Leader of cash-strapped Notts council to step down
12/03/2024 The leader of financially stricken Nottingham City Council has announced he is stepping down in May. |
Woking BC approves 10% council tax hike
06/03/2024 Woking BC councillors have approved a nearly 10% council tax hike authorised by the Government after the council's issuing of a Section 114 notice. |
Brum members approve £300m of cuts
06/03/2024 Councillors at Birmingham City Council have signed off on £300m of cuts over two years and dramatic council tax increases. |
Basic efficiency savings all ‘long gone’, Chancellor told
05/03/2024 No more 'basic efficiencies' left to make, leaders tell Chancellor in response to reports he will call for consultants and diversity schemes to be cut. |
Tax cuts could drive 55,000 into poverty
05/03/2024 Tax cuts reportedly being considered by the Chancellor in tomorrow's Budget could result in tens of thousands of people being driven into poverty. |
Scottish Budget 'not good' for communities
28/02/2024 Next year’s Scottish Budget is ‘not good’ for communities, council leaders have said. |
Warnings over job cuts repercussions
28/02/2024 Councils embarking on mass job cuts have been warned it will have grave repercussions for the senior managers of the future. |
14 councils ‘likely’ to issue s114s next year
28/02/2024 More than half of councils are likely to issue a section 114 notice within the next parliament unless funding is reformed, senior local authority figures have warned. |
Stoke-on-Trent warns services may be ‘stripped to the bone’
26/02/2024 Stoke-on-Trent City Council has warned its budget plans rest on a bid to secure an extra £42.2m in Government funding. |
Newcastle signs off on £15m spending cuts
21/02/2024 Newcastle City Council’s cabinet has approved budget proposals that will see spending cut by £15m over the next year. |
Bristol councillors fail to approve budget
21/02/2024 Councillors have failed to agree on Bristol City Council’s proposed budget, which included a 4.99% council tax increase and more than £24m of cuts. |
Brum set to sell off £750m of assets
20/02/2024 Cash-strapped Birmingham City Council is set to sell off £750m of assets and cut spending on services by £300m in an effort to balance the books. |
Nottingham executive refuses to back budget cuts
14/02/2024 Executive members of cash-strapped Nottingham City Council have refused to recommend a report that sets out £20m in budget cuts. |
Suffolk council leaders warn of ‘catastrophic’ HRS proposals
13/02/2024 Suffolk council leaders have warned of ‘a catastrophic effect’ on vulnerable residents should Suffolk CC agree proposed Housing Related Support changes. |
Birmingham councillors back 18% pay rise delay
08/02/2024 Councillors at cash-strapped Birmingham City Council have voted to delay pay increases for members. |
Kent CC proposes over 180 redundancies
02/02/2024 Kent County Council has proposed axing hundreds of jobs as part of a move to transform services and deliver savings. |
Conservative MPs call for emergency funding for councils
22/01/2024 MPs representing county areas have called on the Government to provide emergency funding to cash-strapped councils to prevent further cuts to local services. |
Brum considers axing 600 jobs
17/01/2024 Birmingham City Council could be forced to axe hundreds of jobs as the struggling local authority attempts to balance its books. |
Scottish councils face ‘difficult decisions’ on cuts
16/01/2024 ‘Intensifying pressures’ on Scottish local authorities mean they must make difficult decisions on service delivery to remain financially sustainable, a watchdog has said. |
Stoke-on-Trent council warns of ‘radical cuts’
09/01/2024 Stoke-on-Trent City Council may be forced to declare effective bankruptcy and make ‘radical cuts’ to services if extra Government support is not secured. |
Somerset Council warns of ‘heart-breaking’ cuts
08/01/2024 Public toilets, theatres, and leisure services in Somerset are set to be hit by cuts as the unitary authority attempts to bridge a £100m budget gap. |
Bradford Council to cut more than 100 jobs
04/01/2024 Bradford Council is set to cut 113 jobs as part of an initiative to find £40m in the next three years in an effort to avoid declaring effective bankruptcy. |
Support programme for libraries launched
03/01/2024 A charity representing public libraries has launched a support programme for council library services facing spending cuts. |
Nine million adults lack essential skills
03/01/2024 Nine million adults lack essential skills with skill level disparities within local areas far exceeding those between local and combined authorities. |
Birmingham outlines £150m of cuts
14/12/2023 Birmingham City Council has outlined nearly £150m of proposed savings as it tries to plug a £300m budget gap. |
Quarter of Scottish councils fear bankruptcy
13/12/2023 Nearly a quarter of Scottish councils fear they will be unable to balance their budget next year, new research shows. |
Nottingham proposes cutting 550 jobs
13/12/2023 Nottingham City Council has proposed cutting 554 full-time equivalent posts in an attempt to tackle its financial shortfall. |
Leeds councillors to discuss axing 750 employees
06/12/2023 Senior councillors in Leeds are set to discuss plans to reduce staffing levels by 750 by the end of the 2024/25 financial year. |
One in five councils report bankruptcy fears
06/12/2023 A poll of council leaders and chief executives has revealed that one in five think it likely that their chief finance officer will need to issue a Section 114. |
Campaigners warn of ‘silent war’ on bus services
28/11/2023 Bus services have seen a dramatic decline over the past 15 years, with provision decreasing by more than 60% in 80 local authority areas, research reveals. |
Can local government take much more?
