Hancock pledges 100,000 coronavirus tests a day
Councils warn of ‘wave of waste’
CIHT's new vision: Road pricing, a £15bn fund and place-based roads
Universal credit 'is key to hardship', says think tank
Is it a climate ‘emergency’?
Alex Massie explores if the climate change crisis is really an 'emergency' or not.
Domestic abuse puts children at more risk of exploitation, review warns
01/04/2020 There is an overlap between children’s experience of domestic abuse and their offending behaviour, a review has concluded today. |
Coronavirus lockdown has improved air quality, scientists find
01/04/2020 Air pollution across the UK’s largest cities has fallen since the start of the lockdown, new analysis has shown. |
Council staff warn fraud is a major risk for local government
31/03/2020 Two-thirds of local government professionals think fraud is a major risk for councils, a new survey has revealed. |
Care home bosses disqualified for diverting £500,000 of council money
31/03/2020 ‘Reckless’ care home bosses have been disqualified for diverting council funds and abandoning elderly residents. |
Councils warn bus services could collapse as a result of coronavirus
31/03/2020 Council chiefs have called on the Government to provide emergency funding to ensure bus services do not go bust during the coronavirus epidemic. |
Councils urged to bid for second round of £10m urban tree fund
31/03/2020 The second round of the £10m Urban Tree Challenge fund has opened for bids today. |
Counties warn about service closures during coronavirus
30/03/2020 Councils are being forced to close or reduce more services in order to divert resources to fighting the coronavirus pandemic. |
Housing tenant issued Britain’s first ‘coronavirus injunction’
30/03/2020 The first ‘coronavirus injunction’ has been issued to a tenant in Manchester for breaking rules on social distancing. |
End of week rough sleeping deadline
27/03/2020 Councils have been asked to support rough sleepers into accommodation by the end of the week amid the coronavirus pandemic. |
Charity calls for ‘emergency measures’ to tackle child poverty
27/03/2020 A charity dedicated to fighting child poverty has called on the Government to introduce a package of ‘emergency measures’ to lift children out of poverty. |
Renters protected from eviction during coronavirus crisis
27/03/2020 Charities have welcomed moves to protect tenants from all ongoing housing evictions. |
Hotels supporting key workers and homeless to stay open
26/03/2020 Hotels, hostels and B&Bs supporting key workers and vulnerable people are to remain open as part of the effort to contain the coronavirus. |
NIC launches future of rail consultation
26/03/2020 The National Infrastructure Commission has launched a consultation on the future rail landscape of the North and the Midlands as part of the Government’s ‘levelling up’ agenda. |
Pandemic forces Birmingham to delay launch of Clean Air Zone
25/03/2020 Birmingham City Council has written to the Government requesting postponement to the launch of its Clean Air Zone (CAZ) to help protect the economy during the coronavirus pandemic. |
Councils 'failing' homeless veterans, campaigners warn
24/03/2020 Campaigners have warned councils are failing to take account of veterans in their housing and homelessness strategies. |
Charity says it ‘defies belief’ that renters evicted during a pandemic
24/03/2020 Shelter has warned that legislation to suspend new eviction cases during the coronavirus pandemic does not go far enough as 20,000 evictions set to go ahead. |
UK goes under lockdown to fight ‘national emergency’ of coronavirus
24/03/2020 Boris Johnson has put Britain under a three-week lockdown in a bid to halt the spread of coronavirus. |
Councils across the UK close parks to limit spread of coronavirus
23/03/2020 Councils have been forced to close parks and other public spaces in a bid to protect people from coronavirus. |
Trading standards officers seize bottles of ‘harmful’ hand sanitizer
23/03/2020 Trading standards enforcement officers in Birmingham have seized bottles of potentially harmful hand sanitizer from a trader looking to capitalize on the coronavirus outbreak. |
Councils put at heart of coronavirus response
23/03/2020 Councils will be put at the heart of the response to coronavirus by delivering a national network of support to people at very high risk. |
Waste operators call for ‘performance penalty’ relief to keep services running
20/03/2020 Waste operators have asked to be excused from performance penalties from the councils they have contracts with as part of the effort to keep services running during the pandemic. |
Homeless families need more Coronavirus protection, charity says
20/03/2020 Families in temporary accommodation should be provided with better protection against Coronavirus, a housing charity has said. |
Older people face ‘litany of damaging stereotypes’, charity warns
20/03/2020 Older people in the UK are seen as incompetent, hostile or a burden on society, according to the findings of a new study into ageism. |
Council chiefs say new Fire Safety Bill ‘step in the right direction’
20/03/2020 Building owners and managers of high-rise and multi-occupied buildings are to be held to account for the safety of their residents thanks to new legislation. |
Council clerk convicted of breaking Freedom of Information Act
19/03/2020 A council employee has been fined for illegally deleting an audio file in the first conviction under the Freedom of Information Act. |
Schools shut down to stop spread of Covid-19
19/03/2020 All schools, colleges and early years settings will be closed as of next week as part of the effort to contain the Coronavirus pandemic. |
