Laura Sharman 16 December 2015

Top 100: Our most popular local government stories of 2015

See our countdown of the 100 most popular stories on LocalGov during 2015, with jobs cuts, Pickles squeezing cash from councils and that infamous bake sale dominating the headlines.

1. Budget 2015: Osborne clamps down on high earners in social housing

2. Revealed: Top 10 daftest queries to council call centres

3. Sex toy forces closure of council bake sale

4. Exclusive: UKIP reveals ‘unnecessary’ jobs councils should eliminate

5. County to cut 2,500 jobs amid £685m savings drive

6. Pickles: Still ‘awful lot’ of money to be saved in councils

7. Budget 2015: Osborne cuts benefits cap amid sweeping tax credit reform

8. Northamptonshire to outsource all services and save £68m

9. Councils announce ‘heartbreaking’ job cuts

10. Local government staff named in New Year’s Honours list

11. Council workers sacked after being accused of sneaking off for shower sex

12. Union paves the way for illegal strike action

13. Council leader slams TV documentary following local backlash

14. Government crowns 16 councils as ‘open data champions’

15. Teenage school drop-outs costing over £800m, say councils

16. UKIP council candidate unmasked as adult movie star

17. Osborne reveals £230m spending cut for DCLG

18. Council staff offered two-year pay increase

19. Sexual job advert gaffe leaves council red-faced

20. 1,200 staff to transfer to private company at Yorkshire council

21. UKIP pledges to abolish all ‘non-essential’ council jobs

22. Councils agree staff merger, sparking job loss fears

23. Councils warned they could face 40% extra spending cuts

24. Squeeze councils for more cash, says Pickles

25. Man ejected from Penzance Town Council Meeting in 'horrendous' scene

26. Bedroom tax policy ruled ‘unlawful’ in landmark case

27. Council leaders recognised in Queen’s birthday honours

28. Councils spend £5bn ‘re-hiring staff’

29. Watch: Mayor feels flushed after leaving microphone on during toilet trip

30. Housing associations vote in favour of voluntary Right to Buy deal

31. David Cameron involved in row with local council over cuts

32. Spending Review: Osborne to phase out council-run schools

33. Row erupts over council's £86,000 new image

34. Abolish every English council and replace them with 'mini-parliaments'

35. Council worker sacked after defrauding authority

36. Woman charged £6,500 for one hour of parking

37. Watch: Game of Thrones spoof shames ‘unfair’ council funding

38. South Oxfordshire council fires: Car hits offices and man arrested

39. Public sector faces staff exodus over Osborne’s pay cap, warn unions

40. Council requests parking payment in cheese

41. UKIP councillor expelled for 'jaw-dropping' remarks

42. Councils say ‘sorry’ after voting blunders

43. UK’s worst areas for air pollution revealed

44. Mass resignation at Rotherham after damning report into child sexual exploitation

45. Council takes £1.88m loss after planning error

46. Council manager stole £23k from family budgets

47. Clark urged to tackle £47bn local government pension deficit

48. Pickles issues notice over council newspaper

49. Pay freeze causing ‘staffing crisis’ in local government

50. Four departments agree 30% spending cuts

51. Failed pirate world record attempt cost council £56k, letter reveals

52. Council leader demands Capita meeting after jobs U-turn

53. Budget 2015: Councils spared further cuts

54. Pickles to be given knighthood

55. Three councils warned over FOI delays

56. Council forced to apologise for ‘scandalous’ waste of taxpayers' money

57. Former councillor pretended to be a barrister

58. Theft of thousands of election ballots forces council re-think

59. LGA names winners of digital fund

60. Borough banned from printing weekly newspaper

61. Peerages for local government figures

62. Spending Review: Warning that councils at financial tipping point

63. Councils allowed to charge for property searches following landmark ruling

64. Council staff could face prison for abusing surveillance powers

65. Three UK cities named among world's most sustainable locations

66. County could have lost £1m after bus lane camera not turned on

67. Council defends 'ludicrous' yellow lines less than a metre long

68. Council set to demand demolished pub is rebuilt ‘brick by brick’

69. Councils ‘wasting’ two million hours every year re-keying data

70. Tower Hamlets mayor found guilty of corrupt practices

71. Council commits ‘worst-ever bungle’ by submitting court papers a day late

72. Councillor refuses to resign despite moving to USA

73. Spending review could floor local services, warns LGA

74. Council workers must speak fluent English

75. Council loses court case against man who accidentally dropped orange peel

76. All staff at Argyll and Bute Council to be offered voluntary redundancy

77. Our study reveals extent of income generation in local government

78. Betts calls for inquiry into ‘outrageous’ LOBO loans

79. Councils call for tighter controls on freedom of information requests

80. Council worker jailed for stealing half a million from care funds

81. Pickles names leaders to take over Rotherham Council

82. Local government on a ‘cliff-edge’ warns Commission

83. Spending Review: Osborne accused of 'dodgy arithmetic'

84. Cost of academy conversion leaves councils in millions of debt

85. Bromley staff balloted for strike action over ‘privatisation’ plans

