brash takes funding fight to whitehall as budget pressure grows Children’s services crisis to be discussed in london as Hartlepool's financial clock ticks 20th Feb 2026 H artlepool’s long-running battle for additional funding will now reportedly move to direct talks with central government after MP Jonathan Brash confirmed today that he's secured a ministerial meeting to press the case for support for the town’s crisis-hit children’s services. The intervention follows days of

An Unelected board heavily tied to the developers favour set to decide fate of disputed Marina housing scheme Jomast housing revamp faces mass opposition at Hartlepool Development Corporation 20th Feb 2026 A controversial redesign of a flagship Hartlepool marina housing scheme has triggered a wave of public opposition, with dozens of residents warning that the new plans could fundamentally alter the character of the area and open the door to future high-intensity accommodati

Children’s home plan for Granville Avenue set for council decision Bid to convert large dwelling into children’s home cites national shortage 20th Feb 2026 A substantial detached property in one of Hartlepool’s established residential areas could soon be converted into a children’s residential care home if council officials approve a change-of-use application... The proposal relates to 2 Granville Avenue, a large three-storey property currently classed as a family home. The a

BUDGET DAY SHOWDOWN ENDS IN DEFERRAL AS LABOUR 'CHICKENS OUT' & PLAYS FOR TIME Council Tax Call 'Kicked into the Long Grass', as Billing Deadline Looms. 20th Feb 2026 Hartlepool Borough Council was plunged ever deeper into financial and political uncertainty yesterday evening, after Labour councillors opted to defer a decisive vote on council tax, a move critics say risks administrative turmoil and prolongs the councils ever increasing budget crisis. Supporters of the Labour

130 jobs at risk as Mandelson-linked lobbying giant implodes Ex Hartlepool Labour MP Peter Mandelson's firm which he originally founded collapses after clients flee in Epstein scandal fallout... 19th Feb 2026 The lobbying and strategic advisory firm originally founded by former Hartlepool MP Peter Mandelson is on the brink of collapse, after a dramatic loss of major corporate clients in the wake of the Jeffrey Epstein scandal. Global Counsel , which employs about 130 staff ac

The Road to Section 114: How Hartlepool’s Finances Are Running Out of Time Ticking Time Bomb: The £6m Overspend That Could Break Hartlepool Borough Council 19th Feb 2026 Hartlepool Borough Council's staring into a financial abyss as a spiraling children’s social care bill threatens to consume the councils already fragile budget and force some of the deepest cuts to frontline local services since 2013. Town hall leaders are now said to be grappling with an overspend of around

Labours Council Tax Freeze Fantasy ends in Poised maximum Council Tax Increase for locals. Labours hold on Hartlepool Borough Council expected to collapse within days, after Treasury rejects bailout for Hartlepool Borough Council. 18th Feb 2026 H artlepool Borough Council’s failed bid for a Government bailout to cover its £6 million children’s services overspend has been further overshadowed by claims that ministers immediately rejected the cap in hand bid by Hartlepool Borou

Council Tax Rise Looms as Children’s Care Costs Push Hartlepool to the Edge Town Hall Meltdown: As Twenty One Hartlepool Labour Councillors All Threaten to Quit the Labour Party, as a poised Council Tax Freeze cannot be delivered to local's... 17th Feb 2026 TEESSIDE & DURHAM POST EXCLUSIVE A political earthquake's unfolding inside Hartlepool Borough Council, after the councils Labour leadership warned it's getting ready to 'walk away' from the party in protest at what it's br