Local Government is UNISON Scotland’s biggest service group. Its remit covers a range of employees including those of all of Scotland’s councils, Direct Labour and Direct Service Organisations, Trusts, Joint Boards, voluntary and related organisations and private companies.
For information on our pay campaign, industrial action and ballot – got to our campaigns page
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Catch up with the latest updates at Fighting for Scottish Council Workers
Catch up with the latest updates at Fighting for Scottish Council WorkersLatest updates
West Dunbartonshire school learning assistants vote for strike action in job grade dispute, says UNISON
School learning assistants who support pupils with profound needs in West Dunbartonshire have voted overwhelmingly to strike in a dispute ... Read More
Briefing 171 Local Government Benchmarking Report 2024/25
Every year the Improvement Service carry out research on how councils are performing against a range of measures, giving information ... Read More
UNISON Scotland budget response: A budget that fails public services, says UNISON
UNISON's Scottish secretary Lilian Macer said: "Today’s Scottish budget does not go far enough to address the deepening crisis across ... Read More
West Dunbartonshire’s school learning assistants to be balloted for strike action in job grade dispute, says UNISON
School learning assistants who support pupils with profound needs in West Dunbartonshire are to take part in a strike ballot ... Read More
Briefing 168 – Population challenges for public services and the economy
This briefing looks at the implications of current and projected demographic change. It summarises recent publications from the Improvement Service ... Read More
Briefing 167 – Scottish Government Public Sector Reform Summit
On October 14th 2025 the Scottish Government held what they billed as a "Public Sector Reform Operational Summit" . The ... Read More
Briefing 165 – Scottish Government Fiscal Sustainability Delivery Plan
The Scottish Government has published it's Fiscal Sustainability Delivery Plan. The aim of the document is to provide some detail ... Read More
Briefing 164 – Scottish Government Medium-Term Financial Strategy
The Scottish Government have published their Medium-Term Financial Strategy. It outlines how they intend to approach public spending over the ... Read More
Briefing 163 – Scottish Government Public Service Reform Strategy
The Scottish Government have published their Public Service Reform Strategy. It outlines their intention to reduce the size of the ... Read More
Occupational therapists play a critical role in local social work teams, says UNISON
UNISON Scotland and the Royal College of Occupational Therapists (RCOT) welcome that occupational therapists working in social work will be ... Read More
More Local Government News
Latest local government briefings
Briefing 150 – NCS Bill Update: National Care Service abandoned
The Government has finally abandoned its plans to create a National Care Service (NCS). This was confirmed to Parliament on ...
Care Management: Fit for Purpose?
This report reveals a Care Management system that is on its knees, with decisions about care being driven by budgets, ...
Briefing 146 – Local Government Benchmarking report
The Improvement Service have published their twelfth annual "Local Government Benchmarking Framework Report" The report is compiled for CoSLA & ...
Briefing 143 National Care Service Bill: Reform of Integrated Joint Boards
This briefing gives an overview of the IJB reforms set out in the government’s Stage 2 amendments to the NCS ...
More on briefings page
Latest responses and submissions
UN Convention on the Rights of the Child Bill consultation
UNISON Scotland thinks incorporation of the UNCRC into law is insufficient. For children to exercise their rights in practice requires ...
Response to the Just Transition Commission Interim Report June 2020
The Just Transition Commission published its Interim Report earlier this year. UNISON’s response to the Report stresses the need for ...
Response: Planning Performance and Fees February 2020
UNISON has been raising concerns about problems in planning departments for some time. We published papers based on surveys of ...
Pre-Budget Scrutiny: Roads Maintenance in Scotland
There is no doubt that local government has borne the brunt of cuts over the last 10 years. Reports,from COSLA, ...
More on responses page