Councils are a tier of Government. Sort of regional mini governments (and they can be conservative/Labour/Liberal/ Green in their own right regardless of central government) . Not sure what the US equivalent would be but yes, it is the councils who are responsible for housing, and education as well as a host of other services. Thanks for responding. I'm learning more about the USA through Medium. I've had fun with some language barriers, but hoping to become more fluent the more I engage here.