Councils should cover costs of prison places, report says

18 January 2016
Councils should cover costs of prison places, report says
A new report conducted by the Institute for Public Policy Research (IPPR) has called for councils to be given control of the £400 million prison budget for low-risk offenders to reduce the risk of reoffending.

London councils save £2.5m through direct debit campaign

15 January 2016
London councils save £2.5m through direct debit campaign
Local authorities in London have reportedly saved a combined total of £2.5 million through joining a campaign to encourage residents to pay their council tax by direct debit.

Ensure councils remain ‘at the heart’ of school place planning, says LGA

15 January 2016
Ensure councils remain ‘at the heart’ of school place planning, says LGA
The Local Government Association (LGA) has called for councils to ‘remain at the heart’ of school place planning, warning that the legal duty of councils to ensure every child has access to a school place could be made undeliverable otherwise.

73 councils in England exceeding recycling targets

15 January 2016
73 councils in England exceeding recycling targets
73 councils in England already meet or exceed 2020 recycling targets, according to data from the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra).
The recycling target of 50 per cent of household waste by 2020 is set by the EU. Across the 320 councils in England, out of a total waste of 23,169,167 tonnes, 10,117,005 tonnes was sent for recycling, representing 43.7 per cent of total household waste in England.

Increased support to reduce gang violence

14 January 2016
Increased support to reduce gang violence
The Home Office has announced it will work with nine areas to support them in tackling gang violence and exploitation.