Local Authority round-up 14 August 2026
14th August, 2026
Our Local Authority round up provides brief summaries of topical information on a weekly basis, to keep you aware of the changes and updates relevant to you.
Health & Social Care
Major expansion of community mental health support across England
People struggling with their mental health will get help earlier and closer to home, with 159 new NHS mental health facilities opening across England.
These new NHS mental health facilities are backed by £343 million and they include:
- 100 new community mental health centres, offering walk-in-support without a referral and without a months-long wait.
- 59 dedicated mental health emergency departments giving people in crisis specialist care in a place designed for them.
The new centres will make it easier for people to get the right help the first time they ask for it, by bringing mental health and specialist teams together under one roof, working alongside GPs, councils, the voluntary sector and families, with direct links into housing and employment support.
For more information, please click here.
Education and Safeguarding
Change to definition of regulated activity with children from 1 September 2026 to see more people covered by the regime
From September 2026, the law regarding regulated activity with children is changing. The current rule about supervision of paid staff and volunteers carrying out specific activities with children will be removed from the legal definition. This change has been established by the implementation of the Crime and Policing Act 2026 and it is reflected in changes made in the Keeping Children Safe in Education guidance.
This change means some people will be in regulated activity with children from 1 September 2026 when they were not before, because they were sufficiently supervised by someone else. This will apply if they do work often enough or overnight.
This work is done often enough, or overnight, if it occurs:
- On more than 3 days in any 30 day period
- Once overnight, between 2am and 6am.
This change affects any organisation with paid staff or volunteers who teach, train, instruct, care for, or supervise children. It affects people who were not in regulated activity with children specifically because someone else carrying out regulated activity with children supervised them to a sufficient level. This includes, but is not restricted to circumstances involving:
- People who volunteer in schools, such as reading helpers who are supervised by a teacher.
- People who coach children’s sports clubs, such as assistant coaches who are supervised by a head coach.
- People who work or volunteer with children in outdoor activity centres, youth groups, charities or community groups, and are supervised by someone else who is in regulated activity with children.
Before 1st September 2026, organisations can ask for an Enhanced DBS check in the child workforce, but there is no access to a Children’s Barred List check for that supervised role.
However, from 1 September 2026, this supervision rule will no longer apply. If a person teaches, trains, instructs, cares for or supervises children often enough, or overnight, they will be in regulated activity with children even if someone else supervises them. This means an organisation will be able to ask for an Enhanced DBS check in the child workforce with a Children’s Barred List.
For more information, please click here.
Planning & Housing
Households living near new pylons to save thousands on bills
Thousands of households living near new or upgraded pylons are set to benefit from discounted electricity bills. Payments will start from next year. From the Scottish Highlands to the South of England, households In over 40 locations could benefit from hosting vital grid infrastructure that will provide cheaper, clean electricity for the whole country.
Those living within 500 metres of these projects are expected to get £2,500 off their electricity bills over the next 10 years.
The 43 transmission projects announced so far form part of the first wave, with further projects to follow as the scheme rolls out. It is expected that hundreds of thousands of homes will benefit from the scheme in total over the next decade.
People will only be in scope for the discounts once projects have secured all necessary consents and the main construction works have started. Projects where construction started on or after 10 March 2025 will be eligible.
Most eligible households will receive the discount automatically on their electricity bills every 6 months via their energy supplier.
For more information, please click here.
Please note that this briefing is designed to be informative, not advisory and represents our understanding of English law and practice as at the date indicated. We would always recommend that you should seek specific guidance on any particular legal issue.
This page may contain links that direct you to third party websites. We have no control over and are not responsible for the content, use by you or availability of those third party websites, for any products or services you buy through those sites or for the treatment of any personal information you provide to the third party.
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