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

Bristol, City of.

Green Party of England and Wales-controlled unitary. £556m net revenue. 34 wards across 5 parliamentary constituencies.

TypeUnitary
Seats70 councillors · 34 wards
Last election2 May 2024
Websitebristol.gov.uk
Net revenue · 2025-26
£556m
Core spending power (MHCLG)
Band-D bill
£2,584
For the council slice (incl. precepts)
Composition
34/70
Green Party of England and Wales 49%
Westminster
5
constituencies overlap · 2 MP parties
Dispatch
31 May 2026

Green Party of England and Wales chamber, 2-party MP geography.

Bristol, City of is a unitary controlled by Green Party of England and Wales (34 of 70 seats). Net revenue is £556m for 2025-26. It covers 34 wards spanning 5 parliamentary constituencies. The MP geography crosses 2 parties — a heterogeneous setup.

§ 01Composition.70 seats · last contested 2 May 2024

Who sits in the chamber.

Green 34Lab 21LD 8Con 7

Green Party of England and Wales 49% · last contested 2 May 2024

Councillors — the people.

CouncillorWardElected
Abdul MalikGrnAshley2024
Izzy RussellGrnAshley2024
Tim WyeGrnAshley2024
Don AlexanderLabAvonmouth Lawrence Weston2024
Thomas BlenkinsopLabAvonmouth Lawrence Weston2024
Zoe PeatLabAvonmouth Lawrence Weston2024
Ellie FreemanGrnBedminster2024
Emily Jade ClarkeLabBedminster2024
Emma EdwardsGrnBishopston Ashley Down2024
James Daniel CrawfordGrnBishopston Ashley Down2024
Richard Stephen EddyConBishopsworth2024
Susan KollarLabBishopsworth2024
Showing 12 of 70·All 70 councillors
§ 02Revenue mix & Band-D bill.MHCLG — Final LGFS 2025-26 Core Spending Power table

Where revenue comes from.

54%
Council tax
£300.0m · median 59%
34%
Central grants
£188.7m · median 30%
12%
Business rates
£67.4m · median 11%

This is a grant-heavy unitary authoritie: 54% from council tax vs the cohort median of 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£2,200
County / upper-tier£0
Police£293
Fire & rescue£90
GLA precept£0
Total Band-D£2,584

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 Bristol, City of 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.

Education31.4% of net spend · cohort median 36%
42 of 61-13% vs median
Adult Social Care30.9% of net spend · cohort median 27%
13 of 61+14% vs median
Children's Services16.9% of net spend · cohort median 15%
22 of 61+14% vs median
Waste & Recycling5.6% of net spend · cohort median 6%
34 of 61-3% vs median
Public Health4.9% of net spend · cohort median 4%
17 of 61+33% vs median
Housing & Homelessness3.7% of net spend · cohort median 2%
7 of 61+94% vs median
Culture & Leisure2.5% of net spend · cohort median 2%
26 of 61+15% vs median
Corporate & Central2.4% of net spend · cohort median 3%
43 of 61-17% vs median
Planning & Economic Development1.8% of net spend · cohort median 1%
23 of 61+31% vs median
Highways & Transport-0.0% of net spend · cohort median 3%
59 of 61-102% 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.18,343 payments · £203.7m gross · 15 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
STEPNELL LTD£7.22m3.5%34
BRISTOL, NORTH SOMERSET AND SOUTH GLOUCESTERSHIRE ICB£7.07m3.5%8
BRISTOL PFI LTD (UNITARY CHARGES ONLY)£5.58m2.7%30
TURNING POINT (SERVICES) LIMITED£5.02m2.5%9
CONSTELLIA PUBLIC LIMITED£4.86m2.4%347
SOUTH GLOUCESTERSHIRE COUNCIL (MAIN ORDER ACCOUNT)£4.34m2.1%18
ETM CONTRACTORS LTD£4.14m2.0%173
COMENSURA LTD£3.68m1.8%28
ALUN GRIFFITHS (CONTRACTORS) LTD£2.92m1.4%26
INVESIS UK LIMITED T/A BRISTOL SCHOOLS LIMITED£2.84m1.4%116

By service area · top supplier

ServiceTop supplierPaid
Corporate And CentralSTEPNELL LTD£4.57m
Housing And HomelessnessALEX FRY RENTAL PROPERTIES LTD£0.74m
Adult Social CareBRIGHTER FUTURES CYMRU LTD£0.66m
§ 05Westminster constituencies — the overlap.34 wards split across 5 parliamentary seats

Bristol, City of’s territory crosses 5 Westminster constituencies, with 2 MP parties represented. The middle column shows how much of the council each seat carries.

ConstituencyWards% of councilCurrent MP
Bristol East926% Kerry McCarthyLab
Bristol Central721% Carla DenyerGrn
Bristol North West721% Darren JonesLab
Bristol South721% Karin SmythLab
Bristol North East412% Damien EganLab
Of note · the mixed-MP geography

This council holds 4 Ind and 1 Ind MPs. That’s an unusually heterogeneous geography for a Green Party of England and Wales-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
18,343 payments · 15 Dec 202531 Mar 2026
Westminster overlapONS Open Geography Portal
2023 boundaries
PopulationONS mid-year estimates
Pending ingest at LAD level