After a decade of austerity cuts and the impact of the pandemic, local councils in England face significant financial challenges. Add to this the delay in the review of local government finance, the ongoing challenges of commercial investment, and the precarious nature of local government audit – there is a lot to be concerned about.

As the pandemic unfolded the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government (MHCLG) acted quickly to stave off widespread financial failure in local authorities. Local authority treasurers rose to the challenge of regular monthly returns so that the department could quickly gauge the real time impact on the ground. While this was welcome, the NHS had these reporting systems in place before COVID-19.