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.
Children in prison failed by ‘multiple services’
27/02/2025 Children in prison have been failed by ‘multiple services’ and youth custody worsens their disadvantages, according to the Children’s Commissioner. |
Man posing as Greggs worker scams council out of £710,000
17/02/2025 A man has been convicted after he posed as a Greggs manager to con Leeds City Council out of grants designed to help small businesses during the pandemic. |
Getting prepared for local child sexual exploitation inquiries
13/02/2025 After the government announced five pilots for locally-led inquiries into child grooming gangs, councils should ensure they have resources at their disposal should investigations be rolled out, says Stephanie McGarry, partner at Browne Jacobson. |
Rayner announces £350m affordable housing boost
12/02/2025 An extra £350m will be invested to boost the number of affordable homes and more will be done to stop rogue landlords getting benefits, the deputy PM says. |
Councillor jailed after ‘campaign of intimidating behaviour’
31/01/2025 A Torridge District Council member will face prison after he was found guilty of harassment. |
Government failing to tackle violence against women and girls
31/01/2025 A damning new report has concluded that government efforts have failed to improve outcomes for victims of violence against women and girls (VAWG). |
Racism not main driver of children joining riots, report says
28/01/2025 Young people who took part in last summer’s riots were not primarily driven by social media misinformation or racism, according to new research by the Children’s Commissioner. |
Government seeks Prevent programme 'answers' after Southport attack
21/01/2025 Reforms to Prevent are to be unveiled this week ahead of a public inquiry looking at why it failed to stop last year's fatal Southport knife attack. |
Council staff arrested as police investigate corruption
06/12/2024 Four members of staff at Leeds City Council have been arrested on suspicion of bribery offences. |
Art stolen from £1m sculpture trail
02/12/2024 Artwork from a public sculpture installation outside Wakefield Council’s headquarters has been stolen. |
Youth club closures led to more crime, report finds
12/11/2024 Youth club closures between 2010 and 2019 led to higher rates of crime and worse educational outcomes, a report has found. |
Council prosecutes mail company for accepting fake IDs
29/10/2024 A mail forwarding company has been fined after an investigation by Islington Council revealed it was accepting fake identification. |
Finance officer jailed for £1m theft
03/10/2024 An ex-finance officer at Gedling Borough Council has been jailed for five years after he stole almost £1m to fund a gambling addiction. |
Ex-councillor jailed for ‘voyeurism on vast scale’
30/09/2024 A former councillor who filmed 28 women in bathrooms and bedrooms using hidden cameras over a 15-year period has been jailed for six years and two months. |
Council seizes fly-tipping vans in new crackdown
19/09/2024 Two vehicles allegedly used to illegally dump waste have been seized by Bolton Council in the first week of its new waste crime strategy. |
Islington wins back £260,000 in fraud case
18/09/2024 Islington Council has won back more than a quarter of a million pounds from a resident who fraudulently took on a council tenancy. |
Former chief given two-year driving ban
17/09/2024 A former Lambeth LBC boss has been banned from driving for two years after admitting failing to stop after a collision and not having insurance. |
Former finance manager stole £930,000 from council
13/09/2024 A former employee of Gedling Borough Council has pleaded guilty to fraud after stealing almost £1m from the authority to pay off gambling debts. |
‘Little meaningful progress’ made in tackling anti-social behaviour
09/09/2024 Little progress has been made in improving the responses of councils and other agencies to complaints of anti-social behaviour, Victims' Commissioner says. |
Mayors asked to take lead in drive against extremism
05/09/2024 Local political leaders have been asked to spearhead efforts to tackle extremism and foster greater community cohesion following a summer of disorder. |
Council information call ahead of early prisoner release
05/09/2024 Councils call for more information as the Government prepares to ‘temporarily' reduce proportion of some sentences served amid capacity pressures on jails. |
Thousands of social homes illegally sublet, study reveals
02/09/2024 Thousands of social homes are being marketed on short-term let platforms like Airbnb, new research reveals. |
Council grasps the nettle with ANPR cameras
30/08/2024 Rotherham Council is installing automatic number plate recognition (ANPR) cameras at five ‘key sites’ under new powers to enforce moving traffic offences. |
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 leaders call for a voice on Cobra
12/08/2024 Local government representation on Cobra, the committee for dealing with national emergencies, is essential, council leaders say after last week’s riots. |
