Boroughs in GP estate devolution call
Councils 'coming up short' in helping self-builders, say campaigners
Scottish councils granted powers to regulate short-term lets
Councils still being held back from building more homes finds report
Councils as modular building champions
Ruby Giblin calls on councils to use their access to public borrowing to help grow modular building.
Council leases library to Holocaust education project
23/12/2019 Cumbria County Council has agreed to provide a Holocaust education project with a long lease to a library building in memory of the Windermere Children. |
Liverpool to host ‘first permanent’ city zip line
20/12/2019 Liverpool could be host to the ‘first permanent’ city zip line in the UK, the city council has announced. |
Council’s homelessness service suffers ‘serious weaknesses’
09/12/2019 A housing regulator has launched an inquiry to investigate ‘serious weaknesses’ in Glasgow City Council’s service for people who are homeless. |
London council sues contractors for £130m over ‘fire safety failings’
29/11/2019 Camden Council has launched legal action against a group of contractors over ‘multiple fire safety failings’ that led to the evacuation of the Chalcots Estate two years ago. |
Launch of world’s first ‘gender-lens’ property fund
26/11/2019 The first gender-lens property fund to support women at risk of homelessness has been launched, aiming to raise £100m. |
Asbestos still ‘serious’ threat to public heath
25/11/2019 Asbestos can be still be found in 1.5 million public buildings putting people at risk of exposure, a think tank has warned. |
Council buys town centre in £43m property deal
25/11/2019 Knowsley Council has completed a £43.8m deal to acquire 87 shops and over 12 acres of land from St Modwen. |
Sunderland receives £100m ‘vote of confidence'
22/11/2019 Sunderland City Council’s city centre masterplan has received a massive boost from a £100m deal with Legal & General. |
Survey warns housing developments are 'built too quickly'
21/11/2019 Planners and developers are failing to consider the infrastructure needed to support new house building, according to a report produced with the help of architects. |
Council to buy back estates from developer
19/11/2019 Hammersmith and Fulham LBC is to take back ownership of two housing estates 12 years after they were sold off by a previous administration. |
Property investment guide for councils is launched
18/11/2019 A new guide to provide clarity on local authority property investments has been published by the Chartered Institute of Public Finance and Accountancy (CIPFA). |
Fire services to investigate cause of Bolton student blaze
18/11/2019 An investigation is underway to establish the cause of last Friday’s student accommodation fire in Bolton and to find out whether the building’s cladding contributed to its rapid spread. |
Council closes property company to focus on building 300 new homes
13/11/2019 An arms-length local authority property company is to be wound up when its first project has been completed in the New Year. |
Government urged to revitalise key worker housing
12/11/2019 The Key Worker Housing initiative should be revitalised to help public sector workers access affordable homes, a think tank has argued. |
Charity calls for commitment to deliver 90,000 social homes a year
05/11/2019 New figures show that nine in 10 private renters are left on council housing waiting lists for years due to a lack of social homes. |
County council moves to Surrey after 50 years outside county
04/11/2019 Surrey County Council has announced that it is moving its headquarters to Woking after more than five decades outside of the county’s boundaries. |
Local data opened up to create 'digital revolution' in property sector
22/10/2019 Housing minister, Esther McVey, has announced a series of measures to help create a ‘digital revolution’ in the property sector. |
Joint venture unlocks ‘biggest brownfield’ site in the Black Country
21/10/2019 Industrial land in Sandwell is set to be the site of a 750-home community after a deal was struck by the council and the West Midlands Combined Authority. |
Council approves Santander’s £75m campus
21/10/2019 Sefton Council has formally approved plans for a multi-million pound investment to create a state-of-the-art campus in Bootle. |
South Kilburn residents ‘overwhelmingly’ back regeneration
17/10/2019 Residents of South Kilburn Estate in Brent have overwhelmingly backed council plans to rebuild their neighbourhood following the biggest ever resident ballot of its kind in London. |
Queen's Speech 19: Whitehall to ‘implement’ new building safety standards
14/10/2019 The Government plans to ‘implement new building safety standards’ in order to prevent a repeat of the Grenfell Tower tragedy, according to the Queen’s speech. |
Ashford BC’s local plan ‘legally sound’, court rules
11/10/2019 The High Court has rejected a case brought against Ashford Borough Council’s local plan, which the court concluded was legally ‘sound’. |
Public property hubs to be delivered in Birmingham and Peterborough
11/10/2019 Peterborough and Birmingham are the latest places to benefit from a government programme to regenerate city centre sites. |
