This Practice Note explains a number of local authority strategic functions in relation to health and social care services, including duties to: • set up and operate Health and Wellbeing Boards (HWBs) in respect of health and social care • set up Local Healthwatch organisations to represent the views of users of health and social care • review and scrutinise health services • make arrangements regarding health service user complaints • establish an Integrated Care Partnership (ICP) with the Integrated Care Board (ICB) with whom the Local authority's area coincides in whole or in part • prepare an integrated care strategy detailing how the needs of an area will be met by the exercise of functions of either the ICB in the area, NHS England or the relevant local authorities NB: on 13 March 2025, the Health Secretary announced that NHS England was to be abolished and many of its functions brought back into the Department

Local Government analysis: Genevieve Screeche-Powell acted for the local authority that successfully defended a section 204 of the Housing Act 1996 (HA 1996) appeal brought by a homeless applicant. The case raised the following important points of principle: (i) whether parliament intended an alleged breach of the ‘new’ HA 1996, s 189A duties totally invalidate any subsequent decision to fulfilling its duty to secure suitable accommodation; (ii) the significance of the role of the s. 202 review process in curing alleged deficiencies. This is the 1st time that the Court of Appeal has had to consider the nature and impact of the HA 1996, s 189A duties on the lawful performance of the HA 1996, s 195 prevention duty in s 204 appeal proceedings. Written by Genevieve Screeche-Powell of Field Court Chambers.

Local Government analysis: The appellant challenged the respondent’s finding that it did not owe him the main housing duty under section 193(1) of the Housing Act 1996 (HA 1996). He argued that he was not homeless intentionally as defined by HA 1996, s 191(1) because what caused him to leave accommodation A was the landlord’s notice to quit, not his subsequent refusal of an offer of accommodation B by another local authority. The Court of Appeal held that the reviewing officer was entitled to conclude that the appellant was homeless intentionally, because what caused him to leave accommodation A was the other local authority providing him with a short-term stay at accommodation C. They only provided this because the appellant refused accommodation B. Written by Genevieve Screeche-Powell and Andrew Burrell, barristers at Field Court Chambers.

Calls to non-geographic NTS (Number Translation Service) for which calling customers are charged at the local call rate.

A charity established for purposes which are by their nature or by the trusts of the charity directed wholly or mainly to the benefit of an area or of part of it.

Local Government analysis: A Court of Appeal judgment which provides helpful guidance on the test to be deployed in cases where a homeless applicant asserts a local connection with a borough in which they do not reside. The court clarifies that it is wrong for an authority to impose a threshold requirement of ‘needing to live’ within the borough, and that a local connection can still arise in situations where there is no absolute need to reside within that district. However, here the first appeal decision was upheld, as the authority had not in fact imposed this test; the review decision had legitimately considered ‘need’ generally without relying on an ‘absolute need’ threshold. Written by Kevin Long, housing solicitor at Hackney Community Law Centre.

Personal Injury analysis: Adrian Neale, an associate at Bevan Brittan LLP, examines the Court of Appeal's dismissal of a local education authority's appeal against a High Court judge's decision that it was liable to pay damages to a former pupil for sexual abuse by a teacher in the 1980s. The Court of Appeal rejected the appellant's submissions that the judge had misdirected herself as to the correct approach to disapplying the statutory three-year limitation period, had erred in concluding that the sexual acts had not been consensual, and had wrongly held that it was vicariously liable for the abuse which continued after the respondent had left school.

Home Energy Conservation Act 1995 The Home Energy Conservation Act 1995 (HECA 1995) requires that ‘energy conservation authorities’ (local authorities in England, Wales and Scotland and the Housing Executive in Northern Ireland) produce ‘local energy conservation reports’ related to improving the energy efficiency of residential accommodation. The Home Energy Conservation Act 1995 was repealed in Scotland and Wales in 2011 but still applies to local authorities in England and the Housing Executive in Northern Ireland. Carbon budgets The former Department of Energy & Climate Change (DECC) published the Carbon Plan in December 2011 under the Climate Change Act 2008, which set out the government's plans for decarbonisation across all sectors.  For more information on carbon budgets, see Practice Note: Climate change—emissions targets, carbon budgets and net zero. Local

This year’s annual round-up reviews some of the most significant developments of 2017 and previews what is on the horizon for 2018. This includes the social housing and governance implications of the Grenfell tower disaster, updates in education, children’s social care, health care and licensing. Also included is news on LexisNexis®’s content, including news of exciting developments from the past year and what is coming up in the next 12 months. Reviewing 2017 Social Housing/Governance What happened? On 14 June 2017, Grenfell Tower in the west London Borough of Kensington and Chelsea (RBKC) was consumed by fire, leading to the death of 71 people, the serious injury of many more and the rendering homeless of several hundred. What are the key implications? Grenfell has become a watershed moment in the provision of social housing and accountability of local authorities in their service provision. The government has launched an inquiry to try to establish exactly what caused the tragedy. The focus of the inquiry is primarily health and safety in the original

1 Interpretation 1.1 The following definitions and rules of interpretation apply in this Schedule: Admission Agreement • means the admission agreement to be entered into on or around the date of the [ Outsourcing Contract] between the administering authority of the LGPS and the Supplier Best Value Direction • means the Best Value Authorities (Staff Transfers) Pensions Direction 2007 Broadly Comparable Pension Scheme • a pension scheme formally certified by the Government Actuary’s Department as broadly comparable to the LGPS Customer’s Scheme • the [ [LGPS] OR [other pension scheme] currently operated by the Customer in respect of the Relevant Employees] Fair Deal Guidance • HM Treasury Fair Deal for staff pensions: Staff transfer from central government (October 2013) Onward Transfer Date • the date of transfer of Onward Transferring Employees of the Supplier pursuant to TUPE 2006 on expiry (or earlier termination) of the [Outsourcing Contract] Onward Transferring Employees • the employees of the Supplier who on expiry (or earlier termination) of the [Outsourcing Contract] automatically transfer under TUPE 2006 to the Customer or another employer for the purpose of provision of the Services LGPS • the Local Government Pension Scheme as established and governed

FORTHCOMING CHANGE : On 13 October 2025, the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government (MHCLG) launched a consultation on proposed improvements to the Local Government Pension Scheme (LGPS) in England and Wales. Among other things, the consultation proposes a major overhaul of Fair Deal protections, aligning the scheme with the 2013 Fair Deal guidance and ending the use of ‘broadly comparable’ pension schemes for future outsourcing (save in certain exceptional circumstances). Instead, all staff compulsorily transferred under TUPE would retain continuous LGPS membership through a new default ‘deemed employer’ model, ensuring the original Fair Deal employer remains responsible for pensions rather than relying on admission bodies. These protections would extend across re-tenders and subsequent transfers, safeguarding access for ‘protected transferees’ and, at the employer’s discretion, for new joiners on the contract. For those currently in broadly comparable schemes, the proposals envisage bulk transfers into the LGPS that preserve accrued final-salary benefits, with future accrual on a CARE basis. Draft regulations to implement these Fair Deal changes were published alongside the consultation,

Law360: The Local Government Pension Scheme (LGPS) is now worth an estimated £450bn, Isio said on 17 October 2025, ahead of government plans to consolidate the highly fragmented scheme into several pension mega-funds.