Crime | LocalGov

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.

Former children’s commissioner calls for ‘Sure Start Plus’

04/11/2022

The Government should establish a Sure Start Plus programme that could be targeted at teenagers who are at risk of exploitation, former commissioner says.

Government announces £5m to keep youths away from crime

04/11/2022

The Government has announced that £5m will be made available to help keep young people away from crime by encouraging them to take part in sports.

Sexual assault conviction prompts investigation

01/11/2022

An independent investigation has been launched by East Devon District Council after a former councillor was convicted of sexually assaulting two teenage boys.

Edinburgh Council apologises for colonial past

28/10/2022

Edinburgh Council has apologised on behalf of the city for its past role in sustaining slavery and colonialism.

10,000 cases of child exploitation ‘tip of iceberg’, charity warns

27/10/2022

More than 10,000 cases of child exploitation have been recorded by councils over the last year but this is just the ‘tip of the iceberg’, charity warns.

Facing up to historic child sex abuse

05/10/2022

Alan Collins, a partner in the abuse team at Hugh James Solicitors, calls on local government to step up and be accountable for child sexual exploitation.

Rough sleepers ‘criminalised’ by PSPOs

03/10/2022

People experiencing homelessness are disproportionately criminalised in areas with Public Spaces Protection Orders (PSPOs), a new report reveals.

Support for county lines victims gets £5m boost

26/09/2022

Services aimed at supporting victims of county lines gangs received a multi-million-pound bump over the weekend.

Westminster council wages war on ‘dirty money’

21/09/2022

Westminster council will take steps today to tackle economic crime in order to combat the capital’s reputation as the European centre for money laundering.

Mayor 'baffled' by community unrest

20/09/2022

Leicester’s directly-elected mayor, Sir Peter Soulsby, has said he is ‘baffled’ by the widespread disorder in the city.

Four arrested in connection to council worker’s murder

15/09/2022

Four men have been arrested as part of the investigation into the murder of council worker Ashley Dale in Liverpool last month.

Liverpool receives £150,000 trauma support after shootings

30/08/2022

Liverpool and Knowsley are to receive £150,000 to make specialist trauma support available to residents in the wake of the tragic shootings in the city.

Council chiefs call for tougher punishments for fly tippers

19/08/2022

Local authority leaders have called for the introduction of tougher sentences to help in the fight against fly tipping.

Khan announces £2m fund to fight criminal exploitation

17/08/2022

Mayor Sadiq Khan has made £2m of funding available to support children and young people at risk of being exploited by criminal gangs.

Luton council victim of £1.1m cyber crime

16/08/2022

Luton council was the victim of a ‘highly sophisticated and organised crime group’ that stole £1.1m that had been earmarked for a school, investigation finds.

Children’s charity raises alarm over modern slavery

12/08/2022

A charity has called for action as figures show record numbers of children are being referred to the authorities as suspected victims of modern slavery.

More than 100 projects secure money from Safer Streets Fund

26/07/2022

More than 100 projects have been awarded £50m to make streets safer and tackle violence against women and girls.

Council apologises for child sexual exploitation

13/07/2022

Telford & Wrekin Council has apologised ‘wholeheartedly’ after an inquiry concluded more than 1,000 children were sexually exploited over at least 30 years.

Licensing laws to be reviewed to fight ‘invisible crime’ of spiking

05/07/2022

Local authority leaders have welcomed a Government decision to review the licensing laws to assess whether they are robust enough to tackle spiking.

Council employee steals £161,000 from two parish councils

04/07/2022

A woman has been sentenced to four years’ imprisonment after pleading guilty to defrauding two parish councils in Oxfordshire.

Council leaders welcome end to Friday releases for prisoners

15/06/2022

The Government’s decision to end Friday releases from prison has been welcomed as ‘positive news’ by local authority leaders.

Commission set up after Bobbi-Anne McLeod murder publishes report

30/05/2022

A commission set up by Plymouth City Council in the wake of the murder of Bobbi-Anne McLeod has published its first report.

Government announces £300m fund to tackle youth crime

20/05/2022

Councils across England and Wales will be able to draw on a £300m fund aimed at cutting youth crime.

Hoax calls: How local authorities can protect themselves

18/05/2022

Mike Wills discusses how local authorities can protect themselves against attacks designed to trick, embarrass, steal and defraud.

Queen's speech: Government brings back measures to stop protestors 'locking on'

10/05/2022

Boris Johnson’s government will bring back measures thrown out by the House of Lords in January to stop protesters ‘locking on’ to infrastructure.

Commission calls for end to school ‘exclusions culture’

29/04/2022

The rise in the number of exclusions from schools leads to teenagers being put at risk of exploitation and serious violence, new report warns.

Government struggles to assess scale of waste crime

27/04/2022

Defra does not have the data it needs to assess scale of waste crime and the incentives for criminals to enter the waste market have increased, auditors say.

MPs urge licensing authorities to use powers to tackle spiking

26/04/2022

Local authorities have been urged to use their licensing powers to ensure venues take action to prevent spiking incidents and keep customers safe by MPs.

Third of trafficked children go missing from council care

19/04/2022

One in three trafficked children go missing from council care, say children’s charities who warn Nationality and Borders Bill will make the problem worse.

Council chiefs warn of energy rebate scam

19/04/2022

Local authority leaders are warning residents about a new scam where cold callers pretend to be helping people claim the Government’s £150 energy rebate.

Khan calls for ‘joined-up approach’ to tackle child-to-parent abuse

13/04/2022

Mayor of London Sadiq Khan today called for a ‘joined-up approach’ to tackle domestic abuse carried out by children against their parents.

Councils to be banned from charging for disposal of DIY waste

11/04/2022

The Government has proposed banning local authorities from charging for the disposal of DIY waste from households.

Consultation on replacing Vagrancy Act is launched

08/04/2022

The Government has launched a consultation on replacing an 'outdated' law that criminalises homeless people.

Harborough DC rejects prison plans after protests

07/04/2022

Harborough DC has rejected Ministry of Justice plans to build a prison on the grounds that it would ‘adversely impact’ the character of the area.

Banning urban pesticide use image

Banning urban pesticide use

RSPB and PAN are working on a letter from local councillors calling on the Government to introduce a national ban on urban pesticide use. Find out more below.
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