Maintaining performance
The 15 strongest performing councils in adult social care have been highlighted in IMPOWER’s latest productivity INDEX. Ralph Cook looks at the results.
Driving forward a future of devolution
24/09/2015 How will the local and strategic highway networks be managed in the future? As new cross-county proposals are being considered, Jon Masters gets industry opinion on devolution. |
Councils encouraged to join property productivity drive
23/07/2015 The One Public Estate (OPE) programme is entering a further phase, with more local councils expected to be asked to release surplus public land and property as part of the Government’s Productivity Plan. |
Record numbers waving the Green Flag
23/07/2015 A record number of parks and green spaces have been given the Green Flag Award this year, partly due to the scheme’s expansion into new territory. |
Urban beauty is being restricted to the rich says think tank
23/07/2015 Green spaces and beautiful urban surroundings are the realms of the wealthy, a report by the independent think tank ResPublica reveals. |
Gangs using homeless children to expand drug lines warns report
23/07/2015 Children that have runaway or been declared missing are being used by gangs to expand inner city drug rings into county towns, according to a report by the Missing People charity and the Catch22 Dawes Unit. |
Councils urged to 'step up' support for survivors of FGM
23/07/2015 Politicians and policy makers at all levels are being urged to act on a new report mapping out the prevalence of female genital mutilation across England and Wales. |
Contracts awarded for a decade of Smart Motorway construction
23/07/2015 Highways England has announced the names of three construction consortia and three design joint ventures that will deliver a £1.5bn programme of all-lane-running Smart Motorway projects over the next five to 10 years. |
Fairer pay proposed for York council workers
23/07/2015 City of York Council is putting forward proposals for raising its employees holiday pay to match their regular overtime or supplementary payments. |
Councils warned they could face 40% extra spending cuts
22/07/2015 The Department of Communities and Local Government (DCLG) has been warned it could face further budget cuts of up to 40%, when the 2015 spending review is published in November this year. |
Staff shortages at CQC delaying inspections warns watchdog
22/07/2015 Fresh findings by the National Audit Office show the Care Quality Commission is still deferring target dates for inspecting health providers due to staff shortages. |
Poor children being let down by public services finds report
22/07/2015 Young children from low income families are being failed by poor housing and badly targeted services, says a report published this week by the National Children’s Bureau. |
Former council worker jailed for identity fraud
22/07/2015 Bromley Council has successfully prosecuted a former employee for housing benefit fraud after discovering the woman had secured her job and financial support from the council under a false identity. |
Committee calls for action on 'unresolved' Universal Credit issues
22/07/2015 Further warnings have been sounded over Government’s roll out of Universal Credit (UC) by the Social Security Advisory Committee (SSAC). |
Landmark jail sentence handed to parking cheat
26/06/2015 A motorist has been given 16 weeks in jail for forging a resident parking permit – believed to be the first prison sentence handed out for such an offence in Britain. |
Childcare plans threatened by chronic council shortages
26/06/2015 Some 38 English local authorities have failed to carry out and publish assessments of local childcare since 2012, despite being legally required to do so – a report suggests. |
Green light for landmark new town
26/06/2015 Councillors have given the green light for the main central second phase of the new town of Northstowe in Cambridgeshire, the largest new town to be laid out in Britain since the 1960s. |
'No questions asked' tenancy fraud amnesty offered by council
26/06/2015 Crawley Borough Council has offered a two-month amnesty to anyone committing tenancy fraud in local authority owned housing. |
No devolution without local business backing, says Greg Clark
26/06/2015 There will be no more devolution without the backing of business via Local Enterprise Partnerships (LEPs), local government secretary Greg Clark has announced. |
Councils face £3.3bn of cuts next year, warns LGA
26/06/2015 Councils in England are facing a £3.3bn reduction in central government funding for local services in 2016/17, according to new analysis by the Local Government Association (LGA). |
Councils complete more gritting runs in busy season
07/05/2015 While last winter was milder in comparison with previous ones, marginal temperatures meant winter service teams have been kept busy. Jon Masters reports. |
This issue of Public Property examines how public sector organisations can unlock the hidden value in their land, and why a new approach to construction could help boost the outcomes of the Government’s One Public Estate programme.
The December issue also considers why learnings from ancient cities could provide the key to promoting wellbeing in the modern built environment. It also contains a case study on how the London Borough of Westminster has provided high quality care for the elderly alongside a block of luxury apartments.
