Details have been announced of the government's Partnerships for People and Place project, to test innovative ways of working across the public sector. Expressions of interest are being invited from the 34 long-listed candidate authorities for up to 15 selected areas

Fashion giant Gap has confirmed plans to close all its 81 stores in the UK and Ireland and go online-only. It joins other retailers and banks in pulling out of traditional high street shopping.

A minister at MHCLG has approved a US venture capitalist's plans to redevelop the grade II* listed 500-year-old bell foundry in Whitechapel, east London, though the housing secretary has indicated that he is wants a review into how 'PINS and planning policy considers and defends heritage'.

A further 57 English high streets are to receive a share of government funding to improve transport links, build new homes and transform underused spaces, bringing to 72 the number which will share over £830 million to help them reopen and recover from the pandemic.

Despite, unlike Sheffield, not succeeding in a referendum on the future governance of Newham, the borough's voters have been promised a much more listening council and neighbourhood citizen assemblies by the mayor Rokhsana Fiaz, who is regarded as a keen supporter of participatory government.

There were significant achievements for activists seeking more democratic control over their areas in the results of the major set of local elections that took place on May 6th. Notable victories came in the Sheffield governance referendum, and the new town council created in Bexhill

One of Leeds Labour city councillors has announced he is quitting the party, and will campaign for a committee governance system to be introduced for that council.

Local civic activists in Hastings have been outraged at the sale this week of a historic shopping arcade in the town by a Trust that was set up over 90 years ago to benefit the townspeople.

Chancellor Rishi Sunak has announced £1bn towards 45 further places becoming eligible to receive money from the government's Towns Fund in England as part of his Budget. He has also unveiled a promised new tranche of Levelling Up funding, which is available to other areas.

Alongside the Towns Fund, the government has made provisions for a further tranche of Levelling Up funding, which will be open to single tier councils and district councils in two tier areas.

The government has launched a new £150 million Community Ownership Fund to help ensure that communities across England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland can support and continue benefiting from the local facilities, community assets and amenities most important to them.

A backbench-initiated debate has been held in the Commons to discuss progress with the government's £3.6 billion project to provide funds for 101 'left behind' towns, to improve their local economy, connectivity, social and cultural facilities and built environment.

A campaign for greater neighbourhood-level democracy formed in the Autumn in Wigan last year has signed up a growing number of supporters seeking more empowerment for citizens to take responsibility for community action at the local level

The government has launched consultation on draft revisions to the National Planning Policy Framework and a new draft National Model Design Code

Local communities will be at the heart of plans to make sure that new developments in their area are beautiful and well-designed, says the government in its response to the report it received from the Building Better, Building Beautiful Commission

Newham Council will join Sheffield in having a referendum this year on changing to a more traditional democratic Committee system of governance, rather than a Mayoral or Cabinet-led structure of the kind that have been widely introduced in recent years

The lively discussion of issues raised by the collapse of the Debenhams Group is continuing, following the deal for online retailer Boohoo to take on the brand, but not the stores or retail operations. Guardian columnist Polly Toynbee has joined the discussion led by her colleague John Harris

The really significant loss to over 100 towns from the impending closure of the whole set of Debenhams department stores, explored in an item on the Civic Revival website in December, has now become critical

The public will be able to convert vacant plots of land and derelict buildings into new homes or community spaces, under plans announced on 16 January by the Housing Secretary, Robert Jenrick

The shared initiative by MPs Jon Cruddas and Danny Kruger from both major parties to enhance community empowerment and win more resources for localism formed the basis of a House of Commons debate on January 11

The government has announced an expansion of the 'Dormant Assets Scheme' to help unlock over £800 million value to the benefit of communities across the UK.

A new report has received cross-party backing for its call for ministers to hand power and capital back to communities after the pandemic to repair Britain’s fraying social fabric

The Architectural Heritage Fund (AHF) administered by Historic England has announced support for ten new projects through the Transforming Places Through Heritage programme (TPTH)

The Government is to provide up to £830m in allocations from the Future High Streets Fund, which it says will support areas to recover from the pandemic. The money will go to 72 areas across England, Communities Secretary Robert Jenrick announced on 26 December 2020.