Council elections: A testing time for party alignments
Like it or not, the council elections will be dominated by an issue that has nothing to do with local government, says Mark Whitehead.
Social work failings stopped parents visiting dying baby
08/11/2018 A council has apologised for the ‘distress’ of a family who were unable to spend time with their dying baby due to social work failings. |
Judge calls for end of ‘inhumane’ separation of elderly couples in care homes
10/05/2017 Separating elderly couples when one or both of them go into care is ‘inhumane’, a senior judge has said. |
Accreditation scheme will make job harder for social workers warns union
04/04/2017 The Government should scrap plans for an accreditation scheme for social workers because it would take up time that could be spent helping vulnerable families, a union has demanded. |
Social workers removed vulnerable teen from family ‘without warning’
09/03/2017 Social workers in Essex removed a vulnerable teen from the care of her family ‘without any warning’, ombudsman finds. |
Councils criticise amendment calling for safeguarding and welfare capacity register
07/03/2017 Council chiefs have criticised a new amendment to the Children and Social Work Bill which requires local authorities to maintain and report a local safeguarding and welfare capacity register. |
Government scraps controversial 'innovation' clauses from Social Work Bill
06/03/2017 The Government has scrapped controversial clauses from the Children and Social Work Bill that would have exempted select local authorities from their statutory duties to young people. |
New legal protection for whistleblowers announced
09/11/2016 Whistleblowers applying for jobs in the children’s social care sector will be covered by new legal protections, the Government has announced. |
Social workers reject 'unsafe' reforms
03/11/2016 Plans to allow councils to set up social work trusts could prove dangerous for children, according to a new report from Unison. |
Government soothes children's services privatisation fears
19/10/2016 The Government has made changes to the Children and Social Work Bill in a bid to sooth fears that private organisations could profit from social services. |
Whitehall should abandon its social work reforms, committee urges
13/07/2016 Government proposals for social work reform have ‘significant weaknesses’ and should be scrapped, says Education Committee. |
The March issue of Local Government News explores alternative funding channels that are available to councils beyond the Public Works Loan Board, what hurdles merging councils face in coming together, and how local government is handling GDPR.
This issue also has a special highways and street lighting section exploring how councils can use lighting to embark on their smart city journey and using IoT technology to weather the storm.
