The local authorityCouncil · Unitary · England · 1 of 63 unitary authorities

Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole.

Liberal Democrats-controlled unitary. £419m net revenue. 33 wards across 5 parliamentary constituencies.

TypeUnitary
Seats81 councillors · 33 wards
Last election4 May 2023
Websitebcpcouncil.gov.uk
Net revenue · 2025-26
£419m
Core spending power (MHCLG)
Band-D bill
£2,265
For the council slice (incl. precepts)
Composition
28/81
Liberal Democrats 35%
Westminster
5
constituencies overlap · 3 MP parties
Dispatch
31 May 2026

Liberal Democrats chamber, 3-party MP geography.

Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole is a unitary controlled by Liberal Democrats (28 of 81 seats). Net revenue is £419m for 2025-26. It covers 33 wards spanning 5 parliamentary constituencies. The MP geography crosses 3 parties — a heterogeneous setup.

§ 01Composition.81 seats · last contested 4 May 2023

Who sits in the chamber.

LD 28Con 16Lab 11Christchurch Independents 8Independent Berwick Hills Resident 6Green 5

Liberal Democrats 35% · last contested 4 May 2023

Councillors — the people.

CouncillorWardElected
Adrian David ChapmanlawLDAlderney Bourne Valley2023
Rachel Marie MaidmentLDAlderney Bourne Valley2023
Tony TrentLDAlderney Bourne Valley2023
David Anthony BrownLDBearwood Merley2023
Marcus Julian Charles AndrewsLDBearwood Merley2023
Richard Glyn BurtonLDBearwood Merley2023
Eleanor ConnollyLabBoscombe East Pokesdown2023
George S FarquharLabBoscombe East Pokesdown2023
Gillian Mary MartinLabBoscombe West2023
Patrick CanavanLabBoscombe West2023
Hazel AllenConBournemouth Central2023
Jamie Paul MartinLabBournemouth Central2023
Showing 12 of 81·All 81 councillors
§ 02Revenue mix & Band-D bill.MHCLG — Final LGFS 2025-26 Core Spending Power table

Where revenue comes from.

65%
Council tax
£273.1m · median 59%
27%
Central grants
£113.5m · median 30%
8%
Business rates
£32.2m · median 11%

This is a high-council-tax unitary authoritie: 65% of revenue from council tax, above the cohort median (59%).

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

Band-D bill.

Council slice£1,855
County / upper-tier£0
Police£308
Fire & rescue£92
GLA precept£0
Parish average£10
Total Band-D£2,265

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.10 buckets · vs 62 other unitary authorities

How does Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole split its revenue across services, compared with peer unitary authoritie-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.

Adult Social Care31.0% of net spend · cohort median 27%
9 of 61+14% vs median
Education30.9% of net spend · cohort median 36%
43 of 61-14% vs median
Children's Services16.1% of net spend · cohort median 15%
26 of 61+9% vs median
Waste & Recycling6.1% of net spend · cohort median 6%
23 of 61+6% vs median
Corporate & Central4.0% of net spend · cohort median 3%
9 of 61+40% vs median
Public Health3.3% of net spend · cohort median 4%
37 of 61-10% vs median
Housing & Homelessness2.6% of net spend · cohort median 2%
20 of 61+38% vs median
Culture & Leisure2.5% of net spend · cohort median 2%
25 of 61+18% vs median
Planning & Economic Development2.2% of net spend · cohort median 1%
13 of 61+57% vs median
Highways & Transport1.3% of net spend · cohort median 3%
52 of 61-51% vs median
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.80,649 payments · £213.3m gross · 3 Dec 202531 Mar 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
REDACTED PERSONAL DATA£11.23m5.3%11,002
BOURNEMOUTH BUILDING & MAINTENANCE LTD£6.00m2.8%99
COMENSURA LTD£5.01m2.4%17
WATES RESIDENTIAL CONSTRUCTION LTD£4.76m2.2%4
DORSET COUNCIL£4.20m2.0%83
KNIGHTS BROWN CONSTRUCTION LTD£4.17m2.0%10
REDACTED MORE BUS£3.96m1.9%145
MEDEQUIP ASSISTIVE TECHNOLOGY LTD£3.68m1.7%4
WE ARE WITH YOU£3.48m1.6%55
N+P CRAYFORD MRF LTD£3.07m1.4%3

By service area · top supplier

ServiceTop supplierPaid
Housing And HomelessnessBOURNEMOUTH BUILDING & MAINTENANCE LTD£4.55m
Adult Social CareREDACTED PERSONAL DATA£4.55m
Corporate And CentralCOMENSURA LTD£3.74m
Waste And RecyclingREDACTED MORE BUS£3.18m
Highways And TransportM GROUP HIGHWAYS LIMITED£2.21m
EducationREDACTED PERSONAL DATA£1.70m
Childrens ServicesREDACTED PERSONAL DATA£1.59m
§ 05Westminster constituencies — the overlap.33 wards split across 5 parliamentary seats

Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole’s territory crosses 5 Westminster constituencies, with 3 MP parties represented. The middle column shows how much of the council each seat carries.

ConstituencyWards% of councilCurrent MP
Bournemouth East927% Tom HayesLab
Bournemouth West824% Jessica ToaleLab
Poole824% Neil Duncan-JordanLab
Christchurch515% Christopher ChopeCon
Mid Dorset and North Poole39% Vikki SladeLD
Of note · the mixed-MP geography

This council holds 3 Ind, 1 Ind and 1 Ind MPs. That’s an unusually heterogeneous geography for a Liberal Democrats-controlled unitary — 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 62 other unitary authorities
Band-DMHCLG CSP · precept schedules
Police, Fire, Parish on top
SuppliersCouncil publication under LGTC
80,649 payments · 3 Dec 202531 Mar 2026
Westminster overlapONS Open Geography Portal
2023 boundaries
PopulationONS mid-year estimates
Pending ingest at LAD level