27/11/2023 Dr Andrew Walker, head of Research, LGIU reflects on the Autumn Statement and asks: what might it take for the Government to pay attention to local authorities? |
Social care leaders forced to find millions in extra savings
16/11/2023 Council social care leaders are having to find millions of pounds of extra savings this year despite winter pressures approaching, a new survey has revealed. |
Cambridge faces £6m budget cuts
15/11/2023 Cambridge City Council needs to make an extra £6m of savings over the next three years and £11.1m in new savings by 2029. |
DCN in cuts warning
24/10/2023 Cultural services, community support and parks and green spaces are all at risk of cuts without a boost to the local government finance settlement, respondents to a District Councils’ Network (DCN) survey have warned. |
Museums and the cost-of-culture crisis
11/10/2023 India Divers, policy and campaigns officer, Museums Association looks at the impact on museums of the financial squeeze faced by most local authorities. |
Thousand pools shut since 2010
05/10/2023 More than 1,000 publicly accessible pools have closed since 2010, England’s governing body for swimming has found. |
Hampshire County Council on ‘financial cliff edge’
05/10/2023 Hampshire CC has warned that cuts to services and job losses are inevitable as the council is facing ‘one of the biggest budget shortfalls in its history’. |
Council U-turns on decision to close 39 facilities
04/10/2023 North Lanarkshire Council has reversed its plan to close 39 community facilities after Scotland’s First Minister blasted the decision as ‘short sighted’. |
Council suspends social media comments to stop ‘abuse’ after facility closures
03/10/2023 North Lanarkshire Council has suspended Twitter users’ ability to comment on its posts and said people’s anger over a decision to close 39 facilities ‘does not entitle them to post abuse’. |
Council to shut 39 facilities
02/10/2023 North Lanarkshire Council has decided to close 39 community facilities in response to its financial shortfall. |
Brum kicks off job cuts
27/09/2023 Birmingham City Council has started a wide-ranging programme of job cuts under emergency plans. |
Derbyshire agrees measures to close £46m budget gap
22/09/2023 Councillors at Derbyshire County Council have signed off on a series of cost control measures to address a £46m budget gap. |
Cash-strapped councils forced to sell £15bn of assets
21/09/2023 About 75,000 public assets worth £15bn have been sold by cash-strapped English councils since 2010, according to Institute for Public Policy Research (IPPR). |
Unions reject latest COSLA offer
14/09/2023 The Convention of Scottish Local Authorities (COSLA) has warned trade unions face a choice between ‘real cuts to jobs and services’ and increased pay. |
Woking entered s114 territory in 2018
13/09/2023 Woking BC may have faced a section 114 notice at least four years before it declared effective bankruptcy, senior councillors have been told. |
Government slashes pothole repair funding by £2bn
14/08/2023 The UK has fallen behind other high-income countries when it comes to funding repairs in pothole-ridden local roads, council chiefs warn. |
Hastings' financial controls 'not fully developed'
31/07/2023 Senior Hastings BC councillors will be urged next week to ‘bring in and embed more stringent financial controls and accountability to urgently reduce spending’. |
Third of parents say school travel affected by cuts
12/07/2023 Almost a third of parents say that their child’s school travel has been affected by funding cuts, new research has revealed. |
Bankrupt Woking consults on future of services
12/07/2023 Woking Borough Council has launched a consultation on its discretionary services after it halted all non-essential spending due to unsustainable debts. |
Councils face £3bn funding gap, LGA warns
04/07/2023 Councils in England face a funding gap of almost £3bn over the next two years just to maintain services at their current level, the LGA reveals. |
Case for better pay ‘clear cut’, union says
13/06/2023 The case for better pay in local government is ‘compelling and clear cut’, according to Unison general secretary Christina McAnea. |
Preventing future Section 114 notices
13/06/2023 Joanne Pitt, Local Government Policy manager at CIPFA, reflects on Woking BC’s financial troubles and looks at the lessons for other councils. |
Council tax up nearly 80% in three decades
13/06/2023 Council tax has increased by 79% in real terms on average since it was introduced 30 years ago, according to new figures. |
Enfield trading standards cuts risk public safety
08/06/2023 Enfield Council is at risk of becoming the first local authority without a Trading Standards team after a decision to let go of three quarters of the team. |
Austerity left Britain ‘unprepared' for pandemic, TUC say
