Innovation in local government is about improving the lives of the people in our
communities. Browse through our case studies to see the many innovative programmes councils are involved
in.
In Bristol, the uptake of all childhood immunisations is below safe levels and requires urgent attention; increasing coverage is a national and local priority. Over the last few years, there has been a particular focus on measles, mumps, and rubella (MMR) nationally through the UK Measles and Rubella Elimination Strategy (2019) and the catch-up campaign (2022) due to a resurgence of measles, and because measles is one of the most contagious of all vaccination preventable diseases.
Decreasing the incidence of vaccine-preventable disease is a core public health priority. Following a local measles outbreak in Leeds, Leeds City Council Public Health, West Yorkshire Integrated Care Board (ICB) and NHS England led a targeted, community-centred programme to strengthen vaccination awareness across the life course, build confidence and increase uptake in communities experiencing inequalities.
County Durham launched a three year flu vaccination pilot in 2022 to address declining uptake among two to three-year-olds and widening inequalities across the county. Building on learning from the COVID 19 vaccination programme, the pilot introduced nursery based and community based vaccination clinics to complement traditional GP delivery. The aim was to improve accessibility, reduce barriers and gather insights from parents and carers.
Leeds has experienced a significant rise in vaccine-preventable diseases in recent years, including measles and pertussis. Between September 2024 and April 2025, there were over 100 confirmed measles cases across multiple schools and nurseries, resulting in a sustained community outbreak with no single source of transmission. This highlighted both the vulnerability of the local unvaccinated population and the urgent need for a more coordinated, intelligence-led response to improving vaccination uptake through targeted interventions.
In response to a measles outbreak declared by UKHSA in January 2024, Manchester delivered pop-up university vaccination clinics to rapidly protect its large student population.
Like many areas nationally, Hull has faced ongoing challenges with childhood vaccination uptake, particularly with Measles, Mumps and Rubella (MMR) vaccination.
The Suffolk Office of Data and Analytics (SODA), a collaboration between Suffolk’s Local Authorities, Suffolk Constabulary and local NHS Organisations, has developed a collaborative, analyst-led community to support the use of coding tools such as R and Python across local government and partner organisations.
Families Thriving Together is a charity founded in Southeast England in 2022 by CEO Michelle Tucker, which brings parenting support to hundreds of families each year – most of them through referrals from the local authority. Michelle has years of experience delivering local authority settings and has a unique understanding of how local authorities and local charities can work well together.
The Rochdale Flood Poverty Project, funded by the North West Regional Flood and Coastal Committee (NWRFCC) with support from Rochdale Borough Council (RBC), examined how socio‑economic disadvantage shapes local flood vulnerability. Introducing the concept of “flood poverty” (analogous to fuel poverty), it analysed flood literacy and home insurance uptake to identify barriers to community resilience.