News-in-Brief

Labour has confirmed it will be continuing the previous government’s policy on council tax, but “does not recognise claims of a £2.4bn funding gap”

Ministerial ‘envoys’ are to be appointed to Tower Hamlets Council following the publication of an inspection report that showed the authority was “failing to

Slough Borough Council is now forecasting £214m in General Fund capital receipts from its asset disposal programme by the end of financial year 2026/27.

Woking Borough Council has outlined plans to restructure a £13.3m loan made to Greenfield School, an independent institution based in the borough, with £2.4m

The Fair Funding Review is expected to drive “substantial shifts” in resources, potentially creating “very large outliers”, SFN Consulting’s Stuart Hoggan has warned. In

The £47.9bn LGPS Pool Border to Coast Pensions Partnership has committed £48.5m to the Capital Dynamics Clean Energy UK Fund in a bid to

The Ministry of Housing, Communities & Local Government (MHCLG) is not renewing a Best Value Notice at South Cambridgeshire District Council in relation to

Homes England, the government’s housing and regeneration agency, has appointed Eamonn Boylan as interim chief executive, commencing 15 January. Current chief executive Peter Denton

Dorset Council is forecasting an overspend of £13.2m by the end of this financial year, equivalent to 3.5% of the £376.7m budget set in

Joseph Holmes has been appointed interim chief executive of West Berkshire Council. He is currently the authority’s executive director (resources) and section 151 officer.

Hampshire County Council has said it is “almost an inevitability” that it will need to issue a section 114 notice for 2026/27 without a

Wiltshire Pension Fund has committed £30m to an affordable housing fund managed by Octopus Investments. The £30m investment is one of the £3.5bn Local

Leandros Kalisperas, CIO for the £20bn West Yorkshire LGPS fund is set to take on a new role leading the investment team of the

Haringey council is set to acquire 78 council homes as part of the redevelopment of a Mecca Bingo site. A report, due to be presented

Haringey London Borough Council’s budget gap for 2025/26 has increased from £14m in March to £32m, a recent council report has revealed. The reason for the

Some 81% of councils are on course to overspend adult social care budgets this financial year, according to the Association of Directors of Adult

Hillingdon Council has reported a £30.5m overspend halfway through 2024/25 in a budget monitoring report. That figure allows for the delivery of strategic management

Brent Council has stated that its financial position “continues to worsen”, with a “staggering” £16m of savings needing to be identified. The publication of Brent’s

The Greater Manchester Pension Fund (GMPF) faces pressure to divest from fossil fuels and the arms industry amid a £1.3bn allocation to the non-renewables

Southampton City Council has approved an expenditure of up to £5m of the Right to Buy receipts collected in 2019/20 on a pilot programme

West Berkshire Council will be forced to seek Exceptional Financial Support (EFS) from the government if its currently forecast overspend of £2m for 2024/25

Blackpool Council will continue to utilise short-term borrowing in the expectation that the Bank of England base rate continues to fall, according to a

Havering London Borough Council has said it will not be able to balance its 2025/26 budget without further government support or direction. The authority

Mid Sussex District Council has reported a net interest return on its treasury investments of £2.1m to Q2 2024/25. The council cited improved available

A total of 54 councils will benefit from a £68m government fund intended to unlock brownfield sites. Councils that receive funding under the Brownfield