The Local Government Association (LGA) is the national membership body for local authorities. Its core membership is made up of 339 English councils and the 22 Welsh councils through the Welsh Local Government Association.
The LGA is politically-led and cross-party. As the national voice of local government, it works on behalf of councils to give local government a strong, credible voice with national government, to promote the positive reputation of the sector and to secure funding and powers on behalf of councils and the communities they serve. Through it
programme of practicalpeer-based support it helps councils continuously to improve and innovate and it co-ordinates collective legal actions on behalf of the sector.
The LGA also provides membership services to other organisations through an associate scheme, including fire and rescue authorities, national parks authorities, town councils, police & crime commissioners and elected mayors of combined authorities.
The chairman of the LGA is Councillor James Jamieson and the chief executive is Mark Lloyd.
History
On 1 April 1997, the
Association of County Councils, the
Association of District Councils and the
Association of Metropolitan Authorities
The Local Government Association (LGA) is the national membership body for local authorities. Its core membership is made up of 339 English councils and the 22 Welsh councils through the Welsh Local Government Association.
The LGA is p ...
came together to form a single membership body for local government in England – the Local Government Association (LGA).
In 2010, the LGA merged with the
Improvement and Development Agency The Improvement and Development Agency for local government (usually shortened to IDeA) is a legal entity within the Local Government Association
The Local Government Association (LGA) is the national membership body for local authorities. I ...
(IDeA), Local Government Employers (LGE), Local Authority Co-ordinators of Regulatory Services (LACORS) and the Leadership Centre for Local Government. The IDeA, whilst wholly owned by the LGA, continues to exist as a company and the recipient of central government grant for improvement activities. The Leadership Centre is now an independent body based in North London.
In April 2019, the former unincorporated LGA was replaced by the LGA unlimited company,
enabling it to hold title to its two properties – its headquarters in Smith Square, Westminster and the former IDeA headquarters in Farringdon.
The LGA’s annual meeting – the General Assembly - takes place on the first Tuesday of July each year. The 2019 assembly passed a motion declaring a climate emergency and calling on government to explore the domestic implementation of the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) through funded partnership roles with local authority areas and encouraging councils to continue to link local priorities with the overall ambitions of the SDGs.
Chairs of the LGA
*
Jeremy Beecham
Jeremy Hugh Beecham, Baron Beecham (born 14 November 1944) is a British Labour politician and a senior figure in English local government. He was leader of Newcastle City Council and the first Chairman of the
Local Government Association. He ...
(1997–2004)
*
Lord Bruce-Lockhart (2004–2007)
*
Sir Simon Milton (2007–2008)
*
Margaret Eaton, Baroness Eaton
Ellen Margaret Eaton, Baroness Eaton, DBE, DL (born 1 June 1942, Bradford, England) has been a Conservative Party life peer in the British House of Lords since 2010.
She has been a Councillor with Bradford Metropolitan Borough Council si ...
(2008–2011)
*
Sir Merrick Cockell (2011–2014)
* David Sparks (2014–2015)
*
Gary Porter, Lord Porter of Spalding (2015–2019)
* James Jamieson (2019–present)
Board directors
Main priorities
The LGA's published business plan sets out the association's main lobbying priorities for 2019-22. They are:
*Funding for local government
*Adult social care, health and wellbeing
*Children, education and schools
*Places to live and work
*Strong local democracy
*Sustainability and
climate action
Associated companies
The LGA has a number of associated companies.
GeoPlaceis a joint venture between the LGA and Ordnance Survey
* LGA (Digital Services) is a partnership between the LGA and Brent Council
Public Sector Audit Appointments Ltdis wholly owned by the LGA through the IDeA company
LGA Commercial Services Ltdis wholly owned by the LGA
* The LGA is also a founder member of th
Local Government Mutual (LGM)and a shareholder in th
UK Municipal Bonds Agency (UKMBA).Local Partnershipsis a joint venture between the LGA, HM Treasury and the Welsh Government
See also
*
Australian Local Government Association
The Australian Local Government Association (ALGA) is the principal organisation representing all 537 Local Government councils in Australia, and acts as the independent interest body for Australian local mayors, councillors and local government ...
*
Convention of Scottish Local Authorities
The Convention of Scottish Local Authorities (COSLA) is the national association of Scottish councils and acts as an employers' association for its 32 member authorities.
History
Formed in 1975, COSLA exists to promote and protect the intere ...
*
Joint Contracts Tribunal The Joint Contracts Tribunal, also known as the JCT, produces standard forms of contract for construction, guidance notes and other standard documentation for use in the construction industry in the United Kingdom. From its establishment in 1931, J ...
*
Local Councils Association of the Punjab
Local Councils Association of Punjab is a Lahore-based organization that defends the interests of local governments in the Punjab province, Pakistan regardless of the size of the communities they serve.
History
During the regime of Pervez Mush ...
References
External links
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The Welsh Local Government Association (Cymdeithas Llywodraeth Leol Cymru)— The leading site for local government news
LocalGov.co.uk— News updates on UK local government
Local Government CareersLocal Government Channel
{{Authority control
1997 establishments in England
1997 establishments in Wales
Government agencies established in 1997
Local government in England
Local government in Wales
Organisations based in the City of Westminster
Local government organizations
Council of European Municipalities and Regions