News

May 08, 2026

Family Court judge takes rare step of making care orders for children remaining at home with mother

A Family Court judge has made care orders in respect of two children with the plan for them to remain at home in the care of their mother, in a case described by the judge as “exceptional in its nature”.

May 07, 2026

Supreme Court to hear appeal by council over Low Traffic Neighbourhood removal ruling

The Supreme Court has agreed to hear an appeal by the London Borough of Tower Hamlets over a Court of Appeal ruling on the council’s decision to remove a low traffic neighbourhood (LTN) scheme.

May 07, 2026

Outdoor education business fails in Court of Appeal challenge to approval of waste recycling centre

The Court of Appeal has rejected a case brought by an outdoor education centre for children against construction of a household waste recycling centre (HWRC) on an adjacent site.

May 07, 2026

City council undertakes governance review of charity amid regulator concern

Cardiff City Council has been told by the Charity Commission that it must complete an independent review of a charity of which it is the sole trustee, which owns a local park.

May 07, 2026

Information Commissioner publishes guidance for public bodies amid surge in AI-generated FOI requests

The Information Commissioner's Office (ICO) has published new guidance to support public authorities dealing with a rise in AI-generated Freedom of Information (FOI) requests and increasingly complex cases.

May 07, 2026

Litigation involving public sector bodies saw 48% increase in 2025: research

Litigation involving public sector bodies rose sharply in 2025 after 11 years of decline.

May 07, 2026

Council failed to consider duty to make alternative educational provision when child could not attend school, Ombudsman finds

The Local Government and Social Care Ombudsman has found fault with how Plymouth City Council handled a child’s special educational needs, meaning that they did not have access to a suitable education for more than a year.

May 07, 2026

Upper Tribunal rejects appeal in supported housing benefits test case

The Upper Tribunal has dismissed an appeal of a First-tier Tribunal decision that found that tenancy liabilities created by a supported housing provider were designed to “take advantage” of the benefits system.

May 07, 2026

Failure by council to act resulted in mother and three children being street homeless for six months

The London Borough of Croydon failed to act when a mother warned she was threatened with homelessness, and then delayed in accepting the homelessness duty and reviewing the suitability of its accommodation offer, the Local Government and Social Care Ombudsman has found.

May 07, 2026

London borough to pay nearly £8,000 after mother and child placed in unsuitable temporary accommodation for more than two years

The London Borough of Lewisham placed a mother and her child in unsuitable temporary accommodation for 29 months, while failing to complete housing needs and risk assessments for her and charging her rent for accommodation she did not move to, a Local Government and Social Care Ombudsman report has…

May 07, 2026

Two thirds of school leaders don’t believe additional funding for SEND support will be enough

A survey of 130 school and trust leaders has revealed that 68% don’t believe the additional £7bn funding for SEND support by 2028-29, alongside a separate £4bn to prepare schools for reforms, is enough to bring the government’s ambitions to life in their school or trust, with only 3% believing it…

May 06, 2026

Routine judicial decision-making “will be informed or directed by machines", Master of the Rolls says

The Master of the Rolls has said AI-driven systems will soon be capable of deciding routine legal disputes “as reliably as human judges”, warning that courts and lawyers must adapt rapidly to deliver “digital justice systems fit for the 21st century”.

May 06, 2026

Residents crowd fund judicial review over permission for 92-homes development

A campaign group that wants to take the London Borough of Lambeth to judicial review has said it has raised most of the £2,500 initially needed to engage specialist planning lawyers Richard Buxton Solicitors to prepare a formal letter to the council.

May 06, 2026

Handling of housing disrepair in spotlight as regulator reviews claims management market

The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) has launched a review of the claims management market, “following concerns that consumers are being failed by some claims management companies (CMCs) and law firms”.

May 06, 2026

Bristol Airport expansion opponents launch fundraising appeal for legal challenge

Campaign groups opposing further expansion at Bristol Airport are seeking legal advice over proposals affecting registered common land at Felton Common.

