In a new occasional series, Seun Matiluko catches up with politicians to discuss faith and how they balance religion with politics. Here, Afzal Khan, Labour MP for Manchester, Gorton, talks about his journey with Islam.

Among the Union Jacks flying proudly alongside stone cottages in the rural villages of Somerton and Frome, a scattering of tangerine Liberal Democrat signs has emerged in the once “true blue” constituency.

School reform over the past 30 years has significantly changed the school system. We have seen a shift from schools having little autonomy, and being part of a tightly knit local authority school system, to one where schools have greater freedom but have no obligation to be part of any wider local school system: from low school autonomy and a strong school system to higher school autonomy and a weaker school system.

Earlier this year, the government announced how £2.1bn of the Levelling Up Fund has been allocated. The aims of the funding are to “create new jobs, drive economic growth, help restore people’s pride in the places where they live, and spread opportunity more equally”.

Veterans Aid and Staffordshire Police have signed a partnership agreement in recognition of how working together can expedite the delivery of speedy intervention and support to veterans in crisis.

I find myself in an almost constant state of despair when I consider the way in which this nation is being run, especially when it comes to hideously blighted towns and cities, dereliction, vandalism, the destruction of fine old buildings which seem to have a habit of ‘going on fire’ as though they spontaneously combust, when it is certain they have been deliberately torched, and a great deal more.

I am truly honoured and excited to be taking up my role as Chair of the Local Government Association at our Annual Conference today.

CEO of Veterans Aid Dr Hugh Milroy (UK) has been appointed to a new post at the World Veterans Federation. In his unique role as Head of the organisation's Wellbeing Division he will advise  members on the development of veteran-centred wellbeing  worldwide

In 2021, the National Federation of Builders (NFB) House Builders Association (HBA) wrote to the Government to recommend five reforms that would not only retain existing social housing but increase social housing stock too

Inequalities between people and places are major and persistent challenges for the UK. Yet decades of policy interventions have largely failed to close the gaps that exist between different groups. Now a major new publication by Policy@Manchester, The University of Manchester’s policy engagement institute, suggests that embedding change needs to start with the local.

Today sees the Holocaust Memorial Bill return to Parliament for its Second Reading.

Housing matters everywhere in the UK but issues differ, particularly in Northern towns and villages.

Some of the UK’s top charities have secured vital funding after bookies handed over a huge donation following the flagship Britannia Stakes race at Royal Ascot.

I first attended Pride in 1996. The march (yet to be badged a parade) went from Hyde Park to Westminster, then we all piled onto the Northern line for a party of sorts on Clapham Common.

New data from the Electoral Commission has shown that around one in 25 people who did not vote at this year's local elections did so because of new voter ID rules.

Currently on display at the Museum of London Docklands is a book containing handwritten letters from 1837, written by Sir John Gladstone for the attention of the Colonial Office.

Britain’s biggest bookmakers will donate all profits from the Britannia Stakes race at Royal Ascot to a host of top UK charities.

The 75th anniversary of the arrival of HMT Empire Windrush is a chance to reflect on the pioneers who helped rebuild Britain, and explore the impact of ‘toxic’ government policies on the community.

Shadow Foreign Secretary David Lammy has said the 75th anniversary of the arrival of HMP Empire Windrush to the UK will be a “bittersweet commemoration” for him and the rest of the country.

With the Britannia Stakes around the corner, Chairman of the Betting and Gaming Council, Brigid Simmonds, explains the power of sport in raising money for worthy causes.

When the shocking story of Sheila Seleoane – whose body lay undiscovered in her flat for more than two years – hit the headlines last year, the country sat up and took notice.

History was made on 6 May 2023 when for the first time, representatives of non-Christian faiths were directly involved in the crowning of our Monarch. And I was one of them.

England stands at a crossroads, a moment teetering between a continued centralisation of power and the promise of a democratic evolution – devolution.