Councils call for Spending Review to end financial ‘sticking plasters’

Half of councils fear they will not be able to fully fund statutory services in 2026/27, according to latest research that “lays bare” an £8bn local government funding gap by 2028/29. The LGA warns that further budget cuts “will affect the most vulnerable members of society and the services our communities rely on every day”, including to “vital bus and home-to-school transport routes and children left without access to vital special educational needs provision”. Extra government money for councils this year will help meet “some, but not all, of the cost and demand pressures they face in adult and children’s social care, homelessness prevention, and support for children and young people with special educational needs and disabilities”, said the LGA. Read more.