May 06, 2026

Metro operator appoints law firm to £4.8m contract to provide support for major signalling project

Nexus, the operator of the Tyne and Wear Metro, has selected law firm Addleshaw Goddard for a £4.8m contract to provide support on its Metro Go project.

May 06, 2026

Charity calls for funding of advocacy services if children are to exercise rights under Children’s Wellbeing and Schools Act

Children’s charity Article 39 has warned that the Children’s Wellbeing and Schools Act 2026 “stops short” of delivering the change that children and young people need, and has urged the Government to ensure that new forms of provision “do not lead to a further dilution of safeguards”.

May 06, 2026

High Court refuses application to lift automatic suspension under Procurement Act 2023

The High Court has refused to lift an automatic suspension under the Procurement Act 2023, in the first such case to be decided.

May 05, 2026

City of London Corporation officers’ report recommends keeping trans-inclusive policy for swimming ponds

Committees at the City of London Corporation will over the next few weeks consider a report from officers that recommends it continue its trans-inclusive admissions policy for the Hampstead Heath Swimming Ponds, despite an ongoing judicial review challenging the approach.

May 05, 2026

Devonshires selects new head of litigation and dispute resolution

Law firm Devonshires has appointed Nikki Bowker as head of its litigation and dispute resolution team, succeeding Philip Barden.

May 05, 2026

Justice largely on “sidelines” of English devolution debate, report warns

Justice has remained largely on the sidelines of the English devolution debate, with issues such as economic development, transport and housing being the subject of greater discussion and reform, a new report by JUSTICE North has claimed.

May 05, 2026

Local Government and Social Care Ombudsman highlights how Renters’ Rights Act gives non-tenants access to redress for first time

People who have concerns about how councils manage social housing can now complain to an Ombudsman, even if they are not a tenant, under changes brought into force under the Renters' Rights Act.

May 05, 2026

Permission for tower block granted against advice of officers quashed by consent over “inadequate and/or unintelligible” reasons for approval

The London Borough of Tower Hamlets has agreed that planning permission for an 18-storey tower block should be quashed, accepting amongst other things that it failed to publish proper minutes of the planning committee’s reasons for the decision.

May 05, 2026

Questions raised about independence of SEND mediation services commissioned by councils, says Education Committee

The Education Committee has written to Schools Minister Georgia Gould amid concerns over a lack of trust among parents and service providers in mediation for resolving SEND disputes.

May 05, 2026

Administrative Court proceedings set to be broadcast from early 2027

The Chair of the Transparency & Open Justice Board, Mr Justice Nicklin, has revealed that work is underway to extend broadcasting to Administrative Court hearings, as part of efforts to improve public access to information and court proceedings.

May 05, 2026

Court of Appeal to hear appeal by council over order to issue fresh Housing Needs Assessment and Personal Housing Plan

The Court of Appeal will this week (6 May) hear an appeal by the London Borough of Waltham Forest after it was ordered to issue a fresh Housing Needs Assessment and Personal Housing Plan.

May 01, 2026

Lord Justice Snowden appointed to Supreme Court

Lord Justice Snowden has this week been appointed as a Justice of the Supreme Court.

May 01, 2026

Welfare deputyship case ‘leapfrogged’ to Court of Appeal

An appeal considering the question of whether and when personal welfare deputies should be appointed for adults who are unable to make relevant decisions for themselves has been “leapfrogged” directly to the Court of Appeal.

May 01, 2026

Court of Protection judge outlines guidance on instruction of experts

Vice President of the Court of Protection, Mrs Justice Theis, has issued a reminder of the framework in which experts are instructed in the Court of Protection, and how such instructions should be managed, in a case relating to a man’s capacity.

May 01, 2026

Trading Standards body urges stronger enforcement powers to tackle organised crime on high streets

The Chartered Trading Standards Institute (CTSI) has called for strengthened closure order powers and an end to local authorities funding their own trading standards prosecutions in a report on organised crime groups operating on UK high streets.

