Local Government

Four-Day Week Trial Success at South Cambridgeshire District Council

The first UK Local Authority trial of the four-day week has taken place. It was with about 450 desk-based staff in South Cambridgeshire District Council from January to March 2023. Analysis of the Key performance data collected during the 3-month trial is by the Bennett Institute for Public Policy. Results show the trial was successful. […]

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Stop the Government Power Grab on Planning

I was pleased to be invited to speak at the LibDem virtual conference on the proposed changes in the planning process. The focus was on the challenge of how to oppose government meddling in our planning system while delivering the homes we need. IT issues disrupted my opportunity but here’s my contribution.

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Not enough women and minorities stand in Council elections

Voters around England will be heading to polling stations next Thursday to vote in local elections. And chances are many will be faced with a ballot paper mainly containing the names of white men of a certain age. Does it matter, and why are women, younger people and those from black, Asian and minority ethnic […]

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Council bids for Government funds to build new affordable homes

If there is one thing that the district is short of, it is homes that are affordable for people to live in.  Therefore, a bid to increase the amount of borrowing  by £17 million is being submitted by South Cambridgeshire District Council to Government to help deliver a further

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South Cambridgeshire District Council named one of worst offenders in credit card fee racket

Lib Dems in South Cambs are demanding that the council immediately ceases its practice of charging people who want to pay bills by credit card a fee of 2.5% which has been exposed in a report in The Times. The Treasury

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The SCDC Local Development Plan – How Councillors Voted

The debate, if one can call it that, that took place on 13th March 2014 on the proposed draft local development plan ended in a vote that was closer than most people expected. I have already given you a flavour of what occurred in a previous article. The voting was recorded and following is the […]

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Bedroom tax forcing social housing tenants into rent arrears, debt and potential eviction

The much talked about and hated bedroom tax has hit the headlines yet again. This time, the claim is that the bedroom tax has resulted in more than 50,000 people falling behind with their rent, leaving them facing eviction from their homes.   This figure was revealed by the campaign group False Economy, after it […]

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Local Authority seeks new independent person to help keep standards high

At the end of March 2013, South Cambridgeshire District Council announced that it was inviting applications from impartial and dedicated people to step forward to help the Council keep standards high.   The Council is looking for a new ‘Independent Person’ to assist in promoting and maintaining high standards of conduct amongst its elected Members […]

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Public Sector lags behind in use of Social Media

Dismissed as a fad in its infancy, there seems no doubting now that social media is here to stay, says a recent headline on the Sustainable Gov website. The article is repeated in its entirety here. The current leading lights of social media, Facebook and Twitter, are seen as indispensible tools by millions of users […]

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To Tweet or Not to Tweet? District Councillors chirped No!

As always, I looked forward to the full council meeting of South Cambridgeshire District Council with a mixture of anticipation and dread. Anticipation at what drama may likely unfold, as there’s always something, and dread as to what questionable tactics would be unleashed by the majority. The last meeting did not disappoint on both counts.

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