Q&As

Q&As

These Q&As seek to address briefly common questions faced when dealing with Local Government matters.

The Q&As supplement and link to other more detailed content within Lexis+® UK, but are intentionally short. It is anticipated that a brief Q&A will be most helpful when you need a quick overview of an issue and its likely impact. This might arise, for example, for lawyers needing to provide advice or training at short notice. The Q&A content on Lexis+® UK is date stamped. This date is the publish date and states the law

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Latest Local Government News

DHSC publishes response to Health and Social Care Committee report on community mental health services

The Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC) has published its response to the Health and Social Care Committee’s Fourth Report of Session 2024–26 on community mental health services, setting out the government’s position on all 22 recommendations and how these align with the wider transformation of mental health care under the 10 Year Health Plan. The response confirms that co-production with people with lived experience will remain central to service design and states that this approach is embedded in the six community-based mental health centre pilots. The government does not accept the Committee’s recommendation to commission a new independent and comprehensive evaluation of implementation of the Community Mental Health Framework, referring to earlier evaluation work and ongoing monitoring through national datasets. It partially accepts the recommendation that there should be 24/7 neighbourhood mental health centres in every community, noting that six pilot sites are under way and that decisions on any wider rollout will follow evaluation in 2026 and states that there are no current plans to extend the pilot phase beyond 12 months.

MHCLG publishes implementation guidance for local government reorganisation

The Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government (MHCLG) has published implementation guidance for councils invited on 5 February 2025 to submit proposals for unitary local government under section 2 of the Local Government and Public Involvement in Health Act 2007 (LGPIHA 2007), clarifying the governance arrangements that will apply during the transition to new unitary authorities.

Ofsted publishes report on educational support for children in local authority care

Ofsted has published a report examining how mainstream schools and colleges support the academic progress and personal development of children in local authority care. The report, based on research conducted during the 2024/25 academic year, highlights effective practice, identifies barriers to progress and considers the implications for education inspection and improvement. It notes inconsistencies in local authority practice, unclear national expectations and a lack of staff training. Key findings include a ‘lottery’ effect, whereby access to resources and virtual school provision depends on the local authority under which a child was placed, and instances where personal education plan (PEP) meetings are not held beyond age 16, reducing oversight and support for older learners. The report recommends: (1) ongoing specialist training for school and college staff; (2) a standardised national approach to PEP formats, funding approvals and virtual school provision; (3) improved collaboration between education providers and local authorities through shared protocols and expectations; (4) enhanced support from local authorities for care-experienced young people beyond age 16 and (5) additional support for colleges, including mentoring, emotional support and academic assistance. The research also informed Ofsted’s renewed education inspection framework, introduced in November 2025.

Local Government weekly highlights—12 March 2026

This week's edition of Local Government weekly highlights includes the latest coverage on local government reorganisation and public procurement. Case analysis includes JR87 and another for Judicial Review, in which the Supreme Court held the provision of religious education in a NI primary school contravened human rights; Duffy v Birmingham CC, in which the court held that failure to tick the box certifying compliance with the indemnity principle does not of itself invalidate the bill of costs; CLT v LB Hounslow, in which the court found that the LA acted unlawfully in failing to treat a bereaved child as ‘looked after’ despite having a private fostering arrangement; and Dharmeshkumar v SSHCLG on the CPR 52.6 test for permission to appeal from the Planning Court. Case reports include KTS v Governing Body of Milby Primary School in which the UT allowed an appeal and permitted publishing the decisions naming the school in disability discrimination case, emphasising primacy of open justice; MB v Hertfordshire, in which the UT found an error of law in refusal to include additional provisions in an EHC plan; Housing 35 Plus Ltd v Nottingham CC, which dismissed an appeal on HMO licensing exemption in finding the management committee structure insufficient; and NHS South-West ICB v XY, in which the court refused to extend the welfare deputy’s authority to internet and social media use. This edition includes further updates on Local government reorganisation, Public procurement, Education, Governance, Children’s social care, Planning, Social housing, Adult social care, Local government finance, Healthcare, Licensing and Pensions.

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