Insights archive
The ordinary working age Housing Benefit caseload has finally closed, almost nine years after Universal Credit was supposed to have completed the job. The administrative milestone is real. The promised simplification is much harder…
Read articleFrom firefighting to reform Revenues and benefits at the edge of another year of change At the final Independent R&B Monday Discussion Group before the summer break, practitioners reflected on tight budgets, difficult system…
Read articleIs history trying to repeat itself? The names and boundaries may be changing, but the struggle to balance strategic scale with local identity is remarkably familiar. The short version: 2026 is not simply 1974…
Read articleThe Monday Discussion Group considers what a Burnham government might mean for local taxation, welfare delivery and local government reform The prospect of an Andy Burnham-led government presents an intriguing question for local government:…
Read articleThe Independent Revenues and Benefits Monday Discussion Group focused this week on two connected pressures facing local government: local government reorganisation and the growing financial strain caused by council tax dependency, adult social care…
Read articleThe Independent Revenues and Benefits Monday Discussion Group returned this week to two themes that are beginning to converge: the growing number of young people not in education, employment or training, and the impact…
Read articleThe latest Visionary Network Monday Discussion Group ranged widely, from the council tax treatment of houseboats to the implications of the King’s Speech for local government, digital services and future welfare administration. The session…
Read articleMalcolm Gardner, Visionary Network Ltd The local election results were not simply a bad night for some parties and a good night for others. They were a warning about the fragility of local government…
Read articleThe Independent Revenues and Benefits Monday Discussion Group met on 27 April 2026 to consider the government’s proposed reforms to council tax collection. The central question posed by Malcolm Gardner was whether the changes…
Read articleIn 2024/25, councils in England raised £258million in court costs for the non-payment of council tax, sending more than three million households to court. These new findings are part of our upcoming report, Debt on…
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