06/06/2023 Years of austerity left Britain 'hugely unprepared' for the COVID pandemic with tragic consequences, union leaders have claimed. |
Scottish councils ‘uniquely placed’ to assist reform
17/05/2023 Councils are well-placed to deliver the key aims of Scotland’s government – such as tackling child poverty and net zero – but need funding, experts warn. |
School cuts cost pupils £5,000 each
04/05/2023 Cuts to school funding over the last decade and a half have cost pupils £5,000 each in lost education, new research reveals. |
Poorest councils suffer cuts three times higher than richest
26/04/2023 The poorest councils have suffered cuts in Government funding nearly three times higher than the richest, according to a research group. |
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. |
Legal threat forces Devon CC to halt care cuts
17/04/2023 Devon County Council will halt its plans to cut adult day and respite services after the mental health charity Mencap threatened to take legal action. |
Austerity undermined local response to COVID-19, study finds
31/03/2023 The hollowing-out of local capability by a decade of cuts left local government struggling to cope with the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, a new study says. |
DfT shaves local funding from £400m charge point announcement
30/03/2023 Ministers appear to have cut Local Electric Vehicle Infrastructure (LEVI) funding to local authorities by tens of millions over the next two years. |
Mencap threatens council with legal action over cuts
30/03/2023 A learning disability charity has threatened to take legal action against Devon CC over the council's plans to ‘severely cut’ adult day and respite services. |
Hunt set to restore £200m of local roads cash
13/03/2023 Ministers are set to announce an extra £200m for local road maintenance. |
Councils forced to axe road improvement schemes
10/03/2023 Councils are planning to axe millions of pounds of road improvements because of rising costs and lack of funds, according to new research. |
Croydon approves 15% tax hike
09/03/2023 Croydon LBC has approved a 15% council tax increase as part of a 2023-24 budget that was originally rejected. |
Over 50% of councils set to cut spending on services
07/03/2023 Half of councils are planning to cut spending on services, increase commercial investments or spend their reserves to make ends meet this year, poll reveals. |
Majority of councils opt for 5% council tax rises
14/02/2023 Three quarters of councils will increase their council tax by the maximum allowed without a referendum in April. |
Holyrood accused of ‘massive contradiction’ over cuts
08/02/2023 Scottish council leaders have accused the Edinburgh government of cutting their funding while at the same time forcing them to provide extra services. |
Eastleigh finance review to start
07/02/2023 The Government has commissioned a review of Eastleigh BC’s finances to start this week after concerns over its debt levels. |
Councils ‘in the dark’ about public health funding
06/02/2023 Vital frontline services, such as drug and alcohol treatment, are at risk of being cut unless Government announces public health funding for next year. |
Scottish councils take legal advice over teacher cuts
30/01/2023 Scottish councils are taking legal advice on the SNP government’s threat to penalise them if they cut teacher numbers. |
Commissioner ‘optimistic’ about council’s future
27/01/2023 A Government-appointed commissioner says he is optimistic about Liverpool City Council's future despite warnings of ‘considerable uncertainty’ ahead. |
Holyrood to order councils to stop teacher cuts
26/01/2023 The Scottish government is considering ordering councils to stop cutting teacher numbers after local government body COSLA expressed concerns over funding. |
Funding cuts reduce health visitor force by 40%
18/01/2023 The number of health visitors has plummeted by nearly 40% since 2015 due to public health grant cuts, local authority leaders warn. |
Holyrood accused of ‘confusing’ council funding claims
16/01/2023 Local authority leaders in Scotland have accused the Scottish government of ‘confusing’ the public over local government spending and called for ‘clarity’. |
Minister accepts early intervention is 'critical'
09/12/2022 Early intervention is ‘critical,’ minister concedes as Government told to publish its delayed plan for implementing children’s social care recommendations. |
Khan backtracks on bus cuts
24/11/2022 London mayor Sadiq Khan has backed down on a threat of large-scale cuts to the capital’s bus network after finding additional funding of around £25m a year. |
Council leader warns of cuts to close £22m budget gap
22/11/2022 Herefordshire Council leader yesterday wrote to the PM warning the local authority will have to make ‘difficult decisions’ to close a £22m budget gap. |
Council chiefs warn of impending cuts
