The local authorityCouncil · district · England · 1 of 164 councils (district)

Arun.

Conservative and Unionist Party-controlled district. £21m net revenue. 23 wards across 4 parliamentary constituencies.

Typedistrict
Seats54 councillors · 23 wards
Last election4 May 2023
Net revenue · 2025-26
£21m
Core spending power (MHCLG)
Band-D bill
£2,371
For the council slice (incl. precepts)
Composition
20/54
Conservative and Unionist Party 37%
Westminster
4
constituencies overlap · 3 MP parties
Dispatch
31 May 2026

Conservative and Unionist Party chamber, 3-party MP geography.

Arun is a district controlled by Conservative and Unionist Party (20 of 54 seats). Net revenue is £21m for 2025-26. It covers 23 wards spanning 4 parliamentary constituencies. The MP geography crosses 3 parties — a heterogeneous setup.

§ 01Composition.54 seats · last contested 4 May 2023

Who sits in the chamber.

Con 20LD 14Lab 8Green 6Independent Berwick Hills Resident 6

Conservative and Unionist Party 37% · last contested 4 May 2023

Councillors — the people.

CouncillorWardElected
Ash PatelConAldwick East2023
Trevor BenceConAldwick East2023
Claire Marie NeedsLDAldwick West2023
Guy Richard PurserConAldwick West2023
Amelia WorneLDAngmering Findon2023
Andy CooperConAngmering Findon2023
Paul Andrew BicknellConAngmering Findon2023
Carol BirchGrnArundel Walberton2023
Melanie Jill PenycateGrnArundel Walberton2023
Steve McAuliffeGrnArundel Walberton2023
Anita June LawrenceGrnBarnham2023
Paul AylingGrnBarnham2023
Showing 12 of 54·All 54 councillors
§ 02Revenue mix & Band-D bill.MHCLG — Final LGFS 2025-26 Core Spending Power table

Where revenue comes from.

67%
Council tax
£14.0m · median 61%
22%
Central grants
£4.7m · median 26%
10%
Business rates
£2.1m · median 11%

This is a high-council-tax councils (district): 67% of revenue from council tax, above the cohort median (61%).

Source · MHCLG — Final LGFS 2025-26 Core Spending Power table · derived (CT exact; grants/rates split from SFA baseline)

Band-D bill.

Council slice£215
County / upper-tier£1,801
Police£267
Fire & rescue£0
GLA precept£0
Parish average£89
Total Band-D£2,371

Parish precepts apply on top, vary by parish

For household tax breakdown

Use the income slider on My place to see income tax, NI, VAT and council tax against your earnings.

§ 03Service spend, ranked against peers.6 buckets · vs 163 other councils (district)

How does Arun split its revenue across services, compared with peer councils (district)-class councils? Each row is one of the ten standard service buckets. The vertical line at the centre is the cohort median share; the coloured square is where this council sits. Squares to the right of centre mean a bigger share of revenue than the median peer; to the left, a smaller share.

Waste & Recycling35.2% of net spend · cohort median 32%
53 of 158+10% vs median
Corporate & Central25.1% of net spend · cohort median 27%
93 of 158-6% vs median
Housing & Homelessness23.1% of net spend · cohort median 14%
20 of 158+64% vs median
Planning & Economic Development11.8% of net spend · cohort median 14%
104 of 158-18% vs median
Culture & Leisure8.8% of net spend · cohort median 13%
112 of 158-34% vs median
Highways & Transport-4.0% of net spend · cohort median -2%
95 of 158
How to read these bars

The subtitle on each row (“X% of net spend”) is what share of this council’s revenue goes to that service. The rank (“15 of 61”) is where this council sits within the cohort, sorted by that share descending. The delta (“+26% vs median”) is a relative reading: the council allocates 26% more of its revenue to that service than the median peer would. A small absolute difference can still be a big relative one.

Higher share doesn’t mean waste — it can reflect demographic need (more older residents), rurality, or a policy choice (e.g. keeping a service in-house). Lower share doesn’t mean efficiency — some councils move costs to fees, ringfenced accounts, or grants. £-per-head would be sharper than share-of-revenue; LAD population is pending ingest. Comparisons are within the same council type only.

§ 04Top suppliers.1,239 payments · £16.9m gross · 9 Jan 202624 Apr 2026

Every invoice over £500, published under the Local Government Transparency Code. Best-effort, not statutory — counts and totals net negatives (refunds/reversals).

Top by total — last 180 days

SupplierPaidSharePmts
WEST SUSSEX COUNTY COUNCIL£3.02m17.9%7
BIFFA MUNICIPAL LTD£1.41m8.3%1
NEILCOTT CONSTRUCTION LTD£1.21m7.2%4
STEELERAYMOND SOLICITORS£0.95m5.6%6
LITTLEHAMPTON TOWN COUNCIL£0.87m5.1%2
BOGNOR REGIS TOWN COUNCIL£0.56m3.3%2
MARSH LIMITED£0.55m3.2%3
DLUHC£0.45m2.7%1
RUSTINGTON PARISH COUNCIL£0.41m2.4%1
FREEDOM LEISURE£0.36m2.1%20

By service area · top supplier

Service-classified supplier data not yet ingested for this council.

§ 05Westminster constituencies — the overlap.23 wards split across 4 parliamentary seats

Arun’s territory crosses 4 Westminster constituencies, with 3 MP parties represented. The middle column shows how much of the council each seat carries.

ConstituencyWards% of councilCurrent MP
Bognor Regis and Littlehampton1670% Alison GriffithsCon
Worthing West313% Beccy CooperLab
Arundel and South Downs29% Andrew GriffithCon
Chichester29% Jess Brown-FullerLD
Of note · the mixed-MP geography

This council holds 2 Ind, 1 Ind and 1 Ind MPs. That’s an unusually heterogeneous geography for a Conservative and Unionist Party-controlled district — most weeks one MP is asking the council for something and another is praising it.

Sources, methods & last update
Method The dispatch paragraphs are AI-generated from the public sources listed below. Every figure links to its source. If we’re wrong, please tell us — corrections within 48 hours.
CompositionDemocracy Club (live)
DCLEAPIL v1.0 (historic)
Net revenueMHCLG Final LGFS
Core Spending Power table · 2025-26
Service spendDerived from MHCLG CSP shares
vs 163 other councils (district)
Band-DMHCLG CSP · precept schedules
Police, Fire, Parish on top
SuppliersCouncil publication under LGTC
1,239 payments · 9 Jan 202624 Apr 2026
Westminster overlapONS Open Geography Portal
2023 boundaries
PopulationONS mid-year estimates
Pending ingest at LAD level