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Councils continue to face huge uncertainty about how they will pay for local services into the next decade and beyond.

Local government in England faces an overall funding gap of almost £8 billion by 2025.  As these figures show, councils are increasingly having to divert money from other services to meet an unprecedented surge in demand for children’s and adult social care.

Councils have shouldered more than their fair share of austerity and have tried to reduce any impact on residents, but there is only so much they can do and the financial challenges they face are growing. More and more councils are struggling to balance their books and others are considering whether they have the funding to even deliver their statutory requirements

"Those affected will be pleased that the Government is taking steps to address this issue next year. The LGA will be encouraging all our member councils to respond to this consultation. "

Only with the right funding and powers can councils continue to make a difference to people’s lives by building desperately-needed homes, creating jobs and school places, filling potholes, maintaining parks and green spaces, running children’s centres, leisure centres and libraries, caring for elderly and disabled people and protecting children.

The additional one-off social care funding announced today is a temporary measure and needs to be compared against an annual social care funding gap of £2.3 billion by 2020.

“Years of unprecedented central government funding cuts have left many councils beyond the point where council tax income can be expected to plug the growing funding gaps they face."

Already stretched councils in England will see the core central government funding they use to pay for vital services like collecting bins, filling potholes, protecting children and caring for elderly and disabled people, cut in half over the next two years.

“The LGA has long called for councils to be given greater freedom to borrow to build new homes and today’s Budget has taken a step towards that by lifting the housing borrowing cap for some councils."

Cllr Claire Kober, Chair of the Local Government Association’s Resources Board, responded to the National Audit Office report on 100 per cent retention of business rates