The government has announced that 19 councils are set to be granted exceptional financial support for the next financial year.

In principle support for these councils for 2024-25 is worth around £1.5bn, enabling them to use capital receipts from asset sales or borrowing to fund day-to-day costs up to that amount. Further in principle support for capitalisation requests in relation to previous years worth £976m have also been announced.

Read more on the Local Government Chronicle.

Also covered by the BBC

As local authority budgets continue to come under huge pressure, what are the implications for the financing of SuDS Approval Bodies (SABs)?

These are to be set up under Schedule 3 to the Flood and Water Management Act 2010. Implementation of the new approach is expected during 2024. Schedule 3 provides a framework for the approval and adoption of drainage systems, a sustainable drainage system approving body within unitary and county councils, and national standards on the design, construction, operation, and maintenance of sustainable drainage systems for the lifetime of the development. It also makes the right to connect surface water runoff to public sewers conditional upon the drainage system being approved before any construction work can start.