Focus on Scotland – How to improve the relationship between local and central government?
Welcome to the LGIU's Scottish Spotlight!
Our Scottish Spotlight is an important chance to bring you all the latest updates from the local government sector in Scotland as well as key resources to keep your 2023 in the local government informed and connected!
Key reports and updates
To never miss a beat, you need access to our exclusive resources and our full Daily News service – one email, every morning with everything you need:
- breaking news;
- briefings;
- reports;
- training;
- events;
- and, so much more.
Only available to members – find out more about LGIU membership here.
New planning consultation – As part of NPF-4’s focus on local living and the 20-minute neighbourhood, a new consultations seeks views on how the planning system can support healthy, thriving and connected communities.
The long shadow of the cost of living emergency – A new report from Carnegie UK shares the findings of research undertaken in early 2023.
Vacant housing statistics – Related to the Vacant and Derelict Land Fund, this week we saw the new Scottish Vacant and Derelict Land Survey (SVDLS) 2022 launched!
Short-Term Let Licensing legislation – A judicial review of Edinburgh’s implementation of the Scottish government’s Short Term Let Licensing legislation is being heard this week.
Spotlight focus: How to improve the relationship between local and central government?
What if central government trusted local government to do its job?
As LGIU begins its fifth decade we are running a programme of work – LGIU@40 – throughout the summer and into the autumn, which will culminate in the delivery of a set of new ideas for achieving a better future for all our places.
This was the very question posed to the LGIU Scotland team as they made their way through Edinburgh to a conference organised by the Scottish Parliaments Local Government, Housing and Planning Committee.
With LGIU’s CEO, Jonathan Carr-West, delivering international insights on the nature of local-to-central government relationships and answering a short Q&A, the quality of the conference’s discussion was matched by its timing. As our last feature covered, a new First Minister in Holyrood provides an important opportunity to reset the relationship with local government and promises of a new deal and fiscal framework are much anticipated.
But while Chatham House rules mean you need to follow the Local Government, Housing and Planning Committee Twitter to stay tuned to the forthcoming anonymised report, one message was clear from May 9th: Only local government can deliver frontline services and manage community needs.
In the meantime, check out our LGIU@40 project, which examines the important questions behind local democracy.
Updates from LGIU Scotland
The shocking impacts of poverty on the physical health of children and families
Open to LGIU members only 🔒
Poverty has a number of detrimental impacts on the well-being of children and their families. This briefing looks at how poverty affects children’s physical health and will be of interest to everyone working in children’s and family services.
Economic inactivity – who are the UK’s missing workers?
Open to LGIU members only 🔒
There are almost nine million people of working age in the UK who are not working, not currently looking for work and are not available to start work: these people are classified as ‘economically inactive’. This briefing will be of interest to councillors and officers in local authorities working on economic development, levelling up, skills and employment and human resources.
A vision of town centre living from Argyll and Bute Council
Open to everyone 🟢
Ahead of our upcoming article on Paisley 2030 and town centre regeneration in Scotland, we hear from Fergus Murray, Head of Development and Economic Growth at Argyll & Bute Council on how local government can, and should, embrace town centre living.
Stay tuned....
In the coming weeks, LGIU Scotland will bring…
- a new Q&A with COSLA Spokesperson Cllr Katie Hagmann an in-depth review of building well-being and healthy communities,
- lessons on deposit and return,
- health and social care reform
- policy bulletin number 2.
