A city council’s directory of services has won a second national award. The directory produced by Nottingham City Council to help people access services was described by competition judges as setting a new standard for local government A to Zs.
The Directory took the Gold Award in the A to Z category of the Local Government Association and LGcommunication Reputation awards. 

Parish councillors have been told they have an important part to play in reinvigorating local democracy. The Communities and Local Government Secretary, Hazel Blears, used a speech to members of the National Association of Local Councils to outline a vision of a new era of ‘parish power’.
The Secretary of State said parish councils would have a real purpose in modern society, far from the perception of them as outdated, 19th century institutions. 

Local authority Trading Standards Officers are warning rogue traders that they will face tough action under new powers that will come into force next week. LACORS, which coordinates trading standards work across the country, says scam artists, cowboy builders and doorstep criminals are facing the biggest shake-up to consumer law in decades. 

Local authorities should be able to build on land that they own and to reinvest the money raised through the sale of council houses in new homes according to a report today from the House of Commons Communities and Local Government Committee. The committee also says much more needs to be done to increase the supply and the quality of rented housing.
The MPs say 50,000 more homes a year, which is more than are currently being built, are needed in the social rented sector. 

Schools are not doing enough to teach children how to live greener lives according to a report today from Ofsted. The Inspectors say teaching sustainability in schools could bring to life the significance of climate change and show pupils that they have an important part to play in protecting the environment. 

Government ministers are facing calls to ‘open the books’ and to publish new information on public spending in local areas. The call comes from the Local Government Association in its response to consultations on the Sustainable Communities Act 2007. The LGA wants the Communities and Local Government Secretary, Hazel Blears, to publish public service spending details by the autumn. 

A task force has been set up to try to persuade more women from ethnic minority backgrounds to become involved in grassroots politics and to stand as local councillors. The new group has been established by the Minister for Women and Equalities, Harriet Harman.
In a written statement to the House of Commons she said the taskforce would also work to identify and tackle barriers within political parties. 

A charity is calling for a truce between the generations after a survey which showed seven out of ten young people felt they were tarred with a negative image. The study which was carried out for the youth volunteering charity, v, showed most young people felt their image was unfair and that many of them gave time to their communities.
The survey was conducted for v by OnePoll which spoke to 3,000 16 to 25-year-olds. 

People living in big cities and other urban areas of England can now go online to see a snapshot of noise levels in their neighbourhoods. A new Defra website gives access to maps showing the level of environmental noise from industry and road and rail networks in 23 towns and cities.
The site has information covering 50,000 miles of roads in built up areas and more than 17,000 miles of major road networks as well as almost 3,000 miles of railways. 

Following the announcement of plans to give people more influence over the decisions taken by local councils, the Government is facing a call for a ‘fundamental shift in power’. The Chief Executive of the Local Government Information Unit, Andy Sawford, said the proposed empowerment white paper was an opportunity for real change for local government and for communities.
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