Adult social care: every metropolitan borough ranked by spend per resident
35 councils · median £530.39/person · mean £531.16/person. From MHCLG Revenue Outturn 2024-25.
| Rank | Council | Control | Seats | Population | Total spend | Per resident | vs median |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Knowsley | Ind | 162,565 | £120.2m | £739.20 | +39% | |
| 2 | South Tyneside | Ref | — | 151,393 | £98.6m | £651.19 | +23% |
| 3 | Liverpool | Lab | 508,961 | £323.7m | £636.03 | +20% | |
| 4 | Gateshead | Ref | — | 202,760 | £126.9m | £625.93 | +18% |
| 5 | Rotherham | Lab | 276,595 | £167.5m | £605.53 | +14% | |
| 6 | Sheffield | Ref | 582,493 | £350.3m | £601.43 | +13% | |
| 7 | Sunderland | Ref | — | 288,606 | £170.2m | £589.62 | +11% |
| 8 | Newcastle upon Tyne | LD | — | 320,605 | £187.2m | £583.86 | +10% |
| 9 | Wirral | Lab | 328,873 | £191.7m | £582.95 | +10% | |
| 10 | Manchester | Green | 589,670 | £343.3m | £582.24 | +10% | |
| 11 | Sefton | Lab | — | 286,281 | £157.6m | £550.65 | +4% |
| 12 | Solihull | Con | — | 221,242 | £120.9m | £546.56 | +3% |
| 13 | Doncaster | Ref | 319,765 | £173.9m | £543.95 | +3% | |
| 14 | Wolverhampton | Ref | 281,251 | £151.8m | £539.57 | +2% | |
| 15 | Stockport | LD | 303,929 | £163.5m | £538.04 | +1% | |
| 16 | Rochdale | Ref | 235,561 | £126.1m | £535.48 | +1% | |
| 17 | St. Helens | Ref | 188,861 | £101.1m | £535.29 | +1% | |
| 18 | Bury | Lab | 198,921 | £105.5m | £530.39 | 0% | |
| 19 | Walsall | Ref | — | 295,678 | £154.5m | £522.64 | -1% |
| 20 | Calderdale | Ref | — | 210,929 | £107.4m | £509.33 | -4% |
| 21 | Wakefield | Ref | — | 367,666 | £186.3m | £506.79 | -4% |
| 22 | Dudley | Ref | 331,930 | £166.1m | £500.35 | -6% | |
| 23 | Kirklees | Ref | — | 447,847 | £222.1m | £495.96 | -6% |
| 24 | North Tyneside | Ref | 215,025 | £105.4m | £489.98 | -8% | |
| 25 | Oldham | Ref | 251,560 | £123.0m | £488.80 | -8% | |
| 26 | Trafford | Lab | 241,025 | £117.5m | £487.54 | -8% | |
| 27 | Coventry | Ref | — | 369,026 | £179.4m | £486.16 | -8% |
| 28 | Bolton | Ref | 310,085 | £148.9m | £480.17 | -9% | |
| 29 | Tameside | Ref | 239,643 | £114.6m | £478.23 | -10% | |
| 30 | Wigan | Ref | 344,922 | £162.1m | £470.01 | -11% | |
| 31 | Bradford | Ref | — | 563,605 | £253.3m | £449.37 | -15% |
| 32 | Salford | Ref | 294,348 | £128.5m | £436.47 | -18% | |
| 33 | Sandwell | Ref | — | 353,860 | £152.5m | £430.96 | -19% |
| 34 | Leeds | Ref | 845,189 | £359.3m | £425.12 | -20% | |
| 35 | Barnsley | Ref | 251,770 | £104.4m | £414.83 | -22% |
What this shows. Net revenue expenditure on the adult social care bucket from each council’s 2024-25 Revenue Outturn (RO) submission to MHCLG, divided by ONS mid-year population. Higher per-head doesn’t imply waste — it can reflect demographic need (e.g. more older residents), rurality, or policy choice (e.g. retaining in-house services rather than contracting out). Lower per-head doesn’t imply efficiency — some councils have moved costs to fees, grants, or a ringfenced account.
Caveats. Councils under MHCLG suppression for 2024-25 don’t appear here (Birmingham, Slough, Cumberland and others — see their council card for the reason). Comparisons across the tier line don’t make sense, which is why this table is filtered to one council type at a time. Source: MHCLG Local Authority Revenue Expenditure and Financing.