Pembrokeshire could lose 68 councillors
30/01/2025 The number of town and community councillors in Pembrokeshire could be cut by 10% following a review by Wales’ Democracy and Boundary Commission. |
Edinburgh tourism tax could be starting point for fiscal devolution, experts suggest
20/01/2025 The approach to a tourism tax being taken forward in Scottish and Welsh cities could be a starting point for fiscal devolution in England, experts suggest. |
Local Welsh treasures receive £2m boost
24/12/2024 Over £2m will be awarded to seven local places in Wales including music venues and community and leisure centres. |
4.3% boost for Welsh councils
12/12/2024 Councils will receive £6.1bn from the Welsh Government to spend on delivering key services, increasing core revenue funding by 4.3% next year, ministers have announced. |
Welsh councils 'financially unsustainable' without action
04/12/2024 ‘Significant’ risks facing Welsh councils’ finances are likely to increase unless action is taken, a public sector watchdog has warned. |
Wales introduces tourism tax Bill
27/11/2024 A Bill that would allow councils to introduce a levy on overnight stays has been introduced in Wales this week. |
Welsh councils plead to plug growing gap
11/11/2024 An umbrella body is pushing for the Welsh Government to help plug a £559m funding gap so councils do not have to make ‘impossible decisions’. |
Auditor uncovers £7m of fraud and errors
23/10/2024 More than £7m worth of fraud and payment errors have been identified in Wales in a counter-fraud initiative, according to Audit Wales. |
Council leader quits over paedophile headteacher row
18/10/2024 The leader of Gwynedd Council has stood down after a row over his initial failure to apologise to the victims of a convicted paedophile headteacher. |
Welsh councils face £559m budget gap
10/10/2024 Councils across Wales face ‘extraordinary’ budget pressures totalling an estimated £559m next year, according to the Welsh Local Government Association (WLGA). |
More than £2m needed to sort Welsh recycling scheme
30/09/2024 Senior Denbighshire CC members will be asked to plough more than £2m into a recycling scheme that has led to ‘unacceptable' numbers of missed collections. |
New Flintshire leader issues bankruptcy warning
26/09/2024 The new leader of Flintshire County Council has warned the local authority could be forced to declare effective bankruptcy. |
Welsh council chiefs call for end to social care ‘quick fixes’
24/09/2024 Local authority leaders in Wales have called on the Welsh Government to invest more in social care to ease the pressure on the NHS this winter. |
Welsh councils face 'challenging' 20mph decisions
20/09/2024 Welsh authorities face ‘challenging decisions’ as they review requests for some roads to be exempt from the 20mph default speed limit, council leaders say. |
Welsh council cuts free transport to English-language schools
20/09/2024 A Welsh council has made broad cuts to its school transport provision – with some only affecting children taught in English. |
Wales ‘a long way’ from active travel aims
19/09/2024 The Welsh Government is a long way from achieving the step-change in active travel it set out more than a decade ago, a spending watchdog has found. |
New homes should be for Welsh speakers, council says
06/09/2024 A community council in Wales has objected to plans for a new affordable housing development amid fears of a decline in non-Welsh speakers. |
Significant funding needed for Wales to ‘get close’ to housing pledge
05/09/2024 The Welsh Government is unlikely to deliver on a pledge to build 20,000 low-carbon social homes for rent by 2026, according to a spending watchdog. |
Audit Wales tells councils to improve performance information
30/07/2024 Councils in Wales are not giving enough information to leaders about what their communities think of their services, a public sector watchdog has found. |
Welsh Government drops controversial council tax notice plan
10/07/2024 The Welsh Government has dropped its controversial plan to end the legal requirement to publish council tax notices in local newspapers. |
Labour could bring in automatic voter registration
27/06/2024 It has been reported that Labour plans to introduce automatic voter registration (AVR) if elected next week. |
Thousands of bins missed as council rolls out new service
19/06/2024 Denbighshire County Council has apologised after waste from thousands of households was not collected as a new recycling service was rolled out. |
Welsh editors in warning over council tax notice law
11/06/2024 Editors in Wales have issued a warning over the Welsh Government’s plans to stop council tax notices being published in local newspapers. |
Pembrokeshire buys housing stock worth £3.5m
21/05/2024 Pembrokeshire County Council has spent more than £3.5m acquiring housing since November. |
Wales pushes back council tax reform
15/05/2024 Council tax reforms will not come into force until 2028, the Welsh Government has announced. |
New centre to protect Welsh councils from cyber attacks
13/05/2024 The Welsh Government has established a security operations centre (SOC) dedicated to protecting local authorities from cyber attacks. |
