APSE
'Perfect storm' warning over supply chain pressures
Supply chain pressures are mounting up on local government, with place directors warning of a ‘perfect storm’.
Planning for the Future
Paul O’Brien and Fiona Howie outline the key findings from a report that argues the UK will not meet its ambitious carbon reduction targets without tackling emissions from homes.
Let’s work together on the most important agenda of our time
Paul O'Brien says policy on permitted development rights 'continues to work against a co-ordinated approach at local level on reshaping place and making developers contribute to this process'.
A Queen’s Speech without jewels
Councils are at the forefront of demand when people pushed into poverty seek their support, writes Mo Baines. But she says the Queen’s Speech failed to embrace the role of councils by offering practical measures that would help residents.
Think big, act local, start now
Communities will look to their local authority for further support with the cost of living crisis, says Paul O'Brien. Councils will also need to provide leadership in decarbonisation, he adds.
Social value must not be a tick box exercise
Mo Baines says councils should not simply apply the principles of the Social Value Act to outsourced contracts, but ‘engage in the spirit and intention of the Act, which is to get the very best outcomes from public money’.
Councils demand to know more about deposit return scheme
Councils are unsure about the full implications of deposit return schemes ahead of their rollout, according to new research.
Gove's suggestion on non-statutory services won't work
Michael Gove recently said councils could drop some non-statutory services – but these are the essential operating platform for their statutory cousins, says Mo Baines.
'Roaring Twenties' could end up as a whimper
'As with the 1920s, today's economic and political landscape is strewn with messy public policy issues that could stifle any roar into a whimper', says chief executive of APSE Paul O'Brien.
Spending power squeeze amid inflation warning
Councils are bracing themselves for a spending power squeeze amid predictions inflation will soar to its highest level for nearly 30 years this spring.
Protecting parks for all
A host of council agendas, including climate change mitigation, depend on future-proofing local green spaces and Fields in Trust’s ParkXtinction campaign is aimed at doing more to protect them, says Helen Griffiths.
Will funding land next month to help levelling up?
Councils will await with interest December’s annual financial settlement to see where funding lands at the local level, says Paul O'Brien. Will this signify the beginning of significant attempts at levelling up, he asks.
It is the right time to invest in all of our futures
As we head towards COP26, Paul O’Brien says we should not settle for anything less than a key role for councils in the delivery of the plan for net-zero or the consequences could be catastrophic.
Joining the dots
Ahead of COP26, the Government has published its route map for reaching net-zero emissions, but is it ambitious enough and what does it mean for local government? Ann McGauran reports.
Ministers urged to ensure council staff have access to fuel
Ministers have been urged to introduce emergency measures to ensure local government workers continue to have access to petrol amid the UK’s fuel crisis.
Let’s see some fair play
A new report makes the case for a radical new approach to secure their future of local sports and leisure services, including a call for longer-term investment, say Paul O’Brien, Cllr Gerald Vernon-Jackson and Debbie Kaye.
The time for team spirit is now
Dame Tanni Grey-Thompson says there has never been a more important time to work together to protect the future of community-based sport and leisure services.
The local government workforce: equal by default
The APSE Commission message is clear: we need a well-trained, properly rewarded workforce to meet local public services’ future challenges, says Heather Wakefield.
'Growing our own' jobs will require investment in local councils
If Government wants to maximise the bang for its buck in levelling up the country, then it must start investing in local councils and allow them to skill up local people from all backgrounds, argues Paul O'Brien.
Commission calls for funding reset
Local government needs a ‘funding floor’ at an agreed percentage of national income, a report on the future of the sector has said.