- Conference
- 2025 Local Government Service Group Conference
- Date
- 20 February 2025
- Decision
- Carried
Conference notes the damage 14 years of the Conservative government’s austerity agenda has done to local government services and to tailored services for Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Trans, Plus (LGBT+) people. Libraries and community centres were closed and specialist LGBT+ Youth Workers, Housing Officers and sexual health staff were made redundant. Social care was left to wither away, and for many older LGBT+ people this meant having to go back into the closet.
Many young LGBT+ people were left without housing, mental and sexual health support, whilst local government services designed to support LGBT+ people were often the first to be cut.
Conference welcomes the election of a Labour Government in July 2024, with a manifesto that committed to:
1) give councils multiyear funding settlements;
2) end wasteful competitive bidding;
3) provide capacity and support to councils.
Conference acknowledges that the Labour government was left with a £22bn financial black hole due to the financial mismanagement and uncosted promises made by the last government. However, conference believes that multi-year settlements and an end to competitive bidding can help local councils to plan better and end short term decisions such as staff redundancies and cuts to equality services.
Conference also notes that the following investment has been announced:
a) Using VAT and business rates on private schools to fund a new network of Youth Hubs;
b) A record £1billion of new funding to reduce and prevent homelessness in England;
c) Increasing the Public health grant, which funds sexual health services, to £3.858 billion, an uplift of 5.4%.
Conference also welcomes the government’s first step, to establish a social care national negotiating framework, as part of the Employment Rights Bill.
Good quality care is reliant on those people providing care being properly valued, with national pay, conditions and progression routes vital. This includes LGBT+ awareness training, which will allow older LGBT+ people to live as their authentic selves for their whole life.
Conference recognises that it will take significant change and investment to undo the damage to local government services of 14 years of austerity and that we will need to fight even harder for the return of specialist services for LGBT+ people.
Conference instructs the Service Group Executive to work with Labour Link where appropriate to:
i) Make the case for local government funding, including for specialist services for LGBT+ people;
ii) Encourage local authorities to include specialist LGBT+ youth workers and housing staff as part of the offer at new youth hubs and homelessness prevention services;
iii) Put pressure on local authorities public health to employ specialist LGBT+ sexual health workers;
iv) Seek to contribute to UNISON’s response the Casey Commission on social care, including the need for LGBT+ inclusive services.
