged to learn from Highland power project ‘failure’
09/01/2014 The Audit Commission has warned that councils should learn from the failings of the Highland power project, which landed the council with a £11.5m bill. |
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Northampton Council to set up housing ALMO
18/12/2013 Northampton Borough Council has agreed to set up a new arm’s length management organisation (ALMO) to manage over 12,000 homes on behalf of the council. |
