Thousands of tonnes of items that could be recycled are being thrown away in landfill sites every week because British householders rely too much on local authority schemes instead of seizing the initiative themselves, according to new research today. The study from the insurance group, Zurich , says on average people are recycling only half of their rubbish. 

Children living away from home or being helped by social care services are to be given the chance to air their views regularly on key issues affecting their lives. It is part of a new report published today by the Children’s Rights Director for England, Dr Roger Morgan.
His report, ‘Children’s Care Monitor 2008: Children’s views on how care is doing’, details children’s experiences in six specific areas as part of an annual monitoring process. 

By Edward Moss
The end of the official retirement age has resulted in many people choosing to carry on working. But there are organisations that continue to insist that people retire at a particular age. There needs to be a greater awareness that the world is changing, people are living longer and there is a greater willingness to continue working. 

Councils and the communities they serve may get the power to make local laws under proposals that are now out to consultation. The changes could see authorities no longer having to seek Whitehall approval for new byelaws – and they could get the power to issue fixed penalty charges.
The Communities Secretary, Hazel Blears, said the objective was to give communities the power to tackle issues such as community safety, vandalism and public nuisance that really mattered to local neighbourhoods. 

Representatives of local authorities, housing associations and community councils who deal with issues of rural housing will give evidence directly to a committee of the Scottish Parliament next week. It will happen when the Rural Affairs and Environment Committee, meets in Melrose on Tuesday, the first time it has visited the town.
The committee members will be in Melrose for an evidence-gathering visit as part of their ongoing inquiry into rural housing in Scotland. 

This report from Communities and Local Government assesses the impact of Local Public Service Agreement targets on local service performance. It concludes that the LPSA regime was not as powerful a driver of local organisational change as the Comprehensive Performance Assessment which succeeded it.
The report provides useful insights into the relationship between central and local government and into target setting regimes in general. 

Changes to the law are needed to ensure future elections are better run according to a report today from the Electoral Commission. It says the current system is under strain and it sets out the steps it wants to see to reform what it calls ‘19th century structures’.
The recommendations include the creation of new boards that would have powers to give directions to Returning Officers. The commission also wants improved funding for electoral administration. 

Councils could give high street store vouchers to council taxpayer’s to make up for missed appointments. That is one of the options for occasions when services don’t meet people’s expectations that are being considered as part of a drive to put more emphasis on customers in local service delivery.
The Communities Secretary Hazel Blears has announced a
new review team, which includes members from Tesco and the National Consumer Council with customer service expertise. 

This programme is now available to view on egovtv.tv, the online television channel for public service modernisation. It features leading experts exploring the issue of Telecare to help councils meet their social care responsibilities.
Telecare is becoming increasingly important in providing support for older and disabled people. It is being used increasingly by social services because of the part it plays in risk management. 

Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic Women are underrepresented among social enterprise owners. The Government Equalities Office, with the support of Office of the Third Sector have produced a report which highlights the support they need to help groups, such as Pakistani and Bangladeshi women, who are under represented in the workplace and in society, to become more economically independent and participate more fully in communities.