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CHILDREN AND YOUNG PEOPLE

Lax checks put children at risk

The Local Government Association (LGA) has warned new rules on background checks on taxi drivers are putting children and vulnerable people at risk.

The Local Government Association (LGA) has warned new rules on background checks on taxi drivers are putting children and vulnerable people at risk.

According to the LGA, the Disclosure and Barring Service can no longer check whether a prospective taxi driver has been barred from working with children or vulnerable adults, unless they work on a school transport contract.

CHILDREN AND YOUNG PEOPLE

Reform's good local government problems

By Ann McGauran | 20 May 2026

Ben Bradley talks to Ann McGauran about the implications of Reform UK’s huge election gains for reorganisation and delivering efficiencies – and he shares th...

CHILDREN AND YOUNG PEOPLE

Breaking point: Tough choices for childrens' services

By Martin Ford | 06 May 2026

Governments are finally confronting the spiralling cost of children’s services. As pressures intensify and budgets buckle, the real question is no longer whe...

CHILDREN AND YOUNG PEOPLE

Crude reckoning

By David Blackman | 05 May 2026

In the wake of the Iran-US conflict councils could be hit by a surge in inflation, insecurity of fuel supplies, demands for higher pay and more pressure on t...

CHILDREN AND YOUNG PEOPLE

Winning the war on waste?

By David Blackman | 16 April 2026

Is Reform UK’s waste drive just a saloon bar dream or are there still genuine efficiencies to be gleaned in local government? David Blackman reports