86. Budget 2015: Osborne launches 20 housing zones

87. Machine-to-Machine technologies could save councils £400m a year says research

88. Councils cutting 11,766 jobs warns union

89. Osborne pledges review of senior council staff pay

90. Clark stresses spending review was 'good result' for local government

91. Council targets self-sufficiency by 2016

92. Petition calls to reduce 'deeply offensive' chief's pay

93. Tories launch own trade union movement

94. Fire service shouldn’t be ‘messed around with’, LGA warns

95. City leader resigns after High Court defeat

96. Council launches Ebay store to sell unwanted items

97. York mayor refuses to wear 'disgusting' chains of office

98. Sacked council employee goes on hunger strike

99. Redundancy payments to council staff to be capped at £95,000

100. ICT report describes urgent need to improve ‘poor service’ at council

#Budgets #Housing #Outsourcing #Council staff #Performance

Analysis

How local authority trading companies thrive through culture and purpose image

How local authority trading companies thrive through culture and purpose

Anthony Lewis, Managing Director at Tile Hill, argues that purpose-driven culture and a strong employer value proposition are vital for LATCOs to attract talent and sustain long-term performance.

Opinion

LocalGov Weekly Round Up image

LocalGov Weekly Round Up

William Eichler, editor of LocalGov.co.uk, reflects on the stories that captured readers’ attention this week.

Most Popular News

Government publishes social cohesion action plan image

Government publishes social cohesion action plan

Coventry sets aside £27m to cover potential equal pay claims image

Coventry sets aside £27m to cover potential equal pay claims

Council U-turns on refusal of Ombudsman pay recommendations image

Council U-turns on refusal of Ombudsman pay recommendations

Council backlash over asylum reforms image

Council backlash over asylum reforms

Unite cuts Labour fee amid Birmingham bin strike row image

Unite cuts Labour fee amid Birmingham bin strike row

New Products

Safeguarding Children - the AAT Way

MSL enhances hygiene auditing with air quality testing for Awaab’s Law compliance

Cadcorp launches Mapestry

Bolton Council Upgrades 120+ School Crossings with Smart CMS Control by Lucy Zodion

NEC CONTRACTS HAS GONE DIGITAL: PAPERLESS, TO GIVE YOU MORE

Vent-Axia Delivers Social Housing a Smart Ventilation Solution Ahead of Awaab’s Law

New remotely lockable cabinet will help manage medication for people with mental health issues

Case Studies

Acrospire Delivers Seamless Heritage Lighting Upgrade on Bath’s North Parade Bridge

Acrospire Delivers Retrofit Lighting for Newbridge’s Joe Calzaghe Footbridge

Acrospire Delivers PIR-Controlled Lighting at Ruislip Lido Car Park

Spennymoor Market Place and Consett Middle Street revitalised using Thorn Lighting’s Thor Lanterns and Customisable Gobo Projectors

Acrospire Partners with Bath & North East Somerset Council to Illuminate Historic Film Location with LED Upgrade

Believ to install 22 charge points across Redcar and Cleveland

Acrospire Enhances Harlington Underpass with Energy-Saving Vandal-Resistant Lighting

Company Anouncements

AAT helps Councils step up to address children’s social care

CU Phosco Approved as a Crown Commercial Service Supplier

Acrospire triumphs at the 2025 HEA Awards with Sustainable Project of the Year

TRT Lighting retrofit helps Lincolnshire County Council cut street lighting energy use by over 65%

Vent-Axia Welcomes Healthy Homes Standard

Vent-Axia Helps Tackle Condensation and Mould this World Ventilation Day

Airtech Calls For Urgent Government Action to Support Radon Awareness Week

Popular Topics

#Workforce #Waste management #Wales #Unions #Transport #Transformation #Tax #Strike action #social care #SEND #Scotland #Safety #Regeneration #reform party uk #Recycling

SIGN UP
For your free daily news bulletin

Highways Supervisor

£Competitive

We’re excited to offer a fantastic opportunity for a permanent Highways Supervisor to join our NMC North East (NMC NE) team in Dundee Dundee, Dundee City

Recuriter: Amey

Director of Public Health

Salford City Council

£109,483 to £122,620

This is a rare and career-defining opportunity to shape the future of public health Salford, Greater Manchester

Recuriter: Salford City Council

Deputy Chief Executive (Executive Director Corporate Services)

Salford City Council

Up to £158,276 p.a. (pay award pending)

Salford is a bold, ambitious and values-led city. Salford, Greater Manchester

Recuriter: Salford City Council

School Crossing Patrol Officer - Thomas Willingale School

Essex County Council

Up to £13.00 per hour

School Crossing Patrol Officer - Thomas Willingale SchoolPermanent, Term Time£13.00 per hourLocation

Recuriter: Essex County Council

Senior Practitioner - Leaving & Aftercare Team, Mid Essex

Essex County Council

£46574.0000 - £56027.0000 per annum

Senior Practitioner - Leaving & Aftercare Team, Mid EssexPermanent, Full Time£46,574 to £56,027 per annumLocation

Recuriter: Essex County Council

Linkedin Banner

Need To Know

What is a Local Authority Trading Company (LATCo)?

What is a Local Authority Trading Company (LATCo)? image

Child Safeguarding Practice Reviews: Safeguarding Children After Abuse or Neglect

Child Safeguarding Practice Reviews: Safeguarding Children After Abuse or Neglect image