Title

ROTHERHAM ABUSE

Councils must learn from interventions

Local authorities must learn from the imposition of commissioners in Tower Hamlets and Rotherham, a select committee has warned.

Local authorities must learn from the imposition of commissioners in Tower Hamlets and Rotherham, a select committee has warned.

The Communities and Local Government Committee said both councils had failed to take whistleblowers seriously.

It called for there to be proper checks and balances through scrutiny to ‘drive a culture of transparency and continuous improvement'.

Clive Betts MP, chair of the committee, said: ‘It is vital that the failings in Rotherham and Tower Hamlets, and the work done to address them are identified and shared so that similar issues can be addressed in other local authorities at an early stage to avoid them hitting rock bottom and having commissioners imposed upon them.

‘The DCLG [Department for Communities and Local Government] and LGA [Local Government Association] clearly have important role to play in this, but local authorities must also take responsibility themselves for seeking out and sharing this best practice.

‘The DCLG must carefully examine what worked and what could have been done better with these interventions so that the process can be improved for possible future cases.'

 

ROTHERHAM ABUSE

Re-localising elections

By Professor Colin Copus | 10 May 2026

A voting system that allows for not only national parties, but real independents, local parties and local single-issue groups to win seats is the only way to...

ROTHERHAM ABUSE

Designing for cohesion

By Tom Fairey | 07 May 2026

Tom Fairey, Development Director at Alliance Leisure, discusses how community spaces can strengthen local connections.

ROTHERHAM ABUSE

Reorganisation: For councils, 'business as usual' matters as we look to the future

By Maxine O'Mahony | 06 May 2026

As the sector considers what new unitary authorities and local services may look like in the future, Maxine O'Mahony remains 'mindful of just how important i...

ROTHERHAM ABUSE

Roll out fiscal devo across nations

By Laura Hughes | 06 May 2026

As the All-Party Parliamentary Group on local government launches an inquiry into fiscal devolution in England, Laura Hughes explains why this is needed in S...

Popular articles by William Eichler