Blog 12: 18 August 2023 - Rachel McKoy - LLG President

Greetings All,

Hope you are well and have had a good week thus far. August is whizzing by – we just need the consistent weather to give us the summer glow we all need.

As always, the world of Local Government has been busy. It is really concerning to read recent announcements regarding the woes of yet more Council’s having to make some very tough financial decisions. Our support extends to our lawyers and Monitoring Officers, at the coal face, tasked with finding solutions and managing expectations. This can weigh heavily so please do get in touch with us if you require a safe place to discuss any tricky issues.

Aside from a network of experience we also provide support through our Monitoring Officer Defence Scheme – so please take advantage of it if needed. Ultimately, we are here for you.

We are working behind the scenes to create a robust assurance framework and guidance pathway for our Monitoring Officers. A lot of crucial sector conversations are underway, and we are “front and centre” in these to hopefully co-design something tangible we can utilise to provide us with better defence mechanisms and much needed bolstering. We hope to be able to update you further on this at our Governance Conference in November.

On this theme, I also had an interesting meeting with the President of the Law Society on Monday to challenge them on their support offering to the local government sector, especially given the current difficulties many are encountering. The President confirmed her commitment to raising the profile of our lawyers and the role of the Monitoring Officer, which is necessary as our professional body. I will be keeping the drive in this space because it matters, irrespective of the fantastic offering that LLG provides.

I would also take the opportunity to plug the deadline for the Law Society’s Local Government Diploma in Law and Practice (23/24) which is the 28^{th of} August 2023. This is a fantastic course and one which many of our LLG family are involved in curating and is essentially designed “by us and for us.” Bursary funding for 50% the course fee is also potentially available from the Legal Services Trust, subject to the application criteria, so please check it out (see details below).

Diploma in Local Government Law and Practice | The Law Society.

Lastly, I must rally the call for our wonderful Lionesses who will be out there flying the flag for England in the FIFA Women’s World Cup Final against Spain this Sunday. We at LLG are incredibly proud of the team and their achievements thus far. Wishing them every success in bringing it home. Just incredible!

Have a fabulous weekend.

Rachel McKoy

LLG President

rachel.mckoy@hounslow.gov.uk