New campaign to improve cyclist safety

26 September 2016
New campaign to improve cyclist safety
Cyclists in London and Manchester are being encouraged to ‘hang back’ from lorries in a newly launched safety campaign film.
The THINK! campaign has been developed after statistics showed last year a fifth of crashes where cyclists were killed involved HGVs.
The campaign will also target HGV drivers through partnership activity with the Freight Transport Association (FTA) and will be supported by tips for car drivers in general to raise awareness of cycle safety on the roads.

1,172 council staff suspended on full pay, FoI reveals

23 September 2016
1,172 council staff suspended on full pay, FoI reveals
A new investigation by ITV programme Suspended: Britain’s Pay Scandal? highlighted that over 1,172 council staff have been suspended from work on full pay, in the last three years.

Norfolk Council urges former social workers to return

23 September 2016
Norfolk Council urges former social workers to return
Norfolk County Council has launched a new Social Care Academy to recruit and retain social workers and encourage former social workers back to the profession, in order to address the staff shortage.

Derbyshire County Council changes rules on term-time holidays

23 September 2016
Derbyshire County Council changes rules on term-time holidays
Derbyshire County Council has introduced new rules which allow parents to take their children on holiday during term-time, so long has the child’s attendance over the previous 12 months is above 94 per cent.

Middle aged outnumbered younger voters

23 September 2016
Middle aged outnumbered younger voters
Research carried out by the Resolution Foundation has found that the number of votes cast by ‘baby boomers’ in the 2015 general election significantly outnumbered those cast by younger ‘millennial’ voters.

Prison rehabilitation reforms far from complete, MPs say

23 September 2016
Prison rehabilitation reforms far from complete, MPs say
A report by the Public Accounts Committee (PAC) has highlighted that the government’s pledge to revolutionise the process of probation is far from complete.

Help to Buy not needed, says Bank of England

22 September 2016
Help to Buy not needed, says Bank of England
The Bank of England has told the government that the Help to Buy Mortgage Guarantee Scheme is no longer needed.
The scheme, which allows lenders to offer loans to people offering a deposit as low as five per cent thanks to government support, is set to be closed at the end of the year following a decline in usage.
In a Financial Policy Committee (FPC) review of the Help to Buy Mortgage Guarantee Scheme, it was revealed that the scheme accounted for only three per cent of total mortgage lending in the first quarter of the year compared to six per cent in 2014.