Kirsty Weakley

Colchester

News Editor at Local Government Chronicle

News @lgcplus ex @CivilSocietyUK - very much here for news, thoughts and gossip about local government (but also wine, Take That and cat pics) she/her

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Articles

'We're not blockers' - councillors defend planning role

3 days ago | lgcplus.com | Kirsty Weakley |Julian Amani

With ministers pushing for planning officers to decide the fate of more applications, LGC spoke to councils where elected members have the biggest role. Councils where a higher proportion of planning decisions are taken by elected members say this is down to specific issues amid concerns about government plans to delegate more decisions to officers.
Largest parties on the campaign back foot

1 week ago | lgcplus.com | Kirsty Weakley

With just over two weeks to go until polling day momentum is with the smaller parties, for now, writes head of content Kirsty Weakley. Reform UK, the Liberal Democrats and the Green party are all talking up their chances on 1 May, while Labour and the Conservatives are managing expectations.
Deputy named interim MD after chief made redundant

1 week ago | lgcplus.com | Kirsty Weakley

Rushmoor BC has appointed its deputy chief executive as managing director after making the chief executive redundant. Paul Shackley has been chief executive at Rushmoor since May 2017 and is due to leave the council next month after being made redundant as part of cost-cutting measures, which will save the council nearly £180,000 a year.
Mayoral candidate: ‘I’d be peeved about LGR if I was a district’

2 weeks ago | lgcplus.com | Kirsty Weakley

Districts that are well run are right to feel “peeved” about local government reorganisation, the Conservative candidate to be mayor of Cambridgeshire & Peterborough CA has said. Paul Bristow, former MP for Peterborough, was taking part in an online debate organised by the Cambridgeshire Development Forum on Thursday. When asked about LGR he said he would be “pretty peeved right now” if he were a councillor.
Millions set aside for LGR bids

2 weeks ago | lgcplus.com | Kirsty Weakley

Almost £40m has been set aside by councils in two-tier areas to prepare local government reorganisations proposals this year. In a new analysis of interim plans submitted to the government last month, the Local Government Information Unit revealed that £38.4m has been set aside to prepare proposals and that the average transition cost will be £31.1m per two-tier region.
Met names permanent chief

2 weeks ago | lgcplus.com | Kirsty Weakley

Salford City Council is set to appoint Stephen Young as permanent chief executive. Mr Young has been chief at Halton BC since April 2022 and is expected to join Salford in the autumn. Melissa Caslake, executive director of children’s services, has been interim chief executive since Tom Stannard moved to Manchester City Council. Mr Young has worked in the public sector for over 30 years and previous employers include Lancashire CC, Bolton MBC and Burnley BC.
Job moves: New chiefs for Luton and Dorset in latest updates

2 weeks ago | lgcplus.com | Kirsty Weakley

Hampshire CC, Dorset Council and Croydon LBC have all made changes to their senior teams. Katharine Hammond, who has previously been director of the civil contingencies secretariat in the Cabinet Office, has been appointed the new chief executive of South Yorkshire MCA and will replace Martin Swales in May. Hampshire CC’s chief executive Carolyn Williamson is to retire in July, after more than 40 years in the public sector.
Local Audit Office to ‘oversee an inspection programme’

2 weeks ago | lgcplus.com | Kirsty Weakley

The Local Audit Office will appoint auditors to local authorities, inspect the quality of local audit, and escalate issues to the communities secretary, but will not be able to force authorities to amend their accounts. In its response to the consultation on the overhaul of local audit today, the government set out how it expects the new regulatory body the LAO to operate as part of efforts to address the “broken” local audit system.
Officials: NICs rise from providers ‘accounted for’

2 weeks ago | lgcplus.com | Kirsty Weakley

Senior government officials told MPs that higher prices suppliers would charge councils had been taken into consideration when funding was allocated last year. MPs on the Commons’ public accounts committee called for social care providers to be fully compensated for the impact of the increase in national insurance contributions (NICs) by the councils they provide services to.
Provisional settlement expected in ‘late November’

3 weeks ago | lgcplus.com | Kirsty Weakley

Senior civil servants told MPs that they have “no choice” about pressing ahead with reform to local government funding and that they expect to be able to give the sector an idea of what they will get by June. The provisional local government finance settlement, which will be the first multi-year deal in a decade, is then due to be unveiled in late November, MPs on the Commons’ public accounts committee heard yesterday.