Re-elected Burnham calls for Right to Buy suspension powers
07/05/2024 Greater Manchester’s re-elected mayor has called for powers to suspend Right to Buy on new homes under plans to build 10,000 houses across the region. |
Wales to ‘correct’ guidance on 20mph speed limits
22/04/2024 The Welsh Government will change its guidance on 20mph speed limits, the transport minister has said. |
Welsh council tax rises finalised
13/03/2024 The average council tax rise for Welsh local authorities will be just over 8% next year. |
Regulator calls for 'substantial' planning intervention
26/02/2024 The planning system requires ‘substantial intervention’ by the Government to ensure consistent delivery of new homes, a major study has concluded. |
Wales could drive agenda on council tax, report argues
12/02/2024 Wales could have a chance to deal with unfairness in the council tax system and drive the agenda for other nations and regions to follow, says think-tank. |
Pembrokeshire council proposes record 21% council tax hike
08/02/2024 Pembrokeshire County Council has proposed the highest ever percentage increase in council tax in Wales. |
Welsh government announces £25m for councils
07/02/2024 The Welsh government has announced an additional £25m to support cash-strapped local authorities in 2024-25. |
Call for ‘different approach’ to brownfield
24/01/2024 A more ‘systematic, interventionist and collaborative’ method could ‘significantly’ increase the regeneration of brownfield sites in Wales, according to a new report. |
Welsh councils commit to improving benefits system
22/01/2024 All local authorities in Wales have signed up to a new charter, committing to work with the Welsh Government to develop a consistent benefits system. |
Welsh minister backs tax reforms
03/01/2024 One of the candidates to become first minister of Wales has backed reform of council tax. |
‘Very difficult year ahead’ for Welsh councils
19/12/2023 Council bosses say local authorities in Wales face a 'considerable' funding gap despite the devolved nation’s planned cuts in other departments to protect local services. |
Wales passes workplace recycling law
08/12/2023 New Workplace Recycling Regulations have been passed in Wales, which will require all businesses to separate recyclable materials. |
Wales consults on council tax reform
14/11/2023 The Welsh Government has launched a consultation on redesigning the country's council tax system. |
Councils sign cross border partnership
13/11/2023 Two English councils, Herefordshire and Shropshire, and two Welsh county councils, Monmouthshire and Powys, have signed a partnership agreement. |
How AI surveys show councils need a new approach on litter
31/10/2023 Gavin Ellis, co-founder and director of Hubbub, discusses how litter survey projects on Glasgow and Cardiff roads suggest that a new approach is needed by local authorities. |
Welsh councils face £750m shortfall
25/10/2023 Local government finances in Wales are on an ‘unsustainable path’, according to a report from Cardiff University’s Wales Governance Centre. |
Extra cash for Welsh social care in emergency spending revisions
17/10/2023 Council budgets will remain largely unchanged, but there should be more cash for social services, following the Welsh Government’s emergency public spending revisions. |
Welsh government urged to improve diversity in local politics
17/10/2023 Women, ethnic minorities, and people with disabilities are under-represented in Welsh local government, according to a new Senedd committee report. |
Home Office ditches Stradey Park asylum plans
10/10/2023 The Home Office has withdrawn its controversial plans to house asylum seekers at the Stradey Park Hotel in Furnace, Llanelli. |
Care workers in Wales feel undervalued, poll reveals
05/10/2023 Social care workers in Wales feel undervalued by the public and underpaid for the work they do, a new survey has revealed. |
Wales to automatically register voters
03/10/2023 The Welsh Government is set to establish automatic voter registration for local government and Senedd elections. |
Welsh local services at ‘mortal risk’, council chiefs warn
15/09/2023 Local authority leaders in Wales have warned the UK Government that local services could be at ‘mortal risk’ if further funding was not forthcoming. |
Watchdog uncovers ‘weaknesses’ in councils’ workforce plans
12/09/2023 Weaknesses in Welsh councils’ workforce strategies could hamper their ability to deliver in the long term, Audit Wales has found. |
Welsh councils press for more housing support
11/09/2023 The Welsh Local Government Association (WLGA) has called on the UK Government to prioritise housing and homelessness services. |
Wales to consider funding bids straddling English border
11/09/2023 Wales’ economy minister has said he would consider funding bids from a new council partnership that crosses the Welsh and English border. |
Audit reveals ‘deficiencies’ councils’ record keeping
07/09/2023 Auditors have found ‘significant deficiencies’ in the financial management and record keeping of Ammanford Town Council and Llanferres Community Council. |