Wales to ban ‘hard to recycle’ plastics
18/03/2020 Plastic straws, cutlery and polystyrene food containers are just a few of the items set to be banned as the Welsh government cracks down on single-use plastics. |
Councils granted over £2m to improve air quality
18/03/2020 Local authorities across England have been granted more than £2.2m in Government funding to deliver innovative projects to improve air quality. |
Seven conservation groups create UK’s first ‘super’ nature reserve
18/03/2020 The Government has announced the creation of the UK’s first ‘super’ National Nature Reserve (NNR) which it says will help tackle climate change and benefit more than 2.5 million visitors. |
Councils in London urged to increase cost of residential parking permits
18/03/2020 Councils in London are under-charging for residential on-street parking spaces, a think tank has found today. |
Welsh councils get new powers to reshape bus services
17/03/2020 Councils in Wales will be given new powers to run their own bus companies and franchise bus services on routes. |
Playing outside helps build ‘connected communities’, research says
17/03/2020 Researchers have called on local authorities to ‘recognise and value’ the contribution of residents who organise playing out sessions for children. |
Councils close buildings and cancel meetings in response to coronavirus outbreak
16/03/2020 Councils have closed, events and meetings have been cancelled and some politicians are in self-isolation in a bid to stem the spreading of the coronavirus pandemic. |
Council suspends all debt-related court action in wake of coronavirus
16/03/2020 Sandwell Council said it will not take any court action for debt against residents during the coronavirus pandemic. |
Schools exclude pupils to ‘game’ league table, report reveals
16/03/2020 A new study has uncovered an ‘alarming’ trend of schools excluding pupils to boost their league table standings and warned of a flawed system of incentives in the education sector. |
Only 10% of councils meeting their pothole repair deadlines
16/03/2020 Only one in 10 local authorities are meeting their own target times to fix potholes and other road defects, new research has revealed today. |
Government postpones council elections
13/03/2020 Local government elections due to take place on 7 May have been postponed for a year due to the coronavirus pandemic. |
Inspector rejects planning appeal over obesity concerns
13/03/2020 A government planning inspector has supported a council’s policy of restricting new hot food takeaways in areas of high obesity by rejecting a planning appeal made by KFC. |
New major road network and large local major schemes announced
13/03/2020 The Government has announced the successful major road network (MRN) and Large Local Major (LLM) schemes proceeding to the next stage of development. |
Disadvantaged children less likely to benefit from free childcare, auditors warn
13/03/2020 Disadvantaged families are less likely to take up free early education and childcare places, auditors have warned today. |
Cost of school uniforms pushing some families into debt
13/03/2020 Councils have urged schools to take a 'common-sense' approach to the cost of uniforms, after parents warned this was affecting their choice of school. |
Electoral Commission calls for autumn polls
12/03/2020 May’s local elections should be postponed until the autumn, the Electoral Commission has said. |
Councils back ban on pavement parking
12/03/2020 The Department for Transport (DfT) has pledged to set out new plans to tackle pavement parking, which it said would make streets safer for parents and disabled people. |
Jenrick outlines new proposals to reform planning process
12/03/2020 Developers will be able to demolish vacant buildings and turn them into new homes more quickly, under new proposals published today. |
Sheffield approves new approach to managing street trees
12/03/2020 A new partnership to manage its street trees has been approved by Sheffield City Council, following protests last year about its tree felling programme. |
Over 20 charities call for inquiry into ‘welfare-related deaths’
12/03/2020 Twenty-one charities and mental health organisations have thrown their weight behind a campaign calling for an independent inquiry into the deaths of people relying on the welfare system. |
Budget 2020: New West Yorkshire mayor announced
11/03/2020 A new directly-elected West Yorkshire mayor has been announced with the Government signing a new devolution deal amid plans to ‘level up’ the UK economy. |
Leeds council confirms CAZ launch date
11/03/2020 A date has been confirmed for the launch of Leeds’ Clean Air Charging Zone (CAZ), which aims at tackling air pollution and protecting the health of residents in the city. |
MPs warn youth services cuts are increasing knife crime
10/03/2020 Councils should have a legal duty to deliver a minimum level of youth services to help prevent knife crime, MPs have argued today. |
Lack of housing stopping councils from helping homeless people, charity warns
10/03/2020 A lack of affordable housing is forcing local authorities to leave people homeless, a homelessness charity has warned. |
This issue of Public Property examines how how flexible workspaces can lead the way in regeneration for local authorities, Why local authority intervention is key to successful urban regeneration schemes and if the Government’s challenge of embracing beauty is an opportunity for communities.
The March issue also takes a closer look at Blackburn with Darwen Council's first digital health hub to help people gain control over health and care services.
