GMB: Knowsley equal pay claim could cost council tens of millions of pounds
Waste collection staff reveal declining post-pandemic treatment
Council reveals ‘urgent need’ for drug and alcohol commissioner
Local government warned over rising GDPR breaches
10 ways councils can boost staff retention
Budget strain and heavy workloads are driving council staff away. Here are 10 simple changes that can make a big difference.
Wiltshire Council sees annual complaints surge
01/10/2025 Wiltshire Council’s complaints have increased by over 60% since 2021-22, figures have revealed. |
Council moves to strengthen £4bn pension fund
01/10/2025 Dorset Council has appointed Local Pension Partnership Investments (LPPI) as the new pooling partner for the £4bn Dorset County Pension Fund. |
COSLA: Zero tolerance for abuse of council workers taking down flags
26/09/2025 COSLA and trade union partners GMB, UNISON and Unite have united to condemn recent incidents of abuse, intimidation and violence directed at council staff. |
Pension funds urged to engage with pools ahead of law change
26/09/2025 LGPS funds should engage with their pools now ahead of changes from the Pensions Schemes Bill passing into law, consultancy urges. |
Planning recruitment at risk as apprenticeship funding cuts bite
25/09/2025 Thirty-three organisations across planning, housing, nature, and energy are urging the Government to provide £7m to recruit and train apprentice planners. |
Council wardens hailed for bravery in knife incident
25/09/2025 Middlesbrough Council Neighbourhood Safety Wardens have been praised as heroes after confronting a knife-wielding man in the town centre. |
Call for greater inclusivity in social housing sector
23/09/2025 Over 90% of tenants believe their organisation is not doing enough to attract tenants from ethnic minority groups into its influencing structures. |
Council leader resigns after embezzlement charge
23/09/2025 The leader of Perth and Kinross Council has stepped down after being charged with embezzlement. |
Joint chief executive departs two districts
19/09/2025 The chief executive of South Oxfordshire and Vale of White Horse DCs, Mark Stone, has announced he is to stand down. |
EXCLUSIVE SURVEY: 'Women are being failed'
18/09/2025 One in 10 local authority female staff have experienced inappropriate touching by a manager, a landmark sexual harassment survey by Unite has found. |
Ex-Labour councillor charged in ‘honeytrap’ case
18/09/2025 A former Labour councillor has been charged with blackmail and communications offences following a probe into the Westminster ‘honeytrap’ scandal. |
Ministers axe elections holiday compensation
18/09/2025 Ministers have decided the Government will no longer reimburse electoral services staff if a late-notice General Election means they have to cancel holidays. |
Reform council chief announces retirement plans
11/09/2025 Lincolnshire CC's chief executive officer, Debbie Barnes, has announced her plans to retire after 19 years at the authority, including five at the helm. |
LGPS white paper sets path for strategic local investing
11/09/2025 Local government pension funds managing £400bn have backed a new white paper that sets out how the LGPS can scale up local investing to support growth. |
Reform UK council takes flag decisions out of CEO’s hands
10/09/2025 Reform UK-led Warwickshire County Council has removed its chief executive’s flag-flying powers. |
Audit warns of ‘critical governance failings’ at Wrexham Council
09/09/2025 An audit has revealed that Wrexham County Borough Council has made ‘insufficient progress’ in solving ‘critical governance issues’. |
LGR 'making senior recruitment difficult', says Kent's Reform UK leader
08/09/2025 The Reform UK leader of Kent CC has said local government reorganisation (LGR) is ‘disrupting business as usual' and making recruitment ‘very difficult'. |
Glasgow redundancy payouts 'deeply concerning'
04/09/2025 Redundancy payouts totalling £1m made to senior officers at Glasgow have been described as ‘deeply concerning' by a financial watchdog. |
Bin workers in Brum back further strike action
03/09/2025 A vote has seen bin workers in Birmingham ‘overwhelmingly’ agree to extend strike action until spring next year, according to Unite. |
Overstretched schools need clearer roles, says union
02/09/2025 Education staff are carrying disproportionate responsibilities, according to the Association of School and College Leaders (ASCL). |
Reform UK plan to overhaul LGPS sparks backlash
01/09/2025 Reforming the Local Government Pension Scheme in England and Wales (LGPS) could save taxpayers around £10bn, Reform UK’s deputy leader has claimed. |
