VE Day: Council duties under the Armed Forces Covenant
As we mark the 80th anniversary of VE Day, Geoff Wild, Legal & Governance Consultant, looks at the duties of councils under the Armed Forces Covenant.
Councils urged to take action on nature recovery
05/03/2025 As few as one in 10 councils have a plan for nature recovery despite the UK being one of the most nature-depleted countries in the world, Woodland Trust says. |
Housing plan on MoD site scrapped due to acid grasslands
07/02/2025 Colchester City Council is set to remove a former Ministry of Defence firing range from its development plans due to the site's ‘environmental value.’ |
Tackling the ecological skills gap
21/01/2025 Catherine Spitzer, chief executive of Environment Bank, explains how private investment can help councils that are struggling to attract skilled ecologists. |
Council buys land to plant 25,000 trees
06/08/2024 A Devon council has bought 65 acres of land to develop a ‘community woodland’. |
TfL lets the wildflowers bloom
25/06/2024 Transport for London (TfL) says it has delivered its pledge of doubling wildflower verges in roadside areas to encourage biodiversity. |
Auditors raise doubts over biodiversity enforcement
17/05/2024 Auditors have questioned whether local authorities will be able to effectively ensure compliance and enforcement of biodiversity net gain (BNG). |
Survey reveals support for biodiversity scheme
10/01/2024 Most people in Britain support an upcoming requirement for developers to invest in improving local habitats, a survey has revealed. |
Thinking ahead: housing delivery in 2024
21/12/2023 With 2024 almost certain to be an election year, Colin Brown, head of Planning & Development, Carter Jonas discusses what policies for housing delivery we are likely to see discussed. |
Getting ready for Biodiversity Net Gain
23/10/2023 Dr Robin McArthur, chair of the Joe's Blooms Advisory Board, discusses Biodiversity Net Gain (BNG) and what local authorities should do to prepare. |
Country park renamed in honour of late Queen
02/10/2023 A Lincolnshire country park has been renamed The Queen Elizabeth Memorial Lincolnshire Coastal Country Park as a mark of respect for the late monarch. |
Biodiversity Net Gain laws delayed
28/09/2023 The Government has confirmed it is delaying the introduction of Biodiversity Net Gain (BNG) laws until next year. |
New Lincolnshire nature reserve a ‘landmark moment’
19/09/2023 Lincolnshire’s new national nature reserve is ‘a landmark moment for nature recovery in England’, Natural England has said. |
Planners unprepared for new biodiversity requirements
07/09/2023 Planning authorities are struggling to prepare for the introduction of biodiversity net gain (BNG) requirements, says the Royal Town Planning Institute. |
Boosting urban biodiversity with new innovations in green infrastructure
24/04/2023 Cities play a critical role in addressing biodiversity loss. Alexander Ilsink, Mobilane, looks at how to maximise the potential of green infrastructure. |
Eco-friendly gardeners should be offered council tax cut
20/04/2023 Residents who look after their gardens in an eco-friendly manner should be offered reduced council tax rates, researchers say. |
Councils fear parks services will be ‘seriously affected’ by cuts
19/04/2023 Many councils are expecting cuts in their budgets for parks despite growing numbers of people using them, according to a new survey. |
Planning for biodiversity
12/04/2023 Kieron Gregson, associate partner, Carter Jonas (London) discusses local authorities’ uptake of biodiversity net gain policies. |
The speed of biodiversity net gain adoption in Local Plans
22/06/2022 New research has analysed the current uptake biodiversity net gain among all of the 322 English Local Planning Authorities. Kieron Gregson reports. |
Developments expected to deliver 10% boost to biodiversity
11/01/2022 The Government has launched a consultation that aims to ensure wildlife can be better protected and enhanced in future developments. |
What are Biodiversity Net Gains?
02/12/2021 Paul Beaney explains how local authorities can prepare for Biodiversity Net Gain, which is slated to become law in 2023. |
Report sets out plan to reverse biodiversity decline by 2030
22/09/2021 A new report has set out nine changes that can be delivered by local government and other partners to reverse biodiversity decline by the 2030s. |
Only one third of planning authorities have access to ‘in-house’ ecologist
12/08/2021 A skills shortage in ecologists is a barrier to achieving biodiversity net gain goals, local authorities have warned. |
PM pledges to protect ‘additional 4%’ of UK’s land
28/09/2020 The Government has committed to protecting 30% of the UK’s land by 2030 as part of a global effort to protect nature and boost biodiversity. |
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Council criticised over loss of bat habitat
25/06/2020 Warwick District Council failed to consider bat habitats when approving a new development, an ombudsman has found. |
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Reduced mowing by councils will protect wild flowers, says charity
09/04/2020 A conservation charity has said the lockdown will benefit wild flowers and help tackle the climate emergency as councils are forced to cancel roadside mowing. |
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Bristol declares ‘ecological emergency’
05/02/2020 Bristol has become the first major city to declare an ecological emergency in response to what it describes as escalating threats to wildlife and ecosystems. |
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What next for the Environment Bill?
04/12/2019 Simon Colvin explores what local government needs to know about the Environment Bill. |
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The biodiversity challenge
17/07/2019 Alex Robinson explains lessons for councils and their partners from Oxford City Council and Grosvenor’s approach at their Barton Park development. |
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Developers may be forced to make 'biodiversity net gain'
03/12/2018 Developers will have to improve habitats for wildlife under new rules proposed by environment secretary Michael Gove. |
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Council worker ‘mistakenly’ cuts Attenborough’s wildflower meadow
02/08/2018 A local authority worker has mistakenly mowed a meadow that was being used for David Attenborough's Big Butterfly Count. |
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Councils could save thousands with ‘bee-friendly’ policies
18/07/2018 Local authorities can save thousands of pounds by adopting ‘bee-friendly’ grass cutting plans, campaigners say. |
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Air pollution destroying roadside flowers warns charity
14/05/2018 Air pollution and bad management have caused the diversity of wild flowers on road verges to fall by 20%, new research has found. |
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Local authorities should produce ‘wildlife recovery maps’, campaigners say
02/05/2018 Councils should be required by law to provide maps of local areas that are important for wildlife to help increase the extent and quality of natural habitats, charity says. |
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Planning and Ecology
01/05/2018 How can local authorities realize the environmental benefits required by new government legislation? Karen Colebourn reports. |
