Local Government Finance Settlement 2024/25: Consultation Response

Our response to the provisional 2024/25 Local Government Finance Settlement outlines deep concerns, arguing it fails to address extreme financial pressures facing county and unitary authorities.  

Despite rising demand, inflation, and escalating costs - particularly in children’s social care and home‑to‑school transport - no additional government support was provided either through the Autumn Statement or the Provisional Settlement.  

We warn that many councils now face severe service reductions, higher council tax rises, and growing difficulty balancing budgets for the coming year:

• CCN member councils face a £611m budget gap in 2024/25, alongside £639m in in‑year overspends for 2023/24.  
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• The Autumn Statement left 9 in 10 councils in a worse financial position, largely due to the National Living Wage increase.  
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• Cuts to the Services Grant (from £483m to £77m) were unexpected and damaging.   Many councils now expect deeper service reductions and maximum council tax rises.  
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• The response to the Provisional Settlement calls on government to provide emergency additional funding through the final settlement, targeted at upper‑tier councils.