Staying Safe in Local Elections: Challenges and support for candidates
With local elections nearing, rising abuse fears are deterring candidates - this analysis explores risks, definitions, and new guidance to support safer campaigning.
Noise complaints fall sharply since Covid peak, data shows
23/03/2026 Noise complaints and enforcement action by local authorities in England and Wales have declined significantly since the Covid-19 pandemic, according to new data from the Chartered Institute of Environmental Health (CIEH). |
'Widespread lack of understanding' to blame for key worker oversight
03/03/2026 Failure to recognise council employees as key workers during the pandemic must be reviewed as part of planning for future emergencies, Covid inquiry told. |
Covid Inquiry: Government 'failed to engage' with councils
21/11/2025 The UK and devolved governments should have done more to engage with councils during the pandemic, the official Covid-19 Inquiry has found. |
SEND Crisis: EHCP demand soars 250%, warns IPPR
22/10/2025 The UK’s system for supporting children with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) is ‘no longer fit for purpose’, according to a new IPPR report. |
Waste collection staff reveal declining post-pandemic treatment
07/10/2025 Attitudes towards those working in the waste sector have deteriorated since the pandemic, research reveals. |
All of England's LRFs to take part in pandemic exercise
11/08/2025 All of England's Local Resilience Forums (LRFs) will take part in a simulation exercise designed to test the nation's response in the event of a pandemic. |
Fraudster jailed for ‘brazen’ Covid scam
16/04/2025 A man who defrauded Leeds City Council out of £710,000 during the Covid pandemic has been sentenced to four years in prison. |
Pandemic fraud investigation unit lacked ‘appropriate governance’
19/08/2024 The Government's pandemic fraud investigation unit lacked ‘appropriate governance’ either on the part of the Government or from Thurrock Council, an independent review has concluded. |
Council uncovers fraud cases worth £3.6m
29/07/2024 Stoke-on-Trent City Council's corporate fraud team uncovered more than 140 cases of fraud in 2023-24, saving residents about £3.6m. |
New pilot to monitor care home infections
31/10/2023 A national surveillance study initially set up in response to Covid-19 has received government funding for a pilot scheme to monitor infections in care homes. |
Children’s services hindered by ‘systemic challenges’
09/10/2023 Children’s services are doing ‘inspiring work’ but find themselves held back by ‘wider, systemic challenges’, a council chiefs say. |
MPs call for SEND support to tackle school absences
27/09/2023 MPs have called for more support for pupils with special educational needs (SEND) to tackle school absences and a consistent approach to the issuing of fines. |
Covid vaccines brought forward after new variant discovered
31/08/2023 This year’s winter flu and Covid-19 vaccine programme has been brought forward by several weeks after a new Covid-19 variant was identified in the UK, the Government has announced. |
Families sue over Covid care home deaths
25/08/2023 Thirty families are launching legal action against the Government over the deaths of their relatives from Covid-19 in care homes when the pandemic began. |
Councils unprepared for lockdowns
09/08/2023 Councils were unprepared for the Covid pandemic lockdowns, according to a survey by the Local Government Association (LGA). |
Half of children saw emotional skills worsen during pandemic
01/08/2023 The first year of the COVID-19 pandemic had a negative impact on the social and emotional skills of almost half of children, according to a new study by IFS. |
Councils need ‘cohesive plan’ after loss of 6,000 stores
28/07/2023 British Retail Consortium found that Britain lost 6,000 shops in five years and warned that councils must make a ‘cohesive plan’ to revive shopping areas. |
Disadvantaged women in North East dying early
10/07/2023 Disadvantaged women in the North East are dying prematurely as public services are failing to meet their needs, according to a new report. |
Older adults who left workforce during pandemic facing poverty
07/07/2023 Nearly half of the older adults who left the workforce during the first year of the pandemic ended up in relative poverty, new research has revealed. |
What the Covid inquiry can learn from local government
13/06/2023 Richard Machin, lecturer in Social Work and Health at Nottingham Trent University, looks at what the Covid inquiry can learn from Nottingham City Council. |
MPs warn of 'lost decade' for disadvantaged pupils
07/06/2023 The educational gap between disadvantaged pupils and others could take a decade to return to pre-pandemic levels, MPs warn. |
Seven in 10 children experiencing poverty in working households
05/06/2023 The number of children suffering poverty has shot up since support given during the COVID pandemic came to an end, according to new figures. |
