Funding
We need a more imaginative approach to local leadership
District councils’ local knowledge and closeness to their communities could prove invaluable to levelling up if a more imaginative approach is taken to local leadership, says Kathy O'Leary.
New roles to ‘bash heads’ in Whitehall
Levelling up directors will act as champions for local government in Whitehall, a minister has told peers.
Calculating the cost of care
Local and central government must prepare for the significant workforce challenges that will be presented by adult social care charging reforms. Daniel Sperrin and James Maker explain.
Ministers must stop flip-flopping over commercial deals
Heather Jameson says ministers should 'stop the policy flip-flop over commercialisation – choose a stance and stick with it'.
Housing First is not the only solution to homelessness
Closing good quality, short-term supported housing in favour of Housing First would reduce significantly the number of people councils could support, says Lee Buss-Blair.
Social care reforms to cost £26bn
New research has found social care reform costs will exceed Government estimates by £10bn but ministers have rebuffed calls for more funding.
Ministers resist calls for further care funding
Councils should not rely on Government grants to fund social care, ministers have said.
Children’s care services ‘stuck in crisis mode’
Council leaders call for reform of the children’s social care system as spending to provide support to vulnerable children increases by a quarter in five years.
Cost of living crisis loomed large at The MJ Forum
Heather Jameson says it was clear from The MJ Future Forum that the sector is facing a massive agenda. 'But what is perhaps more of a surprise is how little the Queen’s Speech addressed the main issues and captured the zeitgeist of the forum.
Council leaders urge GPs to prescribe leisure centre trips
Council leaders have urged GPs to prescribe obese patients classes at leisure centres after research found it could increase life expectancy by four years.
Future Forum: ICSs provide chance for culture change
Integrated Care Systems (ICS) must not be ‘driven by structure,’ The MJ’s Future Forum heard today.
Will new Levelling Up Fund round repeat ‘beauty contest’?
Dr Nicola Headlam says the Government may have renewed its commitment to empower local leaders but as yet the reality does not match the rhetoric on funding for local growth.
ADASS: More than half a million people now waiting for social care
More than 500,000 people are now waiting for social care and since spring 2021 there has been a seven-fold increase in the number of hours a week of home care that could not be delivered.
Refugees who refuse housing offers to become homeless
Afghan refugees who turn down two offers of accommodation could be referred to councils as homeless.
Squaring the circle
Newly installed Association of Directors of Adult Social Services president Sarah McClinton tells Ann McGauran how she plans to ensure care workers receive the funding they require to do their best.
Will the fair funding review be another damp squib?
David Phillips says that, if the fair funding review becomes a repeat of the UK Shared Prosperity Fund, it increases the risk that the Government’s flagship levelling up agenda remains little more than a slogan.
The NAO will be paying close attention to the progress of levelling up
Abdool Kara says it is straightforward to direct Government capital and infrastructure cash towards the places the market is not investing in, albeit how such places are prioritised can be contested. It is a harder task for revenue spending.
Green jobs are the route to shared prosperity
Groundwork’s Growing Green Careers report sets out a number of principles designed to address both worklessness and environmental injustice, writes Graham Duxbury.
Queen's Speech: Business rates set for overhaul
It has been confirmed a ‘Non-Domestic Rating Bill’ will form part of the agenda during the next Parliamentary session.
England’s planning system is broken
Tom Stannard sets out the scale of the regeneration challenge, including the vital need to improve transport connectivity – and he says an unreformed planning system represents a real threat to the Government’s levelling up agenda.
