Bulletin – 3rd August

Where Next for Localism?

Local councils are taking on services to fill gaps as principal authorities cut provision, new NALC/LGC research reveals.

In a NALC survey of local councillors and officers found just under half of respondents said their council had taken on an additional service in the past year. Most said this extra service was within public realm (47%), with others stepping in to support housing and planning (18%), property management (14%) or transport (10%). The research also revealed more local were supporting ‘big ticket’ services such as economic growth and regeneration (14%) and health, wellbeing and social care (10%).

NALC would like to see the new government, re-launch the devo project ensuring it is effective and engages all local communities. NALC calls on the government and those in power in other parts of the public sector to think even more positively about local councils because:

·  As the first tier of local government these councils can help provide local solutions to mitigate any negative fallout from Brexit and help build social cohesion. They can repair people’s disconnection from politics and remoteness from decision-making, and can contribute to local public service delivery during a time of continued austerity.

·  As democratic, accountable and transparent grassroots bodies, local councils canbridge these gaps by engaging with the community to build community cohesion andmake decisions about and invest in the economic, environmental and socialprosperity of their area.

·  There is anopportunityforlocal councilsto fulfill their localist potential but to do so they need themuchneededsupport and help of government through fair funding, more powers, stronger local democracy, building capacity and increasing engagement.

The report (copy attached) includes case studies of local council work on health and wellbeing, economic growth, housing and planning and devolution to the local council level.

Cllr Sue Baxter, chairman of NALC, said: “Its purpose is to highlight the great work of local councils and how they are a vital part of local government and communities. And how they can help principal councils and national government address many of the profound challenges facing us today It would appear that national politics is in a fluid and uncertain state! Local government has its problems and crisis too but generally remains a strong, stable andconstant force delivering forlocalpeople and making a difference incommunities.”

Former BBC Newsreader, Angela Rippon has booked her place – have you?

NALC Annual Conference 2017, 30th and 31st October 2017, Double Tree by Hilton Hotel, Milton Keynes

Angela Rippon, broadcaster and Alzheimer’s Society ambassador has confirmed to be a speaker in the health and well-being plenary session on 31st October 2017. NALC’s Annual Conference and Exhibition 2017 is an essential event for councillors, council officers, county association members and officers as local councils join with other parts of the public sector (including the government and principal authorities), private sector and voluntary sector to discuss the key policy issues of the moment. The important themes will centre on partnership working, local economic development, sustainability, health and well-being, housing and planning, openness and transparency.

Find out more and register your place at

http://www.nalc.gov.uk/our-events/eventdetail/131/-/nalc-annual-conference-and-exhibition-2017


Jonathan Owen, NALC CEO, writes…

Neighbourhood planning rules and debate

Two of the Neighbourhood Planning Act 2017 reforms came into force on 19th July through commencement regulations. Firstly, Section 1 of the Act amends section 70 of the Town and Country Planning Act 1990 to require a local planning authority or other planning decision-taker to have regard to a post-examination neighbourhood plan when determining a planning application, so far as that plan is material to the application. Secondly, Section 3 amends section 38 of the Planning and Compulsory Purchase Act 2004 to provide for a neighbourhood plan for an area to become part of the development plan for that area after it is approved in each applicable referendum (a residential referendum and, where the area is a business area, a business referendum). We will keep you updated on other measures when they happen.

The new housing and planning minister, Alok Sharma MP, stated “the government remain firmly committed to neighbourhood planning” in a recent adjournment debate in Parliament. He went on to say: “We all recognise the significant effort neighbourhood planning groups make and that is why we are keen to support them. The Government have made £22.5 million available through a support programme for neighbourhood planning for the period from 2015 to 2018. All groups can receive grant funding of up to £9,000 and priority groups, such as those allocating sites for housing in their plan and those in deprived areas, can receive up to £15,000 as well as full technical and professional support. The housing White Paper….was published in February, set out our commitment to further funding for neighbourhood planning groups in this Parliament.”

Double devolution encouraged in MPs report

The All Party Parliamentary Group on district councils has published the report of its inquiry into district collaboration and devolution in England, stating “the experiences districts have in collaboration provide a building block for devolutionnegotiationsandfordoubledevolutiontotownandparishcouncils” and “the commitment from districts to double devolution to town and parish councils strengthens the entire devolution process to ensure it is, as far as possible, based on the notion of subsidiarity”.

The report also includes a case study on double devolution in action by Wyre Forest District Council around asset transfer and the creation of Kidderminster Town Council; the district council’s work with parishes was highlighted in their recent LGA peer challenge.

Local government finance debate in Parliament

I was pleased to see our sector picked up in a debate in the House of Lords on local government finance, where Lord Shipley commented: “I wonder whether the time has come to look again at greater empowerment for smaller, local areas for defined services, building on towns and parishes”; and Lord Greaves – who is the vice chair of the All Party Parliamentary Group on local democracy – who talked about double devolution in Pendle and went on to say “The problem is that the town councils will be able to do it only if they put their council tax up. One of the reasons why the councils are doing things like this is that town and parish councils can put their council tax up but the district council cannot. I hope the Government will never stop us doing that, because it is ​a matter for local decision, but still it does not avoid the need to raise the money.”

Transparency Fund – “Drop-in Session”; 8th November

Those councils which have a current annual turnover of under £25,000 per annum and which need to comply with the Government's Smaller Authorities' Transparency Code, or risk a legal challenge, still have an opportunity to apply for funding to help them meet their obligations.

The Transparency Fund - see http://www.nalc.gov.uk/our-work/the-transparency-fund - will remain open to applications from eligible councils until February 2018 but thereafter no further assistance will be available.If it has not already done so, your council needs to apply now for monies to help it comply with the Code - so we are suggesting that clerks of eligible councils that have not yet taken advantage of the Fund attend a short ‘drop in session’ to be held at Staffordshire Place One, Tipping Street, Stafford between 11:30am and 13:30pm on Wednesday, 8th November 2017.There is no formal agenda for the session, which is intended to be a surgery for council officer(s) to be briefed on the Code and the Fund.

A representative of the National Association of Local Councils (NALC) will be on hand to talk clerks through the application process.There will be tea, coffee and sandwich lunch available at the session.

Please let Richard Ellison know via if you wish to attend.

SPCA Bulletin 17/31 (3rd August)