Amid huge uncertainty about funding services beyond 2020, councils are turning to commercial property as an income stream, but are they managing the risks? Rachel Willcox reports.
Councils have been granted a statutory override on accounting changes to pooled investments for five years, despite most stakeholders opposing a time-limited period.
Council tenants claiming universal credit owe on average more than two-and-a-half times the rent arrears of claimants on the previous housing benefit system.
Help offered by councils to young homeless people is ineffective half the time because of inadequate funding, analysis by the Centrepoint charity has revealed.
Like farmers, we need to monitor the signs carefully and plan accordingly to take control where we can and improve our odds of success, says financial adviser Bob Swarup.
By sharing data and jointly investing in new technologies, councils can improve resilience and cost-effectiveness, says CIPFA chief executive Rob Whiteman.
Ministers are finally listening to local government and last week’s Budget represented a series of strategic victories for the sector, says James Maker of the County Councils Network.
Many redevelopment schemes in the UK put the onus on corporate profit at the cost of local communities but other countries show there is another way, argues Genevieve Maitland Hudson of Social...
A PF snapshot survey has revealed 93% of councils across England are planning to borrow more against their housing revenue account now the cap has been lifted.
Scottish councils have called for a 2.5% increase in funding in the forthcoming budget, saying recent tight settlements and a lack of fiscal autonomy have left local government with “no room to...
Local government has a “vital” role to play as the government pivots towards preventive healthcare – but cuts to public health budgets need to be reversed.
Plastic pollution is a real problem and one the public cares passionately about. The Budget offered a partial solution, says Peter Maddox, charity director at WRAP.
The number of local authorities that missed the accounts publication deadline has more than doubled – although they had to contend with an earlier date.
The communities secretary is set to give the green light to a single unitary authority for Buckinghamshire despite opposition from the county’s district councils.
The opportunity to change public procurement rules to promote fairer wages is one Brexit dividend local government could count on, argues Localis’s Joe Fyans.
An umbrella-group has expressed disappointment Philip Hammond did not consult with local authorities before announcing in the Budget business rates relief for high street retailers.
The disconnect between the rhetoric of ‘ending austerity’ and current spending plans will make next year’s Spending Review harder than it needs to be, argues the IfG’s Graham Atkins.
Shire counties have been “hamstrung” in their efforts to improve social mobility due to “outdated” funding methods that favour cities over rural areas.