11/11/2022 Council chiefs warn ‘everything on the table’ when it comes to cuts as poll reveals only one in five county councils are confident of balancing their budgets. |
Devon council leader warns of ‘deep cuts’
02/11/2022 Devon County Council’s leader has warned the council will have to make ‘deep cuts’ to the county’s local services unless the Government provides more help. |
Cornwall Council warns of cuts to fill £62m hole
02/11/2022 Cornwall Council has warned that it may be forced to cut spending on discretionary services as it seeks to fill a budget gap of £62m. |
London councils face £700m funding gap
01/11/2022 Councils in London will be forced to find £700m of savings unless the Government boosts funding for local services in the capital, cross-party group says. |
Chancellor warned local services ‘on a cliff-edge’
01/11/2022 Local authority leaders have urged the PM ahead of the upcoming autumn statement to ensure that councils have the funding necessary to protect services. |
Benefit cuts leave council welfare schemes ‘over-burdened’
28/10/2022 Cuts to benefits have left local authority-administered discretionary welfare support funds ‘over-burdened’, think tank warns. |
Council chiefs warn against ‘devastating’ cuts
27/10/2022 Further cuts to local government funding will mean that councils will only be able to offer the ‘bare minimum’ of local services, county council leaders warn. |
Public health budget slashed by a quarter, charity reveals
26/10/2022 A charity has warned against cuts to public health as an analysis reveals that austerity under Conservative governments has hit the poorest the hardest. |
Councils warn PM Sunak of impending cuts
24/10/2022 Council chiefs warn that they will have ‘no choice’ but to cut services unless the new PM provides them with enough funding to tackle cost-of-living crisis. |
Benefit cuts to reduce incomes of nine million households
13/10/2022 Plans to cut benefits by increasing them below inflation will leave the poorest struggling to get by on incomes that will drop to levels not seen since 2000. |
Councils warn of £2.5bn ‘threat’ to services
04/10/2022 Two thirds of surveyed councils said they either faced a ‘threat’ to or ‘extreme pressure’ on key service delivery over the next financial year, poll reveals. |
Council bonfire nights go up in flames
03/10/2022 Leeds City Council has become the latest local authority to cancel the annual bonfire and firework events due to budgetary constraints. |
Councils face £900m shortfall due to inflation
29/09/2022 District council leaders have warned that services that are essential for supporting residents through the cost-of-living crisis are threatened by inflation. |
Cuts to support for children with alcoholic parents branded ‘crazy’
18/08/2022 A charity has warned that Government funding cuts to the support available for children with alcoholic parents is ‘crazy’. |
Bus funding cuts set to ‘decimate’ northern network
16/08/2022 The withdrawal of vital funding for bus services will only worsen the cost of living crisis, mayors from the North of England have told the Government. |
Scottish council with £14m budget gap warns of cuts
03/08/2022 West Dunbartonshire Council leader Martin Rooney has warned of impending public service cuts due to the local authority’s £14m budget gap. |
Council warns of 20% cuts to cope with financial crisis
30/06/2022 Oxford City Council has said that they are facing ‘tough choices’ over the coming months due to the pandemic and the cost-of-living crisis. |
Local government austerity linked to poor health
24/06/2022 Local authority cuts have been a significant driver of poor health outcomes at the local level, according to new research. |
Universal Credit failing to meet basic cost of living, charity warns
17/05/2022 The £20 per week cut to Universal Credit (UC) means that the benefit is failing to meet the basic cost of living, a children’s charity has warned. |
England’s poorest areas hit hardest by austerity
03/05/2022 Residents living in England’s most deprived areas were hit hardest by the largest local authority spending cuts during a decade of austerity, think tank says. |
Benefit cuts force record 2.1 million households to rely on food banks
27/04/2022 The reduction in Universal Credits payments and the cost of living crisis have forced millions of people to rely on food bank parcels, Trussell Trust warns. |
Shell is helping power the journey towards a circular paving industry with Shell Bitumen LT R, a new product for roads that uses plastics destined for landfill as part of the additives to make the bitumen.
Effective Energy Group is now offering its support to the 40 Local Authorities who have received a share of the £430m to deliver their projects on the ground by surveying properties and installing measures.
Dougie Belmore explains how one of the main interfaces between you and Bacs is about to change.