Briefings and responses

The LGA is calling for the Government to ensure that all councils have sufficient funding to deliver their 2023/24 budgets, set balanced budgets for 2024/25 and develop medium-term financial strategies that are not characterised by substantial funding gaps.

It is hugely disappointing that this settlement has confirmed that government will not provide any new funding for councils in 2017/18

By 2019/20, more than half of all English councils, including three quarters of district councils, will no longer receive the revenue support grant.

The final settlement includes an additional £190 million for local government, when compared to the indicative 2018/19 settlement announced this time last year.

Local authorities will face an overall funding gap of £3.1 billion in 2019/20, which we estimate will rise to £8 billion by 2024/25. The pressures are particularly acute in adult social care, children’s services and homelessness support.

Years of unprecedented funding reductions have had a significant impact on the local services our communities rely on, and the knock-on effect on other parts of the public sector.

Councils will face an overall funding gap of £3.1 billion in 2019/20, which we estimate will rise to £8 billion by 2024/25. The pressures are particularly acute in adult social care, children’s services, public health and homelessness support. Overspends in these services have forced councils to make in-year budget cuts to balance their books.

Investing in councils will have a positive effect on wider economic growth and the public finances. Research suggests that putting money into infrastructure and services such as social housing, local roads, and green spaces is good for the overall economy.

Effective procurement has never been more important for local government.

The information below outlines the scale of the financial challenge facing all councils, including district councils, and the measures which must be taken to ensure local government is funded sustainably. It also sets out the pressures facing some of district councils’ most in-demand services.