EXCLUSIVE: Housing pressures may push councils into effective bankruptcy
04/09/2023 Rising housing pressures will force some councils to effectively declare bankruptcy, a local authority chief executive with more than 40 years of experience in the sector has warned. |
Weaknesses in Newport counter-fraud approach
17/08/2023 ‘Weaknesses’ have been found in Newport City Council’s approach to fraud, a finance watchdog has reported. |
Alarm over Welsh budget warnings
10/08/2023 The Welsh Local Government Association (WLGA) has warned a return to austerity would be ‘devastating’ following budget warnings from the devolved Government. |
Pay dispute to stretch into autumn
07/08/2023 The local government pay dispute is destined to stretch into the autumn as trade union Unite warned ‘coordinated industrial action’ was ‘inevitable’. |
‘Real fears’ that post-Grenfell safety legislation won’t be delivered
31/07/2023 Auditor General for Wales has raised concerns over the devolved government’s implementation of building safety legislation that was created after Grenfell. |
Wales and Cornwall strengthen ties in new agreement
18/07/2023 The Welsh government and Cornwall Council have formed a ‘strategic alliance’ to strengthen their historical, cultural and linguistic ties. |
Cardiff Council leader calls for investigation into Ely collision
23/05/2023 The leader of Cardiff Council has called for an investigation into the events that led to the deaths of two teenagers and a riot on Monday night. |
'Widespread industrial action' warning
10/05/2023 Unite has warned the Scottish Government and employers there ‘could be widespread industrial action’ without a ‘significant increase’ to the current pay offer. |
Welsh village opposes plans to house refugees in hotel
09/05/2023 Villagers in Wales have vowed to fight plans for 400 asylum seekers to be lodged in a former hotel. |
Welsh Government to detail council tax reform later this year
03/05/2023 The Welsh Government has revealed it will announce details of its council tax reforms later this year. |
Pavement parking ban parked after 'frustratingly slow' jibe
04/04/2023 The Welsh Government has shelved a consultation on banning pavement parking after councils apparently claimed they were too busy to engage with it. |
Welsh council chiefs welcome free school meal extension
10/03/2023 Councils in Wales have welcomed the Welsh government’s announcement that free school meals will continue for children from lower income families over holidays. |
Digitisation must not lead to ‘two-tier society’, auditor says
09/03/2023 Spending on internet infrastructure must be balanced with measures to prevent creating a two-tier society when it comes to services, Welsh government says. |
Welsh councils need to encourage resilience, auditors say
24/01/2023 Local authorities in Wales must do more to encourage and grow community resilience against a backdrop of cuts, auditors have said. |
Watchdog raises safeguarding concerns at Powys
20/12/2022 A watchdog has taken Powys CC to task over the lack of ‘control’ of its safeguarding arrangements. |
Auditors warn of workforce shortages in flooding sector
15/12/2022 Local areas in Wales are facing a shortage of workers with experience in dealing with the impact of floods, auditors say. |
‘Difficult decisions’ ahead despite £400m settlement boost
14/12/2022 Councils in Wales have warned ‘difficult decisions’ on spending remain despite receiving an 8% increase in funding from the Welsh government. |
Labour outlines huge devolution push
05/12/2022 Labour proposes removing ‘dead hand of centralisation’ by devolving to local government wide-ranging powers over employment, growth, transport and education. |
Welsh councils urged to engage more with social enterprises
01/12/2022 Local authorities in Wales should do more to ‘maximise the impact’ of social enterprises in their areas, auditors say. |
Interim chief given role permanently
23/11/2022 Swansea City & CC has appointed its interim chief executive on a permanent basis. |
20mph speed limit could save £100m in first year, research finds
07/11/2022 A 20mph speed limit across Wales could save £100m in the first year due to a reduction in deaths and injuries, new research has found. |
Welsh councils struggle to tackle poverty
01/11/2022 Local authorities in Wales are struggling to tackle poverty because of a wide variety of approaches and a ‘complicated partnership landscape’, auditors find. |
Welsh digital and green sector gets £3m boost
17/10/2022 The Welsh government has announced a £3m boost to help support the development of skills in the digital and green sector. |
Workload warning over voting pilots
11/10/2022 Proposals to introduce automatic voter registration in Wales could cause confusion and add to already heavy workloads, election officers have warned. |
Welsh councils warn of 'serious harm' to budgets
03/10/2022 Welsh local authority leaders have warned the Government that market turmoil is causing ‘serious harm’ to council budgets. |
The future of EV charging in Wales: Making experience count
