Public health: every metropolitan borough ranked by spend per resident
35 councils · median £86.88/person · mean £87.94/person. From MHCLG Revenue Outturn 2024-25.
| Rank | Council | Control | Seats | Population | Total spend | Per resident | vs median |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Knowsley | Ind | 162,565 | £21.5m | £132.03 | +52% | |
| 2 | Wirral | Lab | 328,873 | £38.4m | £116.91 | +35% | |
| 3 | Liverpool | Lab | 508,961 | £55.7m | £109.48 | +26% | |
| 4 | Doncaster | Ref | 319,765 | £34.4m | £107.65 | +24% | |
| 5 | South Tyneside | Ref | — | 151,393 | £16.0m | £105.69 | +22% |
| 6 | Newcastle upon Tyne | LD | — | 320,605 | £33.4m | £104.07 | +20% |
| 7 | Gateshead | Ref | — | 202,760 | £21.0m | £103.45 | +19% |
| 8 | Barnsley | Ref | 251,770 | £25.8m | £102.65 | +18% | |
| 9 | Sunderland | Ref | — | 288,606 | £29.6m | £102.49 | +18% |
| 10 | St. Helens | Ref | 188,861 | £19.0m | £100.43 | +16% | |
| 11 | Bradford | Ref | — | 563,605 | £54.9m | £97.45 | +12% |
| 12 | Wigan | Ref | 344,922 | £33.5m | £97.10 | +12% | |
| 13 | Sefton | Lab | — | 286,281 | £27.5m | £96.18 | +11% |
| 14 | Manchester | Green | 589,670 | £55.8m | £94.65 | +9% | |
| 15 | Rochdale | Ref | 235,561 | £22.1m | £93.99 | +8% | |
| 16 | Wolverhampton | Ref | 281,251 | £24.9m | £88.45 | +2% | |
| 17 | Wakefield | Ref | — | 367,666 | £32.0m | £86.99 | +0% |
| 18 | Calderdale | Ref | — | 210,929 | £18.3m | £86.88 | 0% |
| 19 | Sandwell | Ref | — | 353,860 | £29.9m | £84.54 | -3% |
| 20 | Coventry | Ref | — | 369,026 | £30.8m | £83.53 | -4% |
| 21 | Oldham | Ref | 251,560 | £19.8m | £78.61 | -10% | |
| 22 | Tameside | Ref | 239,643 | £18.7m | £78.11 | -10% | |
| 23 | Rotherham | Lab | 276,595 | £21.5m | £77.74 | -11% | |
| 24 | Walsall | Ref | — | 295,678 | £22.7m | £76.81 | -12% |
| 25 | Dudley | Ref | 331,930 | £25.2m | £76.03 | -12% | |
| 26 | North Tyneside | Ref | 215,025 | £16.1m | £74.94 | -14% | |
| 27 | Stockport | LD | 303,929 | £22.6m | £74.49 | -14% | |
| 28 | Salford | Ref | 294,348 | £21.6m | £73.46 | -15% | |
| 29 | Kirklees | Ref | — | 447,847 | £32.9m | £73.39 | -16% |
| 30 | Leeds | Ref | 845,189 | £61.4m | £72.68 | -16% | |
| 31 | Bolton | Ref | 310,085 | £21.7m | £70.12 | -19% | |
| 32 | Solihull | Con | — | 221,242 | £14.9m | £67.54 | -22% |
| 33 | Sheffield | Ref | 582,493 | £38.5m | £66.09 | -24% | |
| 34 | Bury | Lab | 198,921 | £12.4m | £62.58 | -28% | |
| 35 | Trafford | Lab | 241,025 | £14.7m | £60.87 | -30% |
What this shows. Net revenue expenditure on the public health 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.