Rotheram: Mindless violence distracts from delivering justice
31/07/2024 Local government leaders have condemned violent protests that broke out after three girls were killed in a knife attack. |
Three arrested in connection with crematorium scandal
30/07/2024 Three people have been arrested on suspicion of misconduct in public office and fraud by false representation in an investigation into the disposal of ashes. |
Old Bailey jury clears former chief of rape
25/07/2024 Ex-Harrow LBC chief Michael Lockwood has been cleared of raping and molesting two 14-year-old girls 40 years ago. |
Abandoned Baby Elsa in council care
05/06/2024 A DNA test has confirmed that a baby found abandoned in a shopping bag in Newham is biologically related to two other babies found in the London borough. |
London sees 400% increase in blue badge thefts
04/06/2024 A fourfold increase in the number of blue badge thefts in London is partly the result of local authority cuts, warns London Assembly Member. |
Grooming gangs unit arrests 550 child predators
21/05/2024 A specialist grooming gangs unit has helped arrest over 550 suspected child predators over the last year, according to the Home Office. |
Alcohol harm costs England £27.4bn a year
20/05/2024 Research has uncovered a £27.4bn annual bill for alcohol-related harm in England, prompting a call for local powers to control alcohol availability in the worst affected areas. |
‘Suffering’ XL Bully dogs rescued from breeding facility
07/05/2024 Over 20 dogs, believed to be XL Bullies, have been rescued from squalid conditions in a breeding facility in Sheffield in a joint operation. |
Hainault: Council ‘shocked’ by sword attack
01/05/2024 A 14-year-old died and two police officers suffered ‘significant’ injuries yesterday after a man armed with a sword terrorized residents in north-east London. |
Council warns of dangerous autism ‘cure’ fraud
18/04/2024 Greenwich council has warned schools and nurseries to be on guard after learning of an individual offering ‘experimental procedures’ for autistic children. |
Rayner to be investigated by police after electoral law accusations
15/04/2024 Police have launched an investigation into whether Labour’s shadow local government secretary Angela Rayner broke electoral law a decade ago after allegations. |
Labour set out plan to ‘breathe new life’ into high streets
10/04/2024 Labour has announced a five-point plan that it argues could ‘breathe new life’ into high streets. |
Finley Boden: Council apologises for ‘missed opportunities’
28/03/2024 Derbyshire CC has apologised for the ‘missed opportunities’ to do more to safeguard 10-month-old Finley Boden who was murdered on Christmas Day in 2020. |
Council leader refuses to be ‘held to ransom’ by bin lorry vandals
18/03/2024 Vandals have been sabotaging Brighton & Hove City Council’s fleet of bin lorries, causing disruption to collection rounds. |
Bodies removed from funeral home in fraud case
11/03/2024 Police have removed 34 bodies from the premises of Legacy Independent Funeral Directors in Yorkshire over concerns about the care of the deceased. |
Chesterfield council welcomes record drugs bust
26/02/2024 Dozens of gang members have been jailed for more than 120 years after a drugs bust in Chesterfield succeeded in disrupting nine county lines gangs. |
Former council worker jailed for fraud
19/02/2024 A former council employee and a roofing firm worker have been jailed for fraud and bribery after they conspired to defraud New Forest District Council. |
The Trading Standards Crisis
15/02/2024 John Herriman, chief executive at the Chartered Trading Standards Institute, discusses the impact of the local government funding crisis on Trading Standards. |
Call to recruit 19,000 neighbourhood officers
13/02/2024 A think-tank has urged the Government to launch a recruitment drive to boost police numbers and restore trust in neighbourhood policing. |
British boys most at risk of modern slavery in UK
12/02/2024 People suffering criminal exploitation, often young British boys, must be recognised as victims of modern slavery, a new report has argued. |
Council seizes £55k of illegal supersize vapes
01/02/2024 Supersize vapes with tanks many times the size of the UK legal limit were among a recent £55,000 haul made by Westminster City Council from one West End shop. |
Worcestershire council contacted 36 times before child’s death
29/01/2024 Worcestershire County Council was contacted multiple times about the welfare of nine-year-old Alfie Steele, who was killed by his mother and her partner. |
Council chiefs welcome drop in fly-tipping incidents
17/01/2024 Local authorities in England dealt with 1.08 million fly-tipping incidents in 2022/23, a decrease of 1% on the previous year, according to the latest figures. |
Investigation launched into ULEZ camera explosion
08/12/2023 The Metropolitan Police has launched a criminal investigation after an Ultra Low Emission Zone (ULEZ) camera in Sidcup exploded on Wednesday night. |
Liverpool launches taskforce to tackle criminal landlords