Norwich council estate wins top architecture prize
09/10/2019 A council estate in Norwich has been named as the UK’s best new building. |
Sussex council green lights 3,000 new homes
07/10/2019 A planning committee in Sussex has given the green light to a construction project that will see thousands of new homes delivered in the area. |
Oxford to lose out on millions due to planning rule changes
03/10/2019 Oxford City Council has warned that the city could lose out on hundreds of new council houses due to changes in the national framework which guides planning policy. |
Trafford Council signs £50m property deal
03/10/2019 Trafford Council and Bruntwood Works have exchanged contracts on a £50m joint venture. |
All council buildings in Southampton to use 100% green electricity
01/10/2019 All commercial buildings owned by Southampton City Council will now be powered by renewable energy, reducing carbon dioxide emissions by nearly 7,000 tonnes a year. |
Councils attack plans to extend permitted development rules
01/10/2019 The Government has announced plans to extend permitted development rules to allow developers to convert commercial buildings into homes without planning permission. |
Council buys waterfront land for £1
27/09/2019 Liverpool City Council has bought more than 55,000 sq metres of prime waterfront land for £1. |
Scotland sees a 15% increase in its housing supply
24/09/2019 Scotland has seen an increase in its housing supply for the sixth year in a row, new figures reveal. |
Council chiefs call for devolution process to be ‘reignited’
20/09/2019 The Government must 'reignite the devolution process' to give all parts of England more powers and funding, council leaders have demanded. |
Two-thirds of English schools rated ‘poor’ for fire protection
18/09/2019 Over 60% of English schools are rated ‘poor’ for fire protection systems, with only one in 20 rated ‘excellent’, new research has revealed. |
Processes for allocating social housing excluding ‘vulnerable’, think tank warns
18/09/2019 The rules and processes designed to decide who gets access to social housing could be failing people in greatest need, housing experts warn. |
£150m housing scheme to go ahead on former Toys R Us site
12/09/2019 Housing and new offices are set to go ahead on a former Toys R Us site in Southampton. |
Council to help deliver over 80 ‘cutting-edge’ properties
10/09/2019 A district council in Cambridgeshire has welcomed the Government’s decision to build what they describe as ‘cutting-edge, designer council homes’ in Northstowe. |
Council backs £54,000 hearing loop scheme
09/09/2019 Southampton City Council has teamed up with local organisations in an effort to make Southampton the first city in the UK to have a hearing loop system in every public building. |
Approval for new public services hub in Ellesmere Port
05/09/2019 Cheshire West and Chester Council’s planning committee have approved plans for a new 'public services hub' and bus zone in Ellesmere Port. |
County announces two major property investments
05/09/2019 Cambridgeshire County Council has announced the details of two major property investments in deals worth over £60m. |
Hackney to take developer to court
02/09/2019 A London borough is preparing to take legal action against a developer over fire safety fears in a block of flats. |
£450m flagship regeneration project scrapped
28/08/2019 Southampton City Council has terminated an agreement for a multi-million pound regeneration project. |
Repair and maintenance of public housing hits 20-year low
28/08/2019 The amount of money spent on repairing public housing fell to an all-time low in 2018, new research has revealed. |
Sutton completes first council housing in 30 years
15/08/2019 The London Borough of Sutton has completed its first programme of new council house building in three decades with the delivery of nearly 100 homes. |
Plans outlined for UK’s first plastic free homes
14/08/2019 A housing association has pledged to build 12 new homes that are virtually free of plastic. |
Council warned to reduce or replace property portfolio by auditors
06/08/2019 Audit Scotland has told a council that it has 'limited time' to curb spending before its reserves run out. |
Council announces £57m funding for estate next to Grenfell
25/07/2019 Kensington and Chelsea Council are to invest £57m transforming an estate next to Grenfell Tower. |
LEDs help council reduce energy consumption by over 60%
24/07/2019 Leicestershire County Council has reduced its energy consumption by 63% in three years thanks to the installation of LEDs. |
Whitehall ‘failing’ to meet target for land sales
24/07/2019 MPs have accused the Government of failing to meet its target for selling land to make way for new homes. |
Move to ban 'poor doors' in new housing developments
22/07/2019 The segregation of social housing residents in mixed-tenure developments will be banned under new measures announced by the Government. |
Permitted developments in danger of becoming ‘the new slum housing’
16/07/2019 Half of local authorities in England think homes created using permitted development rights could threaten people’s health and wellbeing. |
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.
