Building Healthier Communities: The Case for Investing in Public Health
Explore how targeted, community-based public health strategies can improve lives, reduce NHS pressure, and deliver cost savings for local authorities.
Peers pass fire and hire exemption
23/07/2025 Councils with financial problems that are placed under government intervention may be exempt from a ban on sacking and then rehiring employees. |
Soton council reaches equal pay settlement
18/07/2025 Hundreds of low-paid staff at Southampton City Council, most of them women, are set to benefit from an equal pay settlement, according to public sector unions. |
South Cambs permanently adopts four-day week
18/07/2025 South Cambridgeshire District Council has voted to become the first council in the UK to permanently adopt a four-day week. |
Employers double down on pay offer
16/07/2025 Council employers have unanimously reaffirmed their April offer of a 3.2% pay increase as ‘full and final' despite unions urging them to better their proposal. |
Unitary achieves pay harmony six years after reorganisation
16/07/2025 A deal to harmonise legacy pay and terms for Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole (BCP) Council workers is finally expected to be signed. |
Council employee prosecuted for fraud
15/07/2025 An employee who was simultaneously employed by two local authorities and a third organisation has been found guilty of fraud after earning over £230,000. |
Councils under intervention could be exempted from fire and rehire ban
09/07/2025 Councils under intervention could be exempt from a legal ban on so-called fire and rehire practices after the latest amendment to the Employment Rights Bill. |
Four-day week trial success, says council
04/07/2025 A report into South Cambridgeshire District Council’s four-day week trial has found most of the monitored services either improved or were maintained. |
EXCLUSIVE: Government turns to councils for extra building inspector capacity
30/06/2025 The Government has turned to councils for extra building inspector capacity as high-rise housing projects continue to be dogged by regulatory hold-ups. |
Care workers face violence ‘day in day out’, GMB says
30/06/2025 More than half of care workers suffer violence at work including being bitten, headbutted and chocked, a survey has revealed. |
Reform UK’s ‘Doge’ witch-hunts will achieve little
27/06/2025 With council workers under threat, Mike Short, head of local government at UNISON, questions the value of Nigel Farage's unwanted audits |
Unite members reject 3.2% pay offer
24/06/2025 Unite members have voted to overwhelmingly reject this year's pay offer of 3.2%. |
Tameside rejects shortlisted candidates to replace Stewart
24/06/2025 Crisis-hit Tameside MBC has decided not to proceed with any of the applicants it had shortlisted to become its next chief executive. |
Clarkson’s Error: How to Slam the Door on Fraudsters
24/06/2025 Jeremy Clarkson once fell victim to an account takeover. The payment solutions provider SmarterPay can help local authorities avoid getting caught out too. |
COSLA makes two-year pay offer
16/06/2025 The Convention of Scottish Local Authorities (COSLA) has offered a 4% pay rise for 2025-26 and an increase of 3.5% the year after. |
Housing target threatened by planning officer shortage, says UNISON
16/06/2025 The Government’s efforts to boost affordable housing could be derailed if the shortage of planning officers in England is not addressed, UNISON warns. |
EXCLUSIVE: Coventry equal pay bill could be more than £30m
05/06/2025 Coventry City Council could face an equal pay bill of more than £30m, The MJ understands. |
Housebuilders call for ‘meaningful action’ on planning staff crisis
05/06/2025 The association representing housebuilders in England and Wales has called on the Government to tackle the staffing shortage in local planning authorities. |
Misconduct investigation cost Durham CC thousands
04/06/2025 Durham County Council reveals its investigations into claims of councillor misconduct at Romaldkirk Parish Council cost upwards of £60,000. |
Thurrock Council seeks ‘justice’ following alleged fraud
04/06/2025 The Serious Fraud Office (SFO) has launched an investigation into Rockfire Investment Finance Plc following fraud allegations made by Thurrock Council. |
Unitary names next chief executive
02/06/2025 Aidan Dunn has been recommended as Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole (BCP) Council's new chief executive. |
Unions demand pay talks
29/05/2025 A union boss has called for employers to come to the negotiating table as they accused bosses of ‘undermining' their collective bargaining agreement. |
Warrington chief to retire
28/05/2025 Warrington BC's chief executive Professor Steven Broomhead has announced his retirement. |
AI ‘Humphrey’ to help councils cut costs
27/05/2025 Twenty-five local authorities are trialling a new AI tool called ‘Minute’ to help speed up admin tasks in areas such as planning and social care. |
Reform UK renames Durham council departments
22/05/2025 Reform UK has renamed several key positions and departments in Durham County Council to remove references to climate change, equality and inclusion. |
Councillors vote in favour of work-life balance
21/05/2025 Redcar and Cleveland councillors have backed a motion calling for some committee meetings to be moved to the evenings on weekdays. |
What’s happening inside the LGPS?
