Funding shortfall of £299m leaves South West councils on a precipice

Councils across the South West have a collective hole in their finances amounting to £298.6m for the coming financial year, says UNISON research published today.

General secretary urges delegates to ‘get the vote out’

UNISON general secretary Christina McAnea, urged delegates at the union’s local government conference to ”get the vote out” in its latest strike ballot, which ends on 4 July.

Council and school staff begin strike ballot over pay, says UNISON

More than a third of a million council and school support staff across England and Wales will begin voting today (Tuesday) on whether to strike over pay.

Vital local services in the South West are collapsing says council staff survey

Local government spending cuts have left councils in the South West unable to meet the needs of local communities and, in some cases, are putting the public at risk. A survey, released to coincide with the union’s local government conference, reveals that eight in ten (82%) of council workers have no confidence in the future […]

Bristol budget chaos shows Mayor must be honest with residents

Bristol budget chaos shows Mayor must be honest with residents, says UNISON The deeper than expected hole in Bristol City Council’s budget means a different approach is needed if public services in the city are to survive, UNISON has said. Over £100 million of cuts – 25% of the budget – could leave the Council […]

Save Our Services! New toolkit for campaigners

Despite a new Prime Minister, the Tories show little sign of fairer funding for public services. So it’s more important that ever that UNISON members, and everyone else who care about high quality public services, have the right tools to make the case for proper investment in the services our communities need. Get the Save […]

Merger Row Masks Deep Cuts to Somerset Services

A cuts-driven restructuring plan risks the quality of council services, UNISON has today warned. With a 30% budget reduction threatened by 2020, arguments between councillors in Taunton Deane and West Somerset over whether they should merge, collaborate, or go their own way are missing the point. Transformation plans aim to introduce a call centre approach […]

UNISON campaign wins living wage at Cornwall Council

UNISON are thrilled that Cornwall Councillors voted at the full council meeting to re-instate the Living Wage Foundation pay rate for staff at the bottom of the pay structure – the majority being women.  In a joint campaign between the Trade Unions and the Labour Party, councillors were persuaded that Cornwall Council needed to continue […]