The Leaders' Council is a forum in the United Kingdom that brings together the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, other ministers in the UK government, and leaders of representative bodies of local government based in England.
Purpose The council aims to be a "regular forum for the key sector representatives to discuss strategic questions impacting local government, to share key and evolving challenges, and co-design solutions".
The English Devolution White Paper published on 16 December 2024 states that the council "… [brings] together a representative group of local authority leaders with the Deputy Prime Minister and other ministers so that local leaders have a seat at the table in government and policy solutions can be co-designed with local government."
Members Organisations represented on the council include the Local Government Association, Special Interest Group of Municipal Authorities, Core Cities Group, Key Cities, County Councils Network, District Councils' Network, and London Councils.
Most members of the council represent only local government in England. Although the Core Cities Group and Key Cities also cover other UK cities, the main local government representative bodies of Northern Ireland, Scotland and Wales are not represented on the council. The council's meetings in 2024 and 2025 are centred on child education, local government, housing and health in England and English devolution.
As of October 2024, the membership of the council is as follows:
Organisation Geographical extent Representative Government of the United Kingdom United Kingdom Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government Core Cities Group United Kingdom Chair County Councils Network England Chair District Councils' Network England Chair Key Cities England and Wales Chair Local Government Association England Chair London Councils Greater London Chair Special Interest Group of Municipal Authorities England Chair
Meetings The first meeting of the council took place in October 2024. The council meets up to four times a year.
Meetings of the Leaders' Council DateLocation24 October 2024 Harrogate16 December 2024London4 March 2025Chelmsford21 July 2025London
See also Council of the Nations and Regions Mayoral Council for England National Economic Council (United Kingdom) Convention of Scottish Local Authorities Northern Ireland Local Government Association Welsh Local Government Association Local authority leaders' board Regional employers organisations
References
External links Leaders' Council Inaugural Leaders' Council