Local Government Association

UK association of local authorities (1997-)

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The Local Government Association (LGA) is the national membership body for local authorities in England and Wales. Its core membership is made up of 317 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 voice with national government, to promote the reputation of the sector and to secure funding and powers on behalf of councils and the communities they serve. It aims to support councils to improve and innovate through peer-based support, 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 Chair of the LGA is Councillor Shaun Davies and the chief executive Joanna Killian

History

On 1 April 1997, the Association of County Councils, the Association of District Councils and the Association of Metropolitan Authorities 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 (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,^[1] 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

Lord Jeremy Beecham (1997–2004)
Lord Bruce-Lockhart (2004–2007)
Sir Simon Milton (2007–2008)
Margaret Eaton, Baroness Eaton (2008–2011)
Sir Merrick Cockell (2011–2014)
David Sparks (2014–2015)
Gary Porter, Lord Porter of Spalding (2015–2019)
James Jamieson OBE (2019–2023)
Shaun Davies (2023- Present)

Board directors


Role	Councillor	Council
Chairman^[2]	Shaun Davies	Telford and Wrekin
Senior Vice chair	Kevin Bentley	Essex County Council
Deputy chairs	John Fuller OBE	South Norfolk District Council
Director	Izzi Seccombe OBE	Warwickshire County Council
Director	Joe Harris	Cotswold District Council
Director	Marianne Overton MBE	Lincolnshire County Council North Kesteven District Council
Director
Director	Robert Alden	Birmingham City Council
Director	Michael Payne	Gedling Borough Council

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.

GeoPlace is 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 Ltd is wholly owned by the LGA through the IDeA company
LGA Commercial Services Ltd is wholly owned by the LGA
The LGA is a founder member of the Local Government Mutual (LGM) and a shareholder in the UK Municipal Bonds Agency (UKMBA)
Local Partnerships is a joint venture between the LGA, HM Treasury and the Welsh Government

References

^ "Agenda item - Local Government Mutual Update". 22 November 2018.
^ "Our meetings and Leadership | Local Government Association". www.local.gov.uk. Retrieved 27 November 2020.