Universal Credit
Councils hit by fund's admin burden
Frustrated councils are bracing themselves for an administration headache as they work out how to dole out the Government’s £500m household support fund.
Wages and good and bad government
Many communities in the UK would benefit from higher wages, says Mike Emmerich, but does the Prime Minister have a strategy for delivering them?
District hopes of controlling £500m fund dashed
District hopes to be put in control of handing out the new £500m household support fund have been dashed after a ‘bizarre’ government decision.
Michael Gove sets out his stall for levelling up
Michael Burton says the vision levelling up secretary Michael Gove touched on for the policy at the Conservative Party Conference implies the need for more resources if necessary - 'which may not please the chancellor'.
Councils need funding certainty
London’s local services face pressures of up to £2bn over the Spending Review period, says Cllr Darren Rodwell. The chancellor must empower councils to tackle the most momentous challenges we face today, he argues.
Putting it right
What does the future hold for children’s social care and what are the priorities for reform? Ann McGauran reports from a Westminster Education Forum conference.
Domestic violence and its betrayal
The Domestic Abuse Act could and should have gone further ‘particularly and most notably around funding, state support and restitution’ argues Stephen Young.
Families under pressure
As energy and food costs soar and pandemic financial support comes to an end, Chris Mahony asks what impact the pressures on low income families will have on stretched local authorities.
Kerslake: Government must act now on rough sleeping
Strides made to end homelessness during the pandemic could be lost if the Government does not act now, a major new report on rough sleeping has concluded.
HMJ: Analysis warns UC cut will widen health inequalities
The planned cut to the Universal Credit uplift will hit areas with the worst health the hardest, analysis by a charity has warned.
Let’s end rough sleeping
The Government has committed to ending rough sleeping by 2024. To sustain this there needs to be a cross-government strategy that recognises rough sleeping as both a health and a housing issue writes Lord Bob Kerslake.
Chancellor faces tough call on on care, pensions and welfare
Chancellor Rishi Sunak will need to make a series of tough choices this autumn, the Resolution Foundation think-tank has said.
Counting the costs of council tax support
Council tax support scheme costs have grown by 16% in London during the pandemic. Deven Ghelani says it’s unclear how councils will cover the rise once Government COVID-related funding comes to an end.
Giving young people a Kickstart in Bucks
Buckinghamshire Council is offering Kickstart placements across all its service directorates to support young people, as part of a much longer-term project, says Cllr Anita Cranmer.
Keep up COVID funding to end homelessness, says Kerslake
Ending homelessness is possible, but the Government needs to keep up funding or face a post-pandemic surge, an independent commission concluded.
'Alarming' rise in child poverty in North East
Research has found the top 10 local authority areas with the greatest increase in child poverty were all in the North East of England.
Behind the levelling up smoke and mirrors
The Government’s flagship super-deduction policy stands to benefit London and the South East the most, says Ben Franklin – and it is not explicitly targeted at the most deprived communities in the capital.
BUDGET 2021: Sunak warns of pain to come
Chancellor Rishi Sunak has unveiled a budget to protect ‘livelihood and jobs’ – with a warning of public finance pain to come.
BUDGET 2021: Sunak's lifeline for workers and business
Rishi Sunak’s Budget is expected to provide a lifeline for workers as the furlough scheme is extended to September while the universal credit £20 uplift could also be prolonged for six months.
Lib Dem council leaders urge chancellor to make UC uplift permanent
More than 30 Liberal Democrat council leaders and deputies have written to the Government calling for the £20 uplift in Universal Credit introduced last March to be made permanent.
