New powers for the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities over local government finances, announced in the Levelling Up and Regeneration Bill, are of significant concern for local authorities.

In line with the launch of our latest report Building Mobile Britain: The Case for Local Authority Digital Champions report, we have launched our brand-new video series, #MeetTheChampions.

It is 54 years since the last effective action plan for England’s local government was published.

The last few years have made us realise the importance of giving something back to our communities.

The government’s levelling up agenda took a significant step forward yesterday. After much fanfare and build up, the white paper was published and finally clarified the policy agenda behind the government’s rhetoric.

Over the last two years, councils have played a crucial role in responding to the unprecedented challenge of the Covid-19 pandemic.

In Essex we have a clear vision for what Levelling Up means. Find out how we are making it happen.

Millions of people work in and draw upon the adult social care system, which exists to support everyone who uses it to live the life they want to lead, no matter their age, ability or health condition.

It has been two years since Boris Johnson first introduced us to his levelling up ambition on the General Election campaign trail, with a promise to bridge the UK’s stark geographic divides. A lot has happened since then – Brexit, the pandemic and COP to name just a few – so it’s of no surprise, even if frustrating, that we are still waiting for him to tell us more about exactly what levelling up means and how he plans to do it.

As the global power elite descend on Glasgow for the COP26 climate summit next week, all eyes will be upon them to see if they can put our long-term existence on this planet ahead of short-term national concerns.

Marvin Rees is one of the most high-profile local mayors in the country – despite not covering a metro area. He talks to Georgina Bailey about Bristol’s tumultuous year and the future of the city’s governance

Councils need the financial resources to build social housing, properly resourced planning services, and the powers to ensure the permissions they give in great numbers are converted into the homes people need.

The Skills and Post-16 Education Bill is an important opportunity to tackle our fragmented employment and skills system. With the right funding and freedoms, local authorities can equip people with the skills they need to succeed.

The Covid pandemic has shown we achieve better outcomes when government gives local councils the freedom to deliver for their local areas. A commitment to local democracy will be my guiding principle as LGA president.

Devolution in England is a positive step, but the balance of power is still overwhelming tipped in favour of Whitehall, and pots of money – like the Levelling Up Fund – remain centrally controlled and come with far too many strings attached.

After the torrid fifteen months we have had locally in Bolton, to be treated as some kind of knuckle-dragging outliers by those in Westminster is deeply disingenuous.

To speed up our ability to respond to new Covid variants, the government must do away with its contempt for local government.

As we look to rebuild the economy and level up the country, the time for a new approach to devolution is now.

A grim set of results for Labour has prompted calls for an “urgent” shake-up of the party’s strategy from MPs and activists.

Instead of wholly rejecting the shift to active travel on the basis of poor administration in a handful of cases, we should champion schemes that have proven to work best and have the backing of local communities.

The government must work closely with local authorities to attract people back onto buses.

The APPG on Devolution is calling for an English devolution taskforce to define a new ‘baseline’ of powers available to every local council.

The government is set to implement new emergency rules to allow people self-isolating to secure a last minute proxy vote for May's council and mayoral elections.

The national response to Covid has been consistently off the mark. New relationships and networks working together at a local level were far better at keeping people safe.