04/12/2023 Liverpool City Council has launched a taskforce to go after rogue landlords involved in criminality. |
West Suffolk defrauded of £52,000
27/11/2023 West Suffolk Council has revealed that it lost £52,000 in a fraud incident this year. |
Street calls for PCC powers
02/11/2023 West Midlands mayor Andy Street has formally asked the Government to transfer police and crime commissioner (PCC) powers to the mayoralty. |
Agency found guilty of harassing tenants
11/10/2023 In a prosecution by Brighton and Hove City Council, a lettings agency has been found guilty of harassing tenants and fined £60,000. |
Labour announces programme to tackle youth crime
10/10/2023 Labour would set up a ‘young futures’ programme to help tackle crises in youth crime and mental health, shadow home secretary Yvette Cooper has announced. |
Safeguarding review after 10-year-old's death
05/10/2023 An independent safeguarding review is to begin following the death of 10-year-old Sara Sharif. |
Concern over Bristol schools’ app use to monitor children
22/09/2023 Campaign groups have accused Bristol schools who use an app to monitor pupils and their families of ‘intrusive monitoring’. |
‘Shockingly high’ justice system involvement among care-experienced children
21/09/2023 A third of care-experienced children born from 1996-99 received a youth justice caution or conviction – a finding described as a ‘terrible indictment of the failure of local authorities’. |
Scam warning amid digital switchover
18/09/2023 Criminals are exploiting the analogue to digital switchover to scam users of health care telephony devices into giving personal information, councils warn. |
Landlord fined £285,000 after council investigates illegal homes
01/09/2023 A landlord who crammed vulnerable tenants into tiny flats above a Stoke Newington pub has been fined £285,000 after Hackney Council enforcement officers intervened. |
Councillor charged over child grooming allegations
30/08/2023 A Scottish Labour councillor has been suspended from the party after he was charged over allegations of child grooming. |
Council confirms murdered Sara Sharif was known to authorities
21/08/2023 A 10-year-old girl who was found dead in Surrey nearly two weeks ago was known to the county council. |
Brent issues first ever ban on ‘criminal' landlord
17/08/2023 Brent Council has for the first time used a power that enables it to ban serial rogue landlords. |
Council seizes £32,000 of illegal tobacco
07/08/2023 North Somerset Council has seized £32,000 worth of illegal tobacco from premises in Weston-super-Mare. |
Met still stop and search without body-worn cameras
31/07/2023 The Met have carried out 6,225 stop and searches since January 2022 without using body-worn video (BWV) cameras, according to new data. |
Sheffield council staff dismissed or resigned over fraud, report says
28/07/2023 Staff at Sheffield City Council have lost their jobs or resigned following the discovery of fraudulent activity, according to a report. |
Councils issue record number of finds for 'busybody' offences
20/07/2023 Local authorities issued the highest ever number of penalties for anti-social behaviour – or for what have been branded 'busybody' offences – in 2022. |
Cap on fly-tipping fines should be ‘removed altogether’
12/07/2023 The Government’s decision to increase the maximum fines for fly-tipping falls short of what is required to crackdown on offenders, council chiefs have said. |
Union warns of ‘significant rise’ in social care exploitation
10/07/2023 Unison has warned of a ‘significant rise’ in the number of migrant workers who are being exploited in the social care sector. |
Nottingham City Council leader ‘shocked’ by deadly attack
14/06/2023 The leader of Nottingham City Council has said he is ‘shocked and saddened’ by an attack in the city that left three people dead and three others injured. |
Councils warned over £16m of fake pothole claims
09/06/2023 Insurance experts have warned councils over a rise in fake claims for damage to vehicles caused by potholes. |
Council threatens evictions to force children to inform on knife crime
06/06/2023 Barking and Dagenham council has warned families could be evicted from their homes if their children do not inform on people who commit knife crime. |
Rogue landlords are using ‘fake bailiffs’, charity warns
05/06/2023 Rogue landlords are using fake private security guards dressed like court bailiffs to force families out of their rented homes, a charity has warned. |
Council helps Premier League stop £7m streaming fraud
31/05/2023 Five men who illegally streamed Premier League matches have been jailed following a trading-standards investigation led by Hammersmith and Fulham Council. |
Review into Leicester unrest launched
26/05/2023 The Government has commissioned an independent review into the unrest in Leicester last year that occurred between groups of young Muslim and Hindu men. |
Westminster council takes on tax avoiding candy stores
25/05/2023 Westminster City Council has declared war on US-style candy and souvenir stores that are failing to pay business rates or selling illegal or unsafe goods. |
