EU referendum: What does the social media reaction tell us about coming out in favour of Remain?

Several titles I work with have, over the past week, urged readers to vote ‘remain’ in Thursday’s EU referendum. Contrary to the popular myth being shared on some parts of social media by Brexiteers, each editor has been free to decide whether their titles should back either side, or remain neutral. I think the titles

This glimpse into the future of Academy education from the Liverpool Echo will horrify any journalist

For Government, it’s all about devolution at the moment. Even if you put to one side George Osborne’s obsessive Northern Powerhouse proposal, the idea of devolution runs through almost every government department. The problem, however, is that it appears to be devolution regardless of what the public thinks. At the turn of the decade, there

FOI FRIDAY: 10 FOI ideas for journalists is back!

Welcome to the return of FOI – a weekly look at FOI stories which are worth sharing (and in many cases, copying). As an added incentive to read on, this blog will also celebrate/shame those councils who prove that actions speak louder than words when it comes to delivering on the principles of FOI and

FOI Friday: Jollies in Cannes, guilty police, empty homes, naughty soldiers and road rage incidents

So does a trip to MIPIM pay off? < Brixton Buzz £20,000 was taken by Lambeth Council from four property developers to help fund the trip to Cannes by four council employees. A Freedom of Information Request shows that although “conversations took place” at MIPIM World back in March, no actual deals were reached following

FOI FRIDAY: Clown crimes, daily A&E visitors, attacks on buses and pauper funerals

Sexual exploitation within a police force < Birmingham Mail Three West Midlands Police officers abused their position of authority by sexually exploiting underage children in the last two years. The predators in uniform were sacked or resigned after being convicted at court for targeting a 15-year-old and two 14-year-olds. Meanwhile, other officers from the force

FOI Friday: Thefts from churches, Christmas cuts, Coventry’s oldest driver and hospital drug thieves

Tax relief for independent schools < Croydon Advertiser CROYDON’S independent schools received £6.8 million in business rates relief over the last six years. Figures obtained by the Advertiser through a Freedom of Information request to Croydon Council show the extent to which the town’s private schools receive financial support. What gets stolen from churches? <

FOI Friday: School places, child exploitation, serial criminals and council home waits

How likely are you to get your child into a school? < Teesside Gazette Hundreds of schoolchildren in Middlesbrough are missing out on a place at their school of preference. Figures from a Freedom of Information request show that while places are in high demand, non of the town’s secondary schools were able to cater

FOI: The council facing legal action if it releases a report which is clearly in the public interest

Local journalism often gets accused of letting councils off the hook by being more interested in filling pages rather than hold the powers that be to account. When I challenge the people who make these claims, it often turns out their accusation is as lazy as the journalism they think they are deploring. Often, those

FOI Friday: Absestos claims against councils, zero hour contracts, councils with millions in the bank and police encounters with men in fancy dress

Absestos claims made against councils < Manchester Evening News own hall bosses throughout Greater Manchester are facing a ‘ticking timebomb’ of mounting claims from people struck down with conditions linked to deadly asbestos. Manchester council paid out almost £600,000 in damages to victims in the last year alone, an M.E.N. investigation has found. The 2013/14

FOI Friday: Unidentified bodies, chugging, bedroom tax costs and ambulance delays

How many unidentified bodies have been discovered by police? < Liverpool Echo THE ECHO today explores the riddle of 11 mystery bodies that lay open on Merseyside Police’s files. The unidentified bodies and body parts – dating back to 1972 – include a decomposed foot found in a trainer which washed up on Hightown beach