Planning overhaul to clamp down on 'unjustified local deviation'
17/12/2025 Revised planning rules unveiled by the Government yesterday would result in a ‘default yes’ in favour of development around train stations, on brownfield sites and for blocks of flats. |
Wirral Council backs £20m HQ scheme to drive jobs and growth
16/12/2025 A local company in Wirral is investing £20m into a new headquarters that will generate ‘dozens of jobs’ and boost economic growth. |
EXCLUSIVE: Councils to push against statistics rowback
16/12/2025 Councils are preparing to push back after the Office for National Statistics (ONS) revealed it was looking to slim down its sub-national statistics portfolio. |
Value of new homes at risk due to 100-mile pylon plan, warns council
16/12/2025 Essex County Council is concerned the value of a 4,000 new home development in its area could be hit by National Grid plans to install 100 miles of pylons close by. |
Revealed: Scottish communities awarded Pride in Place funding named
15/12/2025 The 14 Scottish communities in 12 local authorities receiving £20m each in Pride in Place funding have been named by the UK Government. |
Tunbridge Wells water safe again following outage uproar
12/12/2025 A boil water notice has been lifted in Tunbridge Wells following the water outage that was declared a major incident. |
Councillors ‘violently intimidated and pelted with eggs’ at refugee debate
12/12/2025 Councillors at Swale Borough Council were threatened and pelted with eggs by balaclava wearing protesters from the public gallery as they debated whether to recognise the area as a place of sanctuary for refugees and asylum seekers. |
Council urges locals to help police investigate museum theft
12/12/2025 Bristol City Council has called for the public’s help in identifying people who may have been connected to a ‘high-value burglary’ of museum artefacts. |
Campaigners urge councils to stop using reindeer at Christmas events
11/12/2025 Animal welfare charities and campaigners, including the RSPCA, are urging councils to stop using reindeer in their Christmas events. |
Councils receive over £600m to provide walking, wheeling and cycling routes
11/12/2025 Funding of £626m has been allocated to councils to support the delivery of new walking, wheeling and cycling schemes. |
£3.5bn investment to 'end homelessness for good'
11/12/2025 A cross-government plan to ‘end homelessness for good’ by preventing it before it occurs has been launched, backed by £3.5bn investment over the next three years. |
Councils’ economic role worth over £100bn a year, research reveals
10/12/2025 Councils ‘drive forward prosperity’ across England by generating £117bn annually for local economies, research has found. |
Government announces £500m plan to improve youth services
10/12/2025 A £500m backed strategy to improve youth services over the next decade has been launched by the Government. |
MHCLG blow as councils' housebuilding expansion comes to a halt
10/12/2025 A surge in housebuilding by councils is expected to grind to a halt – threatening the Government’s target of building 1.5 million homes by 2029. |
EXCLUSIVE: Ministers threatened with food waste refusal
10/12/2025 Council leaders have warned ministers some local authorities will refuse to collect food waste. |
Council leader embroiled in social media posting scandal resigns
10/12/2025 A Reform UK council leader accused of posting racist comments on social media has resigned. |
Illegal waste site investigation sees council seize vehicles
10/12/2025 Bromley Council has seized four vehicles following the discovery of what is believed to be an illegal waste site. |
Devolution Bill attacked by peers
09/12/2025 The Government’s devolution agenda risks ‘leaving communities without a meaningful voice’, Local Government Association vice president Baroness Scott has warned. |
Councillors donate to crowdfunder supporting jailed colleague
09/12/2025 Councillors, including the leader of Somerset Council, have donated to a crowdfunder to help meet the legal costs of a colleague who has been jailed for taking part in a Just Stop Oil protest. |
Three combined authorities receive £500,000 each to tackle educational inequality
08/12/2025 Three mayoral combined authorities are to receive £500,000 each to find ways locally to tackle inequality among children. |
Grey belt countryside warning
08/12/2025 Almost nine in 10 grey belt developments approved by the Government rather than councils over the last year involve ‘unspoilt rural landscapes’, countryside campaigners have warned. |
Future Forum North: Devolution is here to stay
05/12/2025 Devolution ‘can feel like a marriage with no prospect of divorce’ but is ‘here to stay’, the president of senior officers’ group Solace has told The MJ’s Future Forum North. |
Government announces £3bn funding for councils to improve bus services
05/12/2025 The Government has announced £3bn funding to support local authorities to improve bus services. |
Backlash warning over asylum decentralisation
05/12/2025 Councils fear a backlash from far-right activists if responsibility for housing asylum seekers was moved to them from the Home Office, research has found. |
Local voices must be heard, warns survey
04/12/2025 The public want councils to be better resourced but are concerned their views are not heard, according to the results of a new survey. |
Government confirms mayoral election delays in four areas