19/05/2025 Get the most informed take on the challenges and opportunities that substantial reform will bring at this year’s PLSA Local Authority Conference. |
UNISON calls on members to reject pay offer
13/05/2025 The UK’s largest union has urged its members to reject the latest local government pay offer. |
Former Thurrock CFO issued with five-year ban
09/05/2025 In a historic first, the Financial Reporting Council has banned the former chief financial officer of Thurrock Council from working as a local government CFO. |
AI tools could save councils £8bn
07/05/2025 The adoption of artificial intelligence (AI) tools could save local authorities in England and Wales £8bn a year, think tank says. |
Union hits back after Farage’s ‘alternative careers’ comment
03/05/2025 A public sector union has criticised Reform UK leader Nigel Farage after he said council workers should seek ‘alternative careers’. |
Lambeth defends Dosunmu payoff
29/04/2025 Lambeth LBC has defended a payoff totalling almost £88,000 to its former chief who admitted failing to stop after a collision and driving without insurance. |
East Suffolk launches campaign against abuse
23/04/2025 A campaign against threatening and abusive behaviour towards front line workers has been launched in East Suffolk. |
Council employee pay offer announced
23/04/2025 Council employees have been offered a 3.2% pay increase from 1 April 2025. |
Brum pauses charges for rat infestations
22/04/2025 Birmingham City Council has temporarily waived charges for residents who require help with rat infestations during the bin strikes. |
Court ruling on definition of a ‘woman’ prompts guidance update
17/04/2025 Equalities watchdog is ‘working at pace’ to update its code of practice for public bodies following the Supreme Court’s ruling on the definition of a ‘woman’. |
Striking Brum bin workers reject pay offer
14/04/2025 Refuse collection workers in Birmingham have rejected the city council’s latest pay offer in long-running dispute. |
Concern over 'procrastination culture' at Southampton
11/04/2025 A ‘procrastination culture' is holding back progress at Southampton City Council, a new report has found. |
Matrix Workforce Management Solutions Appoints Andrew Curry as Client Engagement Director for Health and Social Care
09/04/2025 Matrix, a leader in Workforce Management Solutions, has announced the appointment of Andrew Curry as Client Engagement Director for Health and Social Care. |
Angry reaction to Starmer stance on Brum bin strike
07/04/2025 A war of words has broken out between the Government and union bosses over the bin strike in Birmingham. |
EXCLUSIVE: Auditors look into chief's £327k payoff
02/04/2025 Auditors are assessing an objection to Thanet DC's accounts after an ex-councillor said they should declare a £327k payment to its former boss ‘unlawful'. |
Pupil violence costs South East councils £65k
02/04/2025 Councils in the South East paid £64,555 in compensation to staff injured during school violence from 2019/20 to 2023/24, an investigation has revealed. |
Leadership and HR in local government transformation
01/04/2025 Pam Parkes, president of the PPMA, argues that the leadership mindset and HR are the missing links in local government transformation. |
Council chiefs defend six figure salaries
01/04/2025 Local authority leaders have defended local government salaries exceeding six figures, arguing it is important to attract the ‘right people’. |
Former Liverpool director denies bribery
31/03/2025 Liverpool City Council's former head of regeneration Nick Kavanagh has denied two counts of bribery in court. |
Aberdeen council accused of ‘fire and rehire’ threat
28/03/2025 Unite has accused Aberdeen City Council of threatening workers with ‘fire and rehire’ proposals as part of an industrial dispute, a claim the council denies. |
Brum council threatens redundancies to end bin strike
28/03/2025 Birmingham City Council will begin a consultation on compulsory redundancies in an effort to end the bin strike, a move Unite describes as ‘bully boy tactics’. |
Future Forum: Unitary workers 'grieving' loss of districts
20/03/2025 North Northamptonshire Council chief executive Adele Wylie has urged those involved in reorganisation to act with ‘kindness' and avoid rancour. |
Brum rejects independent inquiry call
18/03/2025 Birmingham City Council has rejected an opposition call for an independent inquiry into the botched implementation of an IT system. |
McMahon hints over councillor suspension power
12/03/2025 Local government minister Jim McMahon has hinted he will push ahead with handing councils the power to suspend councillors before they have been convicted. |