Wrexham bin strike called off after deal reached
28/08/2025 A planned bin strike in Wrexham has been suspended after last-minute talks between Unite and Wrexham County Borough Council. |
Halton BC’s staff express concern about the organisation
27/08/2025 A survey for Halton Borough Council has revealed that 63% of staff are worried about what lies ahead. |
Lives at risk due to fire service cuts, union warns
22/08/2025 Over 2,000 firefighter positions could disappear due to Government cuts, the Fire Brigades Union has warned. |
Glasgow overhauls firm over governance concerns
19/08/2025 Glasgow City Council’s jointly-owned development firm has undergone a leadership overhaul following concerns over its governance. |
Council attempts to bury hatchet with Oasis
18/08/2025 The leader of Edinburgh City Council has reached out to Oasis after the band’s singer Liam Gallagher attacked the local authority for allegedly mocking fans. |
Hefin David: Tributes paid to ‘champion of the people’
13/08/2025 Local government leaders across Wales have paid tribute to Welsh Labour politician Hefin David who died suddenly on Tuesday. |
Council tight-lipped over monitoring officer departure
12/08/2025 Hertfordshire's Three Rivers DC has declined to comment on whether it paid a financial settlement to its departed monitoring officer, Stephen Rix. |
Teenage Reform councillor vows to tackle crime
12/08/2025 Eighteen-year-old Sienna Churcher has become one of the youngest councillors in the UK after winning a by-election for Reform UK. |
Council staff discouraged from using ‘mum’ and ‘dad’
11/08/2025 Merton Council is trying to discourage its staff from referring to parents as ‘mum’ and ‘dad’ in a push to encourage more inclusive language. |
Cheshire East backs safety protocol to protect councillors against abuse
07/08/2025 Cheshire East Council has voted in favour of implementing anti-abuse, intimidation and harassment measures following a councillor survey. |
EXCLUSIVE: Director suspended by county amid reorganisation vacuum
30/07/2025 A director remains out of the office on full pay almost three months on from being suspended, The MJ understands. |
Lambeth to slash senior management to help plug £84m funding gap
29/07/2025 Lambeth LBC has voted for a series of cost cutting measures including slashing senior management to plug a £84m funding gap identified through to 2029-30. |
Council officers sacked after ‘illegal activity’ uncovered
29/07/2025 Dorset Council fired 11 council officers due to concerns over a lack of compliance with financial controls and rising budget overspends, report has revealed. |
Employers and unions agree pay deal
24/07/2025 Local government employers and the Unison and GMB trade unions have agreed a pay deal for the sector. |
BCP Council announces new pay structure
24/07/2025 Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole (BCP) Council has approved proposals for a new ‘fair and transparent’ staff pay structure. |
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. |
Reform candidate takes legal action after losing dead heat election
22/07/2025 Reform UK candidate Liz Williams has filed a petition to the High Court claiming her loss in May's dead heat election in Worcestershire County Council’s Littletons division was fraudulent. |
Union ballots Wrexham bin workers on strike action
21/07/2025 Refuse workers in Wrexham are being balloted on strike action, with their union Unite claiming changes in working patterns by the town’s council will see them lose half a day’s pay. |
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. |
Unions back Scottish local government pay offer
11/07/2025 Local authority leaders in Scotland have welcomed the decision by Unite and GMB members to accept the latest two-year pay offer. |
Job loses loom as Birmingham bin dispute talks collapse
10/07/2025 Attempts to resolve the long-running waste service dispute between Birmingham City Council and Unite have collapsed with job loses the likely result. |
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. |
Unite calls for investigation into Brum commissioners
09/07/2025 Unite has called for an investigation into whether Birmingham’s Government-appointed commissioners have a financial interest in keeping the bin strikes going. |
Union members accept two-year pay offer
08/07/2025 Local government staff in Scotland have voted to accept a two-year pay offer. |
Unions call for ‘better and fairer’ pay offer
04/07/2025 Trade unions representing council staff across the country have called on local government employers to improve on the 3.2% pay offer. |