Council investigation reveals mother’s forgery
23/05/2023 A mother in Barnet has admitted in court to forging official documents to get her son into a popular secondary school. |
Alarming figures reveal 300% increase in ‘cuckooing’
19/05/2023 Figures collected from local authorities across London have revealed a 300% increase in the number of ‘cuckooing’ cases across the capital. |
Waste officers call for fly-tipping funding
11/05/2023 Majority of council waste officers think their local authority does not have enough resources and capacity to effectively tackle fly-tipping, poll reveals. |
Parents reluctant to report missing children, report finds
26/04/2023 Low trust and confidence in the Metropolitan police is making some parents and carers reluctant to report children missing, according to the London Assembly. |
Campaigners call for ‘community-led approach’ to youth violence
25/04/2023 Police powers should be reduced and a ‘community-led approach’ to violence among young people adopted instead, according to campaigners. |
Woman fined £1,500 for discarded cigarette butt
21/04/2023 A Bristol woman has been fined a total of nearly £1,500 after throwing her cigarette butt on the ground outside a supermarket. |
Safeguarding review of child sex abuse case withheld
11/04/2023 Walsall Safeguarding Partnership (WSP) will not be publishing its review into the largest child sex abuse case investigated by West Midlands Police. |
Trust for children's services at Star Hobson council goes live
03/04/2023 The Trust tasked with running Bradford Council’s children’s services following the tragic death of 16-month-old Star Hobson has gone live. |
Child sexual exploitation taskforce announced
03/04/2023 PM Rishi Sunak has announced the establishment of a new taskforce of specialist police officers to help investigate child sexual exploitation and grooming. |
Police called after LTN planters set on fire
29/03/2023 Rochdale Borough Council has called the police after local low-traffic neighbourhood (LTN) planters were set on fire. |
Children in youth custody face ‘tension and paranoia’
29/03/2023 Children as young as 10 in youth custody are facing ‘palpable tension and paranoia’, according to an official report. |
Woman served 10-year anti-social behaviour injunction
24/03/2023 A woman who exploited vulnerable people has been served a 10-year anti-social behaviour injunction following an investigation by Milton Keynes City Council. |
Investigator says 'heads must roll' after Croydon collapse
24/02/2023 An independent report into the reasons for the financial collapse of Croydon LBC that has finally been officially published has said ‘heads must roll’. |
Council welcomes ‘significant’ £20m Blyth investment
24/02/2023 The Government has announced a multi-million-pound funding package to help spread opportunity and boost local pride in Blyth. |
Rochdale council disrupts £65m counterfeit goods network
23/02/2023 The trading standards team at Rochdale Borough Council has disrupted a criminal counterfeit goods operation worth up to £65m a year. |
Wandsworth Council stopped from issuing ‘unlawful’ fines
15/02/2023 The DfT has stopped Wandsworth Council from ‘unlawful’ fining of speeding drivers after the council became the first local authority to issue tickets. |
Tenant jailed for £200,000 housing fraud
14/02/2023 A tenant who lived in council housing in Dudley while renting out a flat she owned has been jailed for 32 months. |
Council deletes contacts due to Nicola Bulley disappearance ‘abuse’
13/02/2023 Wyre Council has been forced to remove the contact details of councillors due to ‘inappropriate’ emails in the wake of Nicola Bulley disappearance. |
Council officer praised after crossbow-wielding man arrested
02/02/2023 A Barking and Dagenham Council community ranger has been praised after their actions led to the arrest of a man armed with a crossbow. |
Charge manufacturers for fly-tipping clean up, council chiefs say
01/02/2023 Manufacturers should contribute to the cost of cleaning up fly-tipped rubbish to help tackle the health risk posed by the illegal practice, council chiefs say. |
Khan announces £14m to restore trust in Met
27/01/2023 The Mayor of London, Sadiq Khan, has set out proposals for £14.2m of new funding to rebuild the trust and confidence of London’s communities in the Met Police. |
Triple on-the-spot littering fines, think tank urges
23/01/2023 A think tank has called for a ‘revitalised’ litter strategy including tripling the level of fines and ranking councils on enforcement of anti-littering laws. |
Mayor Khan announces £7m to tackle drug violence
16/01/2023 More than £7m will go towards helping the Met tackle drug-related violence, the Mayor of London has announced. |
Council seeks court order to crack down on ‘street cruising’
22/12/2022 Birmingham City Council is seeking a High Court order to ban street cruising from all city roads. |
Giving good counsel to councils over waste crime
09/11/2022 Niall Burns explores radical measures to target the collusion and corruption driving a new illegal waste dumping pandemic. |
