In December 2025 to January 2026, the Local Government Association (LGA) distributed an online survey to the chief financial officers of English councils. The purpose of the survey was: to assess the financial position of councils in setting their budgets for the 2026/27 financial year; to gauge the likelihood of councils to need to apply for exceptional financial support (EFS); and to explore councils’ positions on a range of other financial topics, such as dedicated schools grant (DSG) deficits related to special
For each quarter an excel sheet containing all data for each local authority and a PDF overview containing headline figures and breakdowns by region and authority type is published.
In September to October 2025, the Local Government Association sent an online survey to all English local councils. This survey gathered insights into local authorities’ approaches to digital inclusion, including how these intersect with connectivity challenges. The findings will inform how digital inclusion aligns with local government priorities and enables the LGA to effectively advocate for the sector and identify areas where support is needed. A total 83 local authorities responded to the survey, a response rate of 26 per cent.
This survey was conducted by the LGA on behalf of the National Joint Council for Local Authorities’ Fire and Rescue Services in order to provide up-to-date information about the workforce to inform upcoming national pay negotiations. The survey was sent to all 48 fire and rescue services in the United Kingdom in July 2025, and received a response rate of 98 per cent.
In May 2025, the LGA sent an online survey to all councillors in England and Wales to investigate the extent to which abuse and intimidation remains rife in public life, as well the nature and scale of abuse and intimidation. This research report provides the findings of the survey.
From December 2024 to February 2025, the LGA repeated its survey to explore the use of artificial intelligence in English councils. This will enable the LGA to build an evidence base for its support to councils in this space, and to ensure that local government is part of the national conversation.
The survey was conducted to inform and support anti-social behaviour policy development and explores the local authority’s threshold used to initiate a case review, the choice of case hearing chair, as well as promotion of the process among the community.