May 01, 2026

Local government groups renew calls for legislation on remote council meetings

A group of local government organisations, including Lawyers in Local Government, has renewed a call for the Government to prioritise legislation to enable remote council meetings.

May 01, 2026

Ministers herald arrival of Renters’ Rights Act

A series of protections for millions of renters is now in action across England, including a long-anticipated ban on Section 21 evictions for private renters, giving tenants a raft of new rights and increased security.

Apr 30, 2026

Housing Committee urges acceleration of Long-term Housing Strategy to improve social housing conditions

The Chair of the Housing, Communities and Local Government (HCLG) Committee has called for the Government to accelerate the implementation of its Long-term Housing Strategy after the previously published Social Housing Report highlighted a series of areas in which improvements were necessary.

Apr 30, 2026

More than 1,200 PSPOs currently in place across England and Wales, report finds

A campaign group has revealed the scale and range of Public Spaces Protection Orders (PSPOs) in force across England and Wales, finding that councils have introduced more than 1,200 such orders covering a wide variety of restrictions.

Apr 30, 2026

New LLG president pledges support for MOs amid local government reorganisation

Helen Bradley has been appointed president of Lawyers in Local Government (LLG) following the end of Paul Turner’s term in the role.

Apr 30, 2026

High Court to hear legal challenge to council tax reduction scheme brought by disabled Somerset resident

The High Court is next week to hear a resident’s challenge to the lawfulness of Somerset Council’s council tax reduction scheme.

Apr 30, 2026

County Council leader vows judicial review over reorganisation plans if re-elected

The leader of Hampshire County Council has said he will seek a judicial review over the Government’s local government reorganisation plans for the county if he is re-elected, after claiming the proposals split communities and have ignored survey responses.

Apr 30, 2026

Judge refuses permission for legal challenge to decision by inspector to reject planning application by faith school

An inspector was right to reject a planning application for an orthodox Jewish school on grounds of intolerable noise nuisance to neighbours, and also to refrain from considering the London Borough of Hackney’s record in providing school places.

Apr 30, 2026

Law centre hails reversal of decision to grant non-material amendment to planning permission for football stadium

The Public Interest Law Centre (PILC) has said that it acted successfully for an unnamed resident who wanted to reverse a decision of London Borough of Southwark to grant a ‘non-material amendment’ to planning permission for Dulwich Hamlet’s football stadium.

Apr 29, 2026

Office for Students unlawfully predetermined decision that university was in breach of registration conditions, High Court rules

The High Court has concluded that the Office for Students (OfS) erred in law when it made a decision that the University of Sussex was in breach of two registration conditions.

Apr 29, 2026

Attorney General's Office relaunches Public Legal Education Committee

The Attorney General’s Office (AGO) is to relaunch the Public Legal Education (PLE) Committee “to raise the profile of public legal education and support more strategic, coordinated delivery across the sector”.

Apr 29, 2026

High Court considers application by foster parents for injunction pursuant to Human Rights Act to prevent council from removing children from their care

The High Court has found it unnecessary to grant an injunction pursuant to the Human Rights Act 1998 preventing a local authority from removing two children from their long-term foster placement, observing a “strong public interest in not restraining public bodies from exercising the powers granted…

Apr 29, 2026

Council progresses proposals to introduce Public Spaces Protection Order banning pony and trap racing on two A-roads

A ban to address a long-running issue of “persistent, unregulated” pony-and-trap racing on roads in Buckinghamshire is being considered by the local authority.

Apr 29, 2026

Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman unveils new five-year strategy, plans for name change

The Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman (PHSO) has launched its new five-year strategy and announced plans to rename itself as the ‘Public Service Ombudsman’.

Apr 28, 2026

Southwark must disclose SEND safety valve documents despite section 36 exemptions being engaged, tribunal rules

The London Borough of Southwark has been ordered to disclose its Dedicated Schools Grant (DSG) management plan and safety valve monitoring report to Southwark Law Centre, after the First-tier Tribunal found that the public interest in transparency around SEND funding outweighed the council's…