Watch: Cadaema’s David Parrett on getting a grip on council estates
David Parrett, Director at Cadaema Consulting Services, talks to LocalGov about why councils lack basic data on their buildings and what they can do about it.
Government rolls out advice to help communities prepare for emergencies
23/10/2026 The Government has published updated advice to help communities prepare for emergencies, following consultation with local resilience forums. |
Local government pandemic planning criticised by Covid Inquiry
21/10/2026 Poor planning for the pandemic in local government contributed to its devastating impact on adult social care, the Covid Inquiry has found. |
Council urges communities to plan for weather emergencies
26/08/2026 East Suffolk Council leader is urging communities to prepare for future weather-related emergencies, following a year marked by wildfires in Dunwich. |
'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. |
Farage: ‘Virtue-signalling’ climate targets must go
15/07/2025 Nigel Farage has ordered Reform UK council leaders to give up on what he calls ‘virtue-signalling’ net zero targets. |
Grenfell response was 'woefully lacking'
11/09/2024 Kensington & Chelsea LBC's response to the Grenfell disaster was ‘woefully lacking', the chairman of the Local Government Association (LGA) at the time, Lord Porter, has said. |
Public support more focus on poor health causes
02/10/2023 The Government should invest more in public health to address the roots of poor health, according to a poll for the charity Royal Society for Public Health (RSPH). |
Council staff respond to Sudan evacuation
02/05/2023 Councils have been urged to ‘apply maximum flexibility’ when UK nationals returning from Sudan present as homeless. |
Preparing for climate change on the ground
30/08/2022 Duncan Shaw explores the impact of unprecedented and unpredictable weather patterns in the UK, and the role local authorities have to play in ensuring communities can cope. |
County drafts in army after widespread power cuts
03/12/2021 County Durham has declared a 'major incident' after residents have been left without power for six days following Storm Arwen. |
Community resilience: A new capability for local resilience
18/05/2021 Duncan Shaw and David Powell explore the role local government can play in bringing together communities to build resilient behaviours and networks. |
Shielding scheme took too long to identify up to 800,000, says PAC
20/04/2021 MPs have hit out at the Government’s ‘quickly drawn up’ COVID-19 shielding programme for taking too long to identify up to 800,000 people who may have missed out on help. |
The future of rental in local government
03/03/2021 LocalGov found out how the regional and local COVID-19 testing centres were able to be built in just 12 hours. |
Councils urged to appoint chief foresight officers
26/10/2020 Councils should appoint a ‘chief resilience officer’ to help respond to future crises, a report has argued. |
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No-deal Brexit planning would 'overwhelm' emergency response
19/05/2020 Planning for a no-deal Brexit at the end of this year would ‘overwhelm’ the country’s emergency response capacity, the Government has been warned in a leaked report. |
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PPE supplies to 'run out within days'
24/04/2020 Dwindling supplies of vital life-saving personal protective equipment (PPE) for frontline care workers will run out within days, the Local Government Association (LGA) warned today. |
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Leeds City Council fast tracks plan for temporary mortuary
08/04/2020 Leeds City Council is to build a £800,000 temporary mortuary as part of emergency planning in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. |
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Change law to enable volunteers to respond to disasters, Red Cross says
20/11/2019 The British Red Cross is calling for the law to be changed so that voluntary groups are included in planning responses to emergencies and disasters. |
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Grenfell inquiry: Better communication between councils and fire services needed
30/10/2019 ‘Far better direct communication’ between local authorities and fire and rescue services is needed, an official inquiry has urged. |
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Government activates emergency funds for flood-hit councils
12/08/2019 The Government has activated an emergency fund for councils affected by flooding. |
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Brokenshire gets Brexit breakdown from chiefs
31/01/2019 Chief executives have told communities secretary James Brokenshire Whitehall needs to be more joined up between departments and in its communications with councils over Brexit. |
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Rebuilding lives and trust after Grenfell?
26/10/2017 Four months after the Grenfell fire tragedy, many survivors remain without a permanent home and the council’s relationship with residents remains severed. Sam Clayden quizzes Kensington & Chelsea RLBC leader Elizabeth Campbell on the borough’s progress. |
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Stepping up to the plate
21/09/2017 The Manchester Arena attack showed local government at its best. Mark Whitehead spoke to the city council’s leader Joanne Roney. |
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A radical rethink of emergency plans
11/09/2017 Local government is examining its approach to emergency planning following a string of horrific incidents, as Mark Whitehead finds out. |