26/08/2022 Anne Buckingham explains how SWARCO Smart Charging is helping councils across Wales install the right infrastructure. |
Council defrauded of nearly £240,000 due to failure of financial checks
17/08/2022 Poor governance and financial management left Maesteg Town Council vulnerable to a fraud that cost nearly a quarter of a million pounds, auditors say. |
Traveller communities in Wales face ‘widespread racism’
11/08/2022 Members of the Senedd have called on councils to take ‘action’ to provide sites for Gypsy, Roma and Traveller communities who face widespread prejudice. |
Welsh councils get £1.85m to clean up chewing gum
08/08/2022 Five local authorities in Wales are to receive a funding boost in order to help them remove used chewing gum from their streets. |
Neath Port Talbot leisure services moving ‘in-house’
02/08/2022 Leisure services in Neath Port Talbot are set to be brought back in-house next year, local authority says. |
Call to simplify devolved-benefits in Wales
28/07/2022 A new report has called on the Welsh Government to simplify the benefit system to help more people during the cost of living crisis. |
‘Significant flaw’ in UK Shared Prosperity Fund
18/07/2022 Welsh councils with large populations could lose out on tens of millions of pounds from the UK Shared Prosperity Fund (UKSPF), new analysis has concluded. |
Welsh parliament votes for 20mph default
13/07/2022 The Welsh Senedd has approved legislation to lower the default national speed limit on residential roads and busy pedestrian streets in the country from 30mph to 20mph. |
Council tax revaluation announced for Wales
11/07/2022 The Welsh Government has announced it will revalue all 1.5 million properties in the country under bold plans to modernise the council tax system. |
Welsh councils to get new powers over second homes
05/07/2022 Welsh councils will be given new powers to limit the number of second homes in their community under plans revealed by the First Minister. |
Welsh bus industry receives £48m boost
29/06/2022 The bus industry in Wales is set to receive £48m to help it recover from the pandemic and cope with the financial challenges, Welsh government announces. |
Welsh government launches £20m care leavers pilot
28/06/2022 The Welsh government today launched a pilot scheme that will see care leavers receive £1,600 per month to support their transition into adult life. |
Welsh councils launch new armed forces status
27/06/2022 Schools in Wales that go the extra mile to support service children are to be recognised by a new status awarded by their local authority, WLGA announces. |
Universal free school meals in Wales to start from September
20/06/2022 Every primary school pupil in Wales will receive a free school meal by 2024, the Welsh Government has confirmed. |
Welsh auditors: NHS waiting lists could take seven years to clear
31/05/2022 It could be seven years before Wales sees its NHS waiting lists come back down to pre-pandemic levels, Welsh Auditors have claimed. |
First Welsh council joins digital Local Land Charges register
19/05/2022 Swansea has become the first Welsh local authority to move its local land charges to a digital register. |
Gender equality campaigners in Wales warn of ‘glacial’ progress
25/04/2022 Councils have been urged to increase the number of women in local politics as campaigners warn Welsh local democracy won’t see gender equality until 2050. |
Welsh councils to receive £1.1m to become Age Friendly
20/04/2022 Local authorities in Wales will have access to £1.1m funding to help the country become Age Friendly. |
Welsh government invests £8m in employment services
14/04/2022 Welsh government is investing £8m in employment services that help people recovering from physical, mental ill-health and substance misuse remain in work. |
All regions told to take asylum seekers
14/04/2022 All regions of England, Scotland and Wales will be expected to take a share of asylum seekers under a new system of ‘full dispersal,’ the Government has told councils. |
Government unveils £2.6bn UK Shared Prosperity Fund
13/04/2022 The Scottish Government has said it has been short-changed by its allocation of the UK Shared Prosperity Fund. |
Welsh councils receive £10m to support domiciliary care
06/04/2022 A further £10m will be provided to local authorities in Wales to support domiciliary care and increase service provision, the Welsh government has announced. |
Auditors warn of social care direct payments ‘lottery’
06/04/2022 Direct payments for adult social care in Wales help residents maintain their independence but implementation is inconsistent, auditors say. |
Shell is helping power the journey towards a circular paving industry with Shell Bitumen LT R, a new product for roads that uses plastics destined for landfill as part of the additives to make the bitumen.
Effective Energy Group is now offering its support to the 40 Local Authorities who have received a share of the £430m to deliver their projects on the ground by surveying properties and installing measures.
Dougie Belmore explains how one of the main interfaces between you and Bacs is about to change.