Question 1

How much has council tax gone up this year?

Accepted Answer

MHCLG publishes council tax levels for every council in England each March. For 2026-27, published 25 March 2026, the average Band D council tax in England is £2,392, up £111 or 4.9% on 2025-26. That includes the adult social care precept and parish precepts. The local authority tables show the Band D figure and increase for every area, which answers which councils charge most and least. Wales publishes its own council tax levels each year, and the Scottish Government publishes Scottish figures. Band D is a standard measure, not an average bill: most homes in England are in lower bands, so the average bill per dwelling is lower (£1,868 in 2026-27). Percentage rises also differ between areas because councils, police and fire authorities and parishes each set their part.

Question 2

How much are councillors paid?

Accepted Answer

Councillors in England are not paid a salary. They receive allowances set by each council in a members' allowances scheme, after advice from an independent remuneration panel. Under the Local Authorities (Members' Allowances) (England) Regulations 2003 , councils must publish the total each councillor received each year, split into basic allowance, special responsibility allowances and expenses. In Wales the Independent Remuneration Panel for Wales sets payments for all councils, and Scotland sets councillors' pay nationally by regulations. Councillors must also declare interests: under the Localism Act 2011, English councils publish each councillor's register of interests on their website. Allowances are generally taxable as income.

Question 3

What is a section 114 notice, and is my council bankrupt?

Accepted Answer

A section 114 notice is a report by a council's chief finance officer under section 114 of the Local Government Finance Act 1988 . It must be issued if spending is likely to exceed the resources available, or if the council plans unlawful spending. Councillors must meet to consider it within 21 days, and until then the council may not enter new spending commitments without the chief finance officer's authorisation. Councils cannot be declared bankrupt in the way a company or person can, and "bankrupt" is not an official term. Councils publish their own notices; there is no official national list. MHCLG publishes which councils have received Exceptional Financial Support , usually permission to fund day-to-day costs by borrowing or selling assets. Exceptional Financial Support is not the same as a section 114 notice: many councils receive it without issuing one.

Question 4

How much debt are councils in?

Accepted Answer

MHCLG publishes council borrowing in two places. The borrowing and investment live table gives outstanding borrowing and investments for UK local authorities, updated quarterly. The capital outturn releases give net debt by type of council in England, with council-level data. Councils must set a balanced budget for day-to-day spending each year, and borrow mainly to pay for capital projects such as housing, roads and schools, under the Prudential Code. Reserves, the money set aside for future costs, are in the revenue outturn statistics. A council's gross debt says little alone: compare it with its assets, income and the purpose of the borrowing, and separate housing revenue account debt, which is backed by council rents.

Question 5

How are councils funded?

Accepted Answer

English councils pay for day-to-day services from four main sources: government grants, a share of business rates, council tax, and fees and charges. Each year MHCLG sets out grants and business rates shares in the local government finance settlement, which the House of Commons approves. The 2026-27 settlement was the first multi-year settlement in a decade, covering 2026-27 to 2028-29. The settlement's main measure is "core spending power" for each council: settlement grants, retained business rates and an assumed council tax income. Core spending power assumes every council raises council tax by the maximum allowed, so a rise in it is not all new government money. Check whether a claim is in cash or real terms.

Question 6

How much do councils spend on adult social care?

Accepted Answer

Councils' planned spending on adult social care in England is in MHCLG's revenue expenditure statistics: the 2026-27 budget release, published 11 June 2026, puts net adult social care spending at £28.7 billion, excluding funding passed through from the NHS. For more detail, the Adult Social Care Activity and Finance Report , published each autumn by NHS England (formerly NHS Digital), shows gross spending, requests for support and people receiving long-term care, for each council. Gross and net spending differ by billions because of income from client charges and NHS contributions, so check which a claim uses. Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland organise and fund social care differently.

Question 7

Where can I see my council's spending over £500?

Accepted Answer

Under the Local Government Transparency Code 2015 , councils in England must publish every item of spending over £500, at least quarterly and no later than one month after the quarter ends. Look on your council's website for "spending over £500" or "transparency". Each line shows the date, supplier, amount and service area. The Code also requires councils to publish purchase card spending, contracts over £5,000, senior salaries, the pay multiple and parking accounts. Each council publishes its own files, so formats differ and there is no single national database. Lines can be redacted to protect personal data, and a payment's description is the council's own label. If a figure is missing, a Freedom of Information request is the next step.

Question 8

What do councils spend their money on?

Accepted Answer

For England, the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government (MHCLG) publishes local authority revenue expenditure and financing statistics: budgets in June and actual spending (outturn) later, for every council and service. The 2026-27 budget release, published 11 June 2026, puts councils' net current spending on services at £148.8 billion. Education is the largest item at £49.1 billion (most of it passed straight to schools), then adult social care at £28.7 billion and children's social care at £17.0 billion. Budgets are plans, so check the outturn figures for what was actually spent. "Net" spending excludes income from fees and charges, and education figures move when schools become academies. See our local government finance guide .

Question 9

Can I inspect my council's accounts?

Accepted Answer

Yes. Under the Local Audit and Accountability Act 2014 , any person interested, including local residents and businesses, can inspect a council's accounts and supporting documents, such as invoices and contracts, during a set 30 working-day period each year. Local electors can also question the auditor and make formal objections. The council must advertise the dates on its website; the National Audit Office's guide explains the process. Many English councils fell years behind on audited accounts. The government set legal backstop dates: 2024-25 accounts were due by 27 February 2026 and 2025-26 accounts by 31 January 2027. MHCLG publishes lists of bodies that missed them. An audit opinion that is "disclaimed" or "modified" because of the backstop means the auditor could not complete the work, not necessarily that the auditor found a problem.

Question 10

How bad are potholes and roads in England?

Accepted Answer

The Department for Transport publishes road condition statistics each year. For the year ending March 2025, published 21 January 2026, councils reported that 5% of their A roads, 7% of B and C roads and 17% of unclassified roads were rated red, meaning they should have been considered for maintenance. DfT also publishes local road maintenance ratings , giving each highway authority in England a red, amber or green rating, and councils publish their own highway maintenance reports. There is no official national count of potholes. Condition data comes from surveys of road surfaces, and methods differ between road types, so compare like with like.

Question 11

What is the maximum council tax increase allowed without a referendum?

Accepted Answer

In England, councils must hold a local referendum if they want to raise council tax above limits set by the government each year in a report approved by the House of Commons. For 2026-27, the referendum principles report makes a rise of 5% or more excessive for councils with social care duties (2% for adult social care plus 3% for other spending). For shire districts the limit is 3% or more and more than £5. A few named councils were allowed higher limits in 2026-27, so check the report for a particular area. The limit applies to each authority's own part of the bill, not the total, and police and fire precepts have their own limits. The referendum rules apply in England only; Scotland and Wales set council tax under their own rules.

Councils and local government: your questions answered