The MJ - your free ebook
Throughout the COVID-19 crisis, we want to do all we can to support you, so we will provide The MJ as an enhanced ebook here every Thursday, completely free, for the duration of the crisis.
News
Jenrick tells leaders to prepare for May elections
Council leaders have urged the Government to reconsider pressing ahead with local elections in May.
LGA pauses tourism levy calls
The Local Government Association (LGA) has agreed to pause its work gathering an evidence base for the introduction of a tourism levy.
More councils will be forced to issue Section 114 notices, MPs warn
More councils will ‘soon be unable to balance their books and be forced to issue Section 114 notices,’ the influential Public Accounts Committee (PAC) has warned.
Lichfield begins search for new chief executive
Diane Tilley has announced she will be standing down from the role at the end of May.
Help pledged for councils fighting floods
Local government secretary Robert Jenrick has promised to back councils as they tackle flooding in the wake of Storm Christoph.
EXCLUSIVE: Four areas unprepared for Hong Kong 'surge arrival'
Four local resilience forums have admitted they are unprepared for the potential arrival of thousands of Hong Kongers who are expected to move to UK.
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Opinion
How COVID confirmed Greater Manchester’s focus on people not programmes
Daisy Carter outlines how the citizen experience across Greater Manchester changed during COVID and shows the impact of ‘doing things quite differently’.
Unprecedented, but definitely not on Mute
Julie Towers of Penna looks back on 2020 and the legacy impact on the people agenda.
Vaccine communication for citizens: What role can councils play?
The vaccine rollout is possibly the biggest challenge many council communications professionals will be part of in their lifetime, says Karen Steel. She offers advice on how to approach it.
New procurement rules – a chance to have your say
Helen Randall at Trowers & Hamlins outlines the major changes to procurement rules proposed in the Green Paper. For councils, this could mean co-designing evaluation criteria with health and other tiers of government.
Warwickshire bid to bring its children back into the fold
A Warwickshire CC-operated children’s residential care home is in the pipeline. It will bring those currently housed miles away from their homes back within their area, delivering more positive outcomes for everyone, writes Cllr Jeff Morgan.
No time for transformation
Professor Donna Hall warns of the danger of the ‘centralised military command-type response’ COVID demands becoming a permanent feature, eroding the time for deep-rooted transformation.
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Best Practice
When a digital community is the answer
Kathy Kyle Bonomini outlines how she and her team have created a free community platform and social media channels to enable groups to collaborate on high street rejuvenation.
Analysis
What next for the capital post-pandemic?
The levelling up agenda has focused on the Midlands and the North, but London’s economy has also been hard hit by the pandemic. The MJ and BT spoke to eight London chief executives on how they are adapting to the changes. Michael Burton reports.
Hot Topic: Coronavirus
- Vaccine communication for citizens: What role can councils play?
- Jenrick tells leaders to prepare for May elections
- How COVID confirmed Greater Manchester’s focus on people not programmes
- May elections to go ahead as chiefs call for indemnity
- Our third Integrated Care Systems model would be a real ‘partnership of equals’
Private sector
Another interesting year lies ahead
The pandemic only had a 'smallish impact' on recruiting in 2020, says Ben Cox of Penna. He predicts ongoing demand for OD, transformation/change and D&I roles plus a resurgence in place-based recruitment.
Council move to regain control of environmental services
Senior Norwich City Council members have taken another step towards bringing environmental services back under local authority control from April.
Unearthing the success of heat pumps for high rise blocks
The safety and efficiency of tower blocks has come under intense scrutiny in recent years. Tim Woods explains what ENGIE UK is doing to support its clients to deliver safer homes