04/12/2025 The Government has confirmed that it will be pushing back elections for mayors in four new strategic authorities by two years. |
London Councils invest £25m to combat homelessness and domestic abuse
04/12/2025 A £25m Pan-London Grants Programme has been rolled out by London Councils to help people experiencing homelessness and abuse. |
Government urged to fully fund recruitment of family hub SEND practitioners
04/12/2025 Government needs to ensure its call for councils to recruit dedicated special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) practitioners in family support hubs is fully funded, warns the Local Government Association (LGA). |
Epping Forest to appeal Bell Hotel decision despite Supreme Court set back
03/12/2025 Epping Forest District Council is to appeal a High Court injunction to stop the use of a hotel, which has been the focus of protests in the area, being used for asylum seeker accommodation. |
Councils get new powers to hand contracts to local suppliers
03/12/2025 New powers for councils in England to give lower value contracts to local and UK suppliers come into force today. |
Top table call for IT leads
02/12/2025 Council IT leads need a ‘seat at the top table’ to ensure local government reorganisation is not derailed, a think-tank has warned. |
Commissioners to remain at ‘fragile’ Birmingham City Council
02/12/2025 Improvement at Birmingham City Council is ‘fragile, has been slower than anticipated and several areas of significant risk remain’, according to the latest report from commissioners called in by the Government to run the local authority. |
Council collects 600kg of vapes and batteries in new kerbside recycling service
02/12/2025 Kerbside collections for vapes and batteries have been introduced by Doncaster Council following research which unveils the rising number of UK waste facility and refuse vehicle fires. |
Norfolk CC supports residents at risk of job loss
02/12/2025 Norfolk County Council has launched an employment support programme as the area braces itself for as many as 15,000 redundancies over the next two years. |
Hertfordshire cabinets defy full council on reorganisation
01/12/2025 A trio of Hertfordshire districts have submitted reorganisation proposals that defy the decisions of their full councils. |
Neighbourhood Board submits 10-year regeneration plan
01/12/2025 The Hastings Neighbourhood Board (HNB) has formally submitted its long-term regeneration plan to the Government for approval. |
Anti-racist flag cancelled due to concerns over offence
27/11/2025 Brighton & Hove City Council has cancelled an anti-racist art exhibition showing a reimagined Union Jack over concerns it could offend minority communities. |
West Midlands mayor unveils nature recovery strategy
27/11/2025 A new plan to protect and enhance green spaces, waterways and wildlife across the West Midlands has been published by Mayor Richard Parker. |
Devolution needs ‘long-term plan’, report says
27/11/2025 England risks drifting into a fragmented local governance system unless ministers set out a clear long-term plan for devolution, new report argues. |
Devo Bill 'snatches' power upwards
26/11/2025 Power is being ‘snatched upwards and away from local voices' by the English Devolution and Community Empowerment Bill, the Lib Dems have claimed. |
Budget: Two-child benefit cap lifted
26/11/2025 Abolition of the two-child benefit cap in today's Budget has been welcomed as a ‘first step' in tackling child poverty. |
Budget: Government to fund SEND
26/11/2025 Government will fully fund Special Educational Needs and Disabilities from 2028-29, cutting one of the biggest financial pressures on councils. |
Reed green lights controversial £750m film studio
26/11/2025 A multi-million-pound film studio has been granted planning permission by the Government despite the local council’s objections. |
Council appeals Bell Hotel court decision
26/11/2025 Epping Forest DC has voted to appeal against a recent High Court decision to allow the use of The Bell Hotel as temporary accommodation for refugees. |
Housing regulator criticises council for ‘serious failings’
26/11/2025 Oldham MBC has been handed a C3 consumer grading after the Regulator of Social Housing (RSH) found it failed to meet required consumer standards. |
Budget: Mayors to get tourist tax power boost
26/11/2025 England’s regional mayors will soon have the power to introduce a levy on overnight stays in hotels, B&Bs, guesthouses and holiday lets. |
Reed U-turn over committee system abolition
25/11/2025 Local authorities that already use the committee system will be allowed to retain it under strict conditions detailed by the Government. |
Lambeth to house more families out of area
25/11/2025 Lambeth LBC is proposing to house more people further out of the borough as housing pressures in London worsen. |
Three rival reorganisation bids emerge in Nottinghamshire
24/11/2025 Three options will be put before ministers for local government reorganisation in Nottinghamshire. |
Gloucestershire district rejects reorganisation
24/11/2025 Forest of Dean DC has voted against supporting any form of reorganisation in Gloucestershire. |
Council workers have started to 'normalise abuse' from residents
City’s clean air zone generates £180m in less than two years, say academics
Watchdog uncovers 'serious failings' in social housing
Planning approval puts Bedford on course for Universal theme park