Former Liverpool mayor charged with bribery
10/03/2025 Ex-Liverpool mayor Joe Anderson is among a dozen people charged with bribery and misconduct. |
Leaders call for tough pay negotiating stance
05/03/2025 Council leaders have warned a tough stance is needed during pay negotiations as local government struggles to meet union demands. |
Union criticises council's 'fire and rehire' plan
05/03/2025 The GMB trade union has criticised Tory-led Devon CC for adopting a rare ‘fire and rehire' strategy for more than 800 jobs. |
First leader of North Northants to step down
20/02/2025 The first leader of North Northamptonshire Council has announced he is stepping down at the local elections in May to ‘transition into semi-retirement’. |
Council staff left ‘in tears’ after LTN meeting
13/02/2025 Lambeth Council workers were left ‘in tears’ and offered wellbeing leave after a hostile public meeting about a low-traffic neighbourhood (LTN), the High Court has heard. |
LGA to provide salary grants for planners
12/02/2025 The Local Government Association is offering councils financial support to help boost their planning capacity through the Pathways to Planning initiative. |
Former Woking officers expected to face probe
10/02/2025 The Financial Reporting Council (FRC) is reportedly planning to launch an investigation into two former senior officers at stricken Woking BC. |
Birmingham strikes escalate
04/02/2025 Strikes by more than 350 Birmingham bin workers will ‘intensify’ over the next two months, trade union Unite has announced. |
Trading standards cuts expose millions to danger
03/02/2025 Millions of people are exposed to scams and dangerous products because of understaffed trading standards teams, a freedom of information request has revealed. |
Unions call for £3,000 pay rise
31/01/2025 Council and school employees in England should receive a wage rise of £3,000, according to trade unions representing public sector workers. |
Unions lodge pay claims in Scotland
24/01/2025 Unions have put in their pay claims on behalf of local government employees in Scotland. |
Council’s senior management ‘unaware’ of £13.5m overspend
23/01/2025 Guildford BC's senior management were ‘unaware’ of a multi-million-pound overspend but should have noticed a series of ‘red flags’, investigation concludes. |
Tackling the ecological skills gap
21/01/2025 Catherine Spitzer, chief executive of Environment Bank, explains how private investment can help councils that are struggling to attract skilled ecologists. |
Union warns of risk of ‘two-tier workforce’
20/01/2025 Council trading companies have created a two-tier workforce as their employees are paid less and receive inferior pensions than town hall staff, UNISON says. |
South Cambs to consult on four-day week ‘at long last’
20/01/2025 South Cambridgeshire District Council will launch a consultation this month to ask residents about their experiences of its four-day week trial. |
Unions warn council over potential strikes
14/01/2025 Trade unions have warned Belfast City Council that leisure centre staff could strike if a pay dispute with an outsourced management company is not resolved. |
Birmingham overhauls leadership team
13/01/2025 Birmingham City Council has made a string of appointments to its senior leadership team. |
Call to monitor second jobs of four-day week staff
09/01/2025 Senior councillors in South Cambridgeshire will discuss whether the council should monitor staff working second jobs during its four-day week trial. |
£1m Aberdeen council fraud case ‘cautionary tale’
08/01/2025 Local authorities have been urged to learn from the weaknesses that enabled an Aberdeen City Council employee to defraud the council of £1.1m over two decades. |
Schools face ‘death by a thousand cuts’, union says
08/01/2025 Headteachers have warned that schools and colleges will be forced to make cuts if costs continue to outstrip the growth in school funding. |
Councils’ housebuilding rests on playing to staff strengths
07/01/2025 Eman Al-Hillawi, CEO at business change consultancy Entec Si, looks at how councils could improve housebuilding progress by re-aligning their workforce. |
Former minister Maclean among 38 new peers
23/12/2024 Former Conservative housing and planning minister Rachel Maclean is among 38 new peers who will enter the House of Lords. |
Council staff reject ‘insulting’ pay offer
13/12/2024 Outsourced Peterborough City Council employees are considering industrial action after rejecting a pay award. |
Council to axe 100 jobs in ‘most difficult budget’
11/12/2024 Derby City Council has proposed cutting more than 100 jobs in what it has called its ‘most difficult budget’. |
Police called after council staff threatened
