The LGA's media office provides the national voice of local government in England and Wales on the major issues of the day for national, regional and local press.
“Currently, whether it is helping those impacted by the increasing cost of living, supporting those fleeing Ukraine and Afghanistan, looking after the vulnerable or building desperately needed homes and giving our younger generation the best start in life, councils stand ready to work with the government to provide the best possible help to those that need it."
Responding to the announcement that all new housing developments must meet local standards of beauty, quality and design, Cllr David Renard, housing spokesperson for the LGA, said:
“We look forward to seeing the details of the draft national design code and the new Office for Place. We want to continue to work with the Government to get these proposals right.
“Councils need to be at the forefront of a locally determined planning system which meets the housing needs and aspirations of their communities, and support proposals that go some way to facilitating that.
“Along with government, we
It’s good to see long-term investment in the NHS, but government also needs to make the same commitment to adult social care which deserves to be given parity with the health service.
Despite rising demand for services and central government funding reductions, councils continue to be the biggest investors in culture, bringing communities across the country together.
"Violence Reduction Units are a valuable resource that are helping to reduce serious violence and crime, so it is extremely positive to see they will be extended to new areas and benefit from multi-year funding settlements."
"Councils are doing all they can to get people out of hospital safely and quickly and delays attributable to social care are down 7.2 cent from July to September."
“We have particular concerns around provision for disadvantaged children and those with special educational needs and disabilities if funding rates continue to fall below the cost of delivering services."
“Careful and efficient management of our roads by councils has seen some progress being made into tackling the backlog of road repairs. However, increasing traffic levels, and more cars on our roads, together with continuing extreme winter weather conditions means that government needs to keep funding of local roads as a priority in its spending plans.
“Only long-term and consistent investment in local road maintenance can allow councils to embark on the widespread improvement of our roads that is desperately needed, to the benefit of all road users up and down the country, including cyclists
“The availability of quality home care services are key to supporting people’s independence at home and in the communities they know and love. It is therefore a significant concern that these services are currently so fragile because of the acute funding pressures on the system"