News & events

Our annual scrutiny survey has opened today, and we have a message from our Chief Executive   2020 marked the 20th anniversary since legislation was passed...

In this guest blog, Rebecca Atherton from Leeds City Council considers the experience of remote scrutiny and its practical challenges. “Can you hear me -...

In our first guest blog of the year, Catherine Buckley from Knowsley Council explains how one scrutiny committee organised and undertook its first entirely...

We have spoken extensively to scrutiny and democratic services practitioners in recent months about how action to make the Regulations on remote meetings permanent...

  The final report of the review carried out by Donna Ockenden into maternity care at Shrewsbury and Telford Hospital (SaTH) has just been published....

In the latest in our series from scrutiny practitioners reflecting on their experiences during the pandemic, Merton's scrutiny team provide some insights on how...

In this guest blog, Kevin O'Keefe and Steve Griffiths (respectively Dudley Council's Chief Executive and Democratic Services Manager) explain the council's approach to scrutiny...

Last week was officially Anti-Bullying Week. It was good to have a real-life example of the issues and dynamics involved in victimisation and harassment,...

In this guest blog, Robert McGowan, Policy and Scrutiny Officer at Monmouthshire Council, writes for us on practical experiences in carrying out vital scrutiny...

For most scrutineers, the pace does not seem to have let up since March. Over the spring and summer scrutiny was constrained in the...

You can’t have failed to notice that controversy around councils’ commercial activity has been in the news recently. Some councils have found themselves unexpectedly...

In 2010, shortly before the General Election, the Centre for Public Scrutiny (as we then were) published “Accountability Works!” – a document which aimed...

More councils are starting to experiment with different forms of decision-making. The emergence of mutual aid networks at the outset of the pandemics –...

In a previous post, we set out four possible scenarios for how governance could develop as we continue to navigate the pandemic.  Since then, we...

CfGS has been successful in securing funding to support a major campaign on local governance in the post-COVID world, and what steps could be...

As the National Housing Federation’s Together with Tenants initiative is rolled out nationally this month, many housing associations will be taking a comprehensive look...

Recent events in Parliament have provided us with a stark reminder of the absolute importance of scrutiny on the national stage – and act...

Today (29th September 2020) sees the Centre for Public Scrutiny change our name to the Centre for Governance and Scrutiny.   This change reflects the wider scope of our...