Links to the booklets in the Good Councillors series are given below. Paper copies may be ordered from YLCA at a cost of £3.60 per copy plus post and packing.

The Good Councillors Guide (2018)
A vital guidance booklet for all councillors. A useful booklet which contains basic information about being a councillor and what local councils can, cannot and should be doing.

The Good Councillors Guide to Finance and Transparency (2018)
This guide is designed specifically to help local councillors support their communities and council in understanding their obligations and commitments with public money, both generally and under Transparency Code requirements, as well as sharing good practice in these areas

The Good Councillor's Guide to Employment
This guidance manual has been written in six sections which run through the job cycle, from recruitment to leaving an organisation for whatever reason. It provides an overview of the key legal issues that local councils should be aware of and how to get more information and support. The guide also provides information and advice on how to get the best from your staff through training and development.

The Good Councillors Guide to Neighbourhood Planning (2018)
This guide is designed specifically to help parish and town councillors support their communities and council in deciding whether or not to produce a neighbourhood plan for their area and, if they decide to go ahead, to guide them through the process of producing the plan and thinking about how it will be delivered. Whilst other guides are predominantly concerned with the legislation and process, the partnership of Locality and NALC have attempted, wherever possible, to include guidance on good practice for carrying out each part of the plan. The booklet draws upon the experience of Locality and its partners who are working with community groups preparing neighbourhood plans through the national support programme. Locality has worked with a wide range of organisations, parish councils in particular and neighbourhood forums in urban and rural areas.

The Good Councillors Guide to Transport Planning (2019)
This guide is designed to provide an over view for local councils in relation to transport planning. Transport planning covers integrated transport networks including road building, cycle networks, walking networks and public transport.

The Good Councillor's guide to community business

The guide for parish, town and community councillors will set out the principles of what a community business is and help local (parish and town) councils to consider whether this form of business could be appropriate in their community.

This publication contains 12 sections and aims to help councillors learn about the development stages of a community business, consider their role and that of the local council and also learn from examples of where collaboration has succeeded in other areas. Furthermore, seven case studies of local councils are included along with a resource list of useful websites, to facilitate further learning about this form of business.

Community businesses are locally rooted, community-led, trade for community benefit and make life better for local people. There are 9,000 community businesses across England employing 33,600 people with assets of £890m. From pubs to libraries; shops to bakeries; swimming pools to solar farms; community businesses are creating great products and services, providing employment and training and transforming lives.

The Good Councillor's guide to cyber security

NALC has launched The Good Councillor's guide to cyber security in partnership with Microshade VSM.

The guide aims to help local (parish and town) councils understand the importance of cyber security better and provide practical advice on minimising risks to the council. The guide features information on understanding the most common threats such as phishing, viruses, loss of data and how some simple steps can help protect the council's data and equipment.

The guide pays particular attention to smaller councils, which may have just one device that holds all current and historical information on the council's activities. If that device is lost or broken, a few simple, pre-emptive steps to minimise risks and back up data could transform a crisis into a manageable situation.

The COVID-19 pandemic has seen an unprecedented transformation of local councils as they have moved to remote meetings and home working. These changes have allowed local councils to continue supporting communities through these challenging times. However, with these benefits, there are many challenges. One of these is cyber security, and the local council sector must understand it to safeguard the council's good work for its communities.

You don't need to be a technical expert to safeguard your council. With this guide, along with a small investment of time and resource, your council can reduce these risks.

Books specific to the Local Council sector :

The Law of Allotments by Paul Clayden, 5th Edition, ISBN number: 978 0 7219 0143 5

Local Council Administration by Charles Arnold Baker, 13th Edition, ISBN number: 978 1 4057 8807 6 - available from bookshops, Internet and SLCC (where the clerk is a member).