11/12/2024 Derby City Council has restricted access to its headquarters after staff received ‘malicious communications’ over the phone. |
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. |
Union slams council’s ‘fire and rehire’ plans
05/12/2024 The GMB union has criticised Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole Council over its plans to ‘fire and rehire’ 500 workers. |
Council apologises after belongings of deceased tenant binned
26/11/2024 Brighton & Hove City Council has apologised after the belongings of a 29-year-old man found dead in temporary accommodation were binned by contractors. |
EXCLUSIVE: Former minister raises concerns over standards reform
20/11/2024 A former local government minister has expressed concerns over proposed reforms that could allow the suspension of councillors who violate codes of conduct. |
North Tyneside to cut 200 jobs
20/11/2024 North Tyneside Council has announced plans to cut 200 jobs as it grapples to balance its books. |
Social care and the alarming impact of the NIC rise
12/11/2024 The Budget leaves the social care sector alarmed about the rise in national insurance contributions, says Rachael Dodgson, chief executive of Dimensions. |
Four-day week council holds back from permanent adoption
08/11/2024 South Cambridgeshire DC is holding back from permanently adopting a four-day working week despite winning the backing of deputy prime minster Angela Rayner. |
COSLA: Council leaders offer to ‘supplement’ pay offer
08/11/2024 Local authority leaders in Scotland have offered to ‘supplement and enhance’ the latest pay offer to trade unions to prevent further strikes. |
Somerset could cut 450 jobs
28/10/2024 Somerset Council has announced that there will be compulsory redundancies across its workforce, with 450 posts at risk. |
West Northants asks staff to consider redundancy
21/10/2024 West Northamptonshire Council has asked staff to consider voluntary redundancy, flexible retirement and reduced working hours in a bid to cut costs. |
Labour intervenes at Tameside
15/10/2024 The leader of Tameside MBC has resigned after Labour took steps to directly intervene over ‘unacceptable working practices' at the authority. |
Islington Council leader steps down
11/10/2024 The leader of Islington Council, Cllr Kaya Comer-Schwartz, has announced that she will be stepping down. |
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. |
Union threatens strike action after pay award decision
27/09/2024 Local authority leaders in Scotland have decided to impose a wage rise prompting UNISON to threaten strike action. |
Council leader steps down after bullying accusation
23/09/2024 The leader of Newcastle City Council has resigned after an accusation of bullying was made against him. |
Peers find 'blurred' responsibilities between officers and members
17/09/2024 Ashfield DC must resolve issues with the ‘blurred' responsibilities of members and officers, a report from the Local Government Association has said. |
Union rejects latest COSLA pay offer
03/09/2024 Members of Scotland’s largest trade union have voted overwhelmingly to reject the latest pay offer from local government employers. |
Appointment to oversee shared planning service
02/09/2024 Guildford and Waverley BCs have appointed a single head to oversee shared planning services. |
Six-fold increase in reports of exploitative migrant care worker contracts
20/08/2024 The world’s largest nursing union has reported a six-fold increase in the number of migrant care workers in the UK complaining about exploitative contracts. |
Union submits first tranche of equal pay claims
14/08/2024 Trade union GMB has lodged the first tranche of 400 legal equal pay claims against Brighton and Hove City Council. |
Brum council spends £1m on bookkeepers
29/07/2024 Birmingham City Council has been forced to spend £1m on manual bookkeeping after the new Oracle software failed to automate the process. |
Councillors asked to sign off redundancy plans
24/07/2024 Proposals to save £12m a year by axing hundreds of job posts will be considered by councillors in Hertfordshire next week. |
COSLA offers 3.2% pay uplift
18/07/2024 Local government employers in Scotland have made a new pay offer in an effort to resolve the ongoing pay dispute. |
Public sector productivity hampered by payroll and HR software limitations
18/07/2024 Nearly half of all public sector organisations across the UK and Ireland are wrangling with payroll and HR systems that are not fit for purpose. |
Lambeth leader elected chair of London Councils
17/07/2024 Lambeth Council leader Claire Holland has been elected chair of the cross-party London Councils. |
