The Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government (MHCLG) has published letters by its Secretary of State addressed to the leaders of Essex County Council and Pendle Borough Council, setting out his final decisions on the timing of their May 2026 local elections. The Secretary of State wrote that, after considering further representations received following his 22 January 2026 statement, the election to Pendle Borough Council will now be included in legislation to postpone certain local elections for one year, while the election to Essex County Council will not be postponed, as the Council had not made a clear and unambiguous case for postponement in its formal representations.

The Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government (MHCLG), the government department responsible for the Local Government Pension Scheme (LGPS) has, in consultation with the Government Actuary’s Department (GAD), issued new flexible retirement guidance under the LGPS Regulations for pension administrators in the LGPS (England & Wales). This guidance, published on 14 August 2024, replaces the previous guidance dated 28 April 2016 and includes information on how the McCloud remedy affects flexible retirement calculations and confirms the death grant calculation for a member who dies after flexible retirement.

The Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government (MHCLG) has issued a section 24 direction under the Local Government and Public Involvement in Health Act 2007, imposing consent requirements on 10 Surrey authorities ahead of the 2027 local government reorganisation. From 8 July 2026, the affected authorities must obtain written consent from the relevant shadow authority before: (1) disposing of land where the consideration for the disposal exceeds £100,000; (2) entering into capital contracts where the consideration payable exceeds £1 million or which contain terms allowing the consideration payable to be varied or (3) entering into non-capital contracts where the consideration payable exceeds £100,000 and the contract runs, or may be extended, beyond 1 April 2027. The direction applies to authorities to be dissolved under the Surrey (Structural Changes) Order 2026, SI 2026/264, which will establish East Surrey Council and West Surrey Council as unitary authorities from 1 April 2027. Consent must be obtained from the East Surrey or West Surrey Shadow Authority, as applicable, with consent from both required where a Surrey County Council decision relates to areas covered by both shadow authorities.

The Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government (MHCLG) has issued a direction under section 35(1) of the Planning Act 2008 (PA 2008), directing that a proposed artificial intelligence (AI) data centre campus at land adjacent to New Barn Road, Dartford, Kent be treated as a development of national significance requiring a development consent order (DCO). The direction, sought by Burges Salmon LLP on behalf of CSE52 Limited—a subsidiary of Clearstone Energy Limited—relates to a campus of up to four data centre buildings with a total power load of up to 300 MW and an IT load of up to 240 MW, together with associated energy, utility and infrastructure works. The Secretary of State determined that the request constitutes a qualifying request under PA 2008, s 35ZA(2) and that the project satisfies PA 2008, s 35(2). National significance was determined on grounds that the project would be likely to have a significant economic impact, would be important in driving economic growth, would have an impact across an area wider than a single local authority area and is of substantial physical scale.

The Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government (MHCLG) has launched its annual industry survey to assess good practice, constraints and challenges in the building remediation sector. The survey will gather the industry’s feedback from the last 12 months and outlook for the next 12 months to identify factors that support the effective delivery of remediation projects, which may inform future policy development.  The survey closes on 12 November 2025.

The Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government (MHCLG) has launched its annual remediation supply chain survey to gather insights on market conditions, including economic impacts and supply chain capacity and capability. The survey closes on 3 November 2026.

The Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government (MHCLG) has published guidance launching the Council Housebuilding Skills and Capacity Programme (CHSCP). The programme includes a new Support Service targeting 75 councils, an expanded Pathways to Planning programme and a £5.5m Support Fund. The initiative forms part of the government's £39bn Social and Affordable Homes Programme. The Support Fund's bidding process opens on 3 July 2025, with applications closing on 22 August 2025. Grants must be allocated by 31 March 2026.

The Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government (MHCLG) has launched the Energy Calculation as a Service (ECaaS), a calculator service providing an application programming interface to the Home Energy Model (HEM). This service enables authorised bodies to develop and produce software for statutory purposes that require calculations using the HEM.  ECaaS will become the only valid method for confirming compliance with Part L of the Building Regulations when referring to the Future Homes Standard.

The Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government (MHCLG) has opened a consultation on 20 June 2025 proposing reforms to local authority funding allocations from 2026-2027. The Fair Funding Review 2.0 consultation seeks input on new methodologies for determining council funding, including business rates retention, service demand measurement and resource assessment. The consultation, which applies to England only, contains 13 technical annexes covering specific funding formulas and closes on 15 August 2025. It aims to reform how Strategic Authorities interact with the Local Government Finance Settlement while addressing sales, fees and charges reform.

The Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government (MHCLG) has launched Phase 2 of the New Homes Accelerator programme, expanding support to smaller sites of under 500 homes for the first time. The programme has accelerated over 125,000 homes through Phase 1 and will add seven new sites totalling over 11,400 homes across the East Midlands, South East and East of England. Phase 2 introduces London-specific services including 'NHA LDN' and 'ATLAS LDN' planning support service for boroughs, both led by the Greater London Authority on behalf of the Mayor of London. MHCLG has also launched a year-round portal enabling builders, councils and landowners to request support for stalled or slow-moving sites. The expanded programme aims to support the government's target of delivering 1.5 million homes during the current Parliament through coordinated planning expertise, statutory consultee engagement and infrastructure delivery support.

The Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government (MHCLG) has launched a call for evidence to inform future policy on those working in building professions, trades and occupations. It is structured in five parts covering stages of a building’s lifecycle including: (1) pre-design; (2) design and specification; (3) construction; (4) occupation and maintenance and (5) cross-cutting issues, themes and challenges. The call for evidence aims to support the development of a new Building Professions Strategy, which will provide a clear view on the skills, experience and accountabilities required of those across the building process to ensure a skilled workforce equipped to deliver safe and sustainable buildings. The strategy will be be published in 2027. The call for evidence closes on 12 August 2026.

The Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government (MHCLG) has launched a new collection page that provides details on applications and decisions regarding Crown Developments and Urgent Crown Developments. As the page has only recently been created, no applications or decisions are currently listed.