Councils click into the future of planning
In town halls across the country, planning officers are racing to update their Local Plans — but this time, the process looks very different.
Croydon to wind down Brick by Brick
12/02/2024 Croydon LBC’s mayor is set to give the go-ahead to officially wind down the council’s development firm Brick by Brick. |
Council to axe development firm
18/08/2023 Mid Devon DC’s development firm is facing closure, having received £21m in loans from the authority. |
Thurrock commissioners call for sector-wide change
15/06/2023 The team from Essex CC led by Tony McArdle have made recommendations for the wider sector in its Best Value report on Thurrock, published today. |
Northumberland issues s114 over unlawful finances
23/05/2022 Northumberland CC has issued a section 114 notice for unlawful expenditure – including allowances paid to its chief executive Daljit Lally. |
DLUHC 'almost wilfully blind' to state of local government finances warn MPs
31/01/2022 A ‘chronic’ lack of funding for council services amid soaring demand means many communities face a ‘long slog’ out of the COVID-19 pandemic, MPs warned today. |
Council-backed energy firm collapses
18/01/2022 Together Energy has announced today it has ceased trading, exposing Labour-led Warrington Council to heavy financial losses. |
Middlesbrough Council purchases £12m shopping centre
12/01/2022 Middlesbrough Council has acquired a multi-million-pound shopping centre as part of a drive to secure the town centre's long-term future. |
Council-backed energy firm close to collapse
05/01/2022 Together Energy, which is 50% owned by Warrington Council, is close to running out of funding, according to reports. |
Croydon returns to drawing board on regeneration plans
17/08/2021 The council maintains delayed plans to develop a Westfield shopping centre are going ahead, despite planning permission for the development having expired. |
CIPFA to publish strengthened local government Prudential Code
25/06/2021 A new code of practice to ensure local authorities’ financial plans are 'affordable, prudent and sustainable' will be published by the end of the year. |
Councils urged to 'sharpen commercial edge'
15/06/2021 A new report has argued that allowing councils to sharpen their commercial edge will ‘unlock immense latent place potential’ and help ‘galvanise recovery’. |
Proposal for stronger local government Prudential Code
02/02/2021 Proposals to strengthen the Prudential Code and prevent local authorities from borrowing to generate yield have been put forward by CIPFA. |
Nottingham plans £100m asset sale
19/01/2021 The council has identified £100m of assets for sale as part of a plan to bring its finances under control. |
Nottingham agrees governance overhaul
28/08/2020 The council will implement a raft of measures in a bid to improve oversight of its companies after its energy firm incurred a £24m loss. |
|
Ministry was 'blind' to council investment risks says watchdog
13/07/2020 Ministers have been blind to the risk of commercial investments by councils, Parliament’s spending watchdog has claimed. |
|
Council to sell Bristol Energy
03/06/2020 Bristol City Council has given the go-ahead to put its loss-making energy company up for sale. |
|
Flybe collapse hits council-owned airports
05/03/2020 The airline entered administration this morning, leading to the grounding of all flights. |
|
London borough rejects insourcing children’s services
11/12/2019 Kingston LBC had considered returning services from a wholly-owned company when their contract ends in 2021. |
|
Portsmouth’s energy firm sale falls through
29/08/2019 Portsmouth City Council has admitted defeat in its search for a buyer for its energy company. |
|
Council buys office to generate income
15/04/2019 South Cambridgeshire DC has made a £13m investment in a high-quality office building to generate an initial net return of around 5.6%. |
|
Harrogate to launch housing company
07/03/2019 Harrogate BC’s housing company will be up and running next month. |
|
Reform outsourcing to avoid £30bn bill, think-tank warns
30/10/2018 Bringing outsourced services in-house would cost local government billions, a think-tank has calculated. |
|
Channel 4 announces list of potential locations for new national headquarters
24/07/2018 Channel 4 has announced that Leeds, Greater Manchester and Birmingham are still in the running to host its new national headquarters. |
|
Councils spend £3.8bn on commercial property, study reveals
12/04/2018 Local authorities spent nearly £4bn on commercial property assets in recent years, a new study into the issues facing the UK’s town centres has revealed. |
|
Councils lack PFI management skills, claims report
18/01/2018 Local authorities lack the skills necessary to manage Private Finance Initiative (PFI) contracts and risk not getting the best value for money, new research has warned. |
