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

Cheltenham.

Liberal Democrats-controlled district. £16m net revenue. 20 wards across 2 parliamentary constituencies.

Typedistrict
Seats20 councillors · 20 wards
Last election7 May 2026
Net revenue · 2025-26
£16m
Core spending power (MHCLG)
Band-D bill
£2,258
For the council slice (incl. precepts)
Composition
17/20
Liberal Democrats 85%
Westminster
2
constituencies overlap · 2 MP parties
Dispatch
29 Jun 2026

Liberal Democrats chamber, 2-party MP geography.

Cheltenham is a district controlled by Liberal Democrats (17 of 20 seats). Net revenue is £16m for 2025-26. It covers 20 wards spanning 2 parliamentary constituencies. The MP geography crosses 2 parties — a heterogeneous setup.

§ 01Composition.20 seats · last contested 7 May 2026

Who sits in the chamber.

LD 17Green 2Ref 1

Liberal Democrats 85% · last contested 7 May 2026

Councillors — the people.

CouncillorWardElected
Izaac Augustus TailfordLDAll Saints2026
Chris DayLDBattledown2026
Stephen Ian SteinhardtLDBenhall, the Reddings & Fiddler's Green2026
Arthur Gordon SnellLDCharlton Kings2026
Steve HarveyLDCharlton Park2026
Garth Wallington BarnesLDCollege2026
Callum James EldridgeRefHesters Way2026
Jamie JamiesonLDLansdown2026
Julia Caroline ChandlerLDLeckhampton2026
Alisha Chloe-Marie LewisLDOakley2026
Karen Louise PriestLDPark2026
Cecily Frances Grace HendersonLDPittville2026
Showing 12 of 20·All 20 councillors
§ 02Revenue mix & Band-D bill.MHCLG — Final LGFS 2025-26 Core Spending Power table

Where revenue comes from.

68%
Council tax
£10.8m · median 61%
21%
Central grants
£3.4m · median 26%
10%
Business rates
£1.7m · median 11%

This is a high-council-tax councils (district): 68% 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£245
County / upper-tier£1,680
Police£322
Fire & rescue£0
GLA precept£0
Parish average£12
Total Band-D£2,258

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 Cheltenham 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.

Corporate & Central52.5% of net spend · cohort median 27%
9 of 158+96% vs median
Waste & Recycling28.4% of net spend · cohort median 32%
108 of 158-11% vs median
Culture & Leisure23.5% of net spend · cohort median 13%
17 of 158+75% vs median
Housing & Homelessness5.8% of net spend · cohort median 14%
143 of 158-58% vs median
Planning & Economic Development5.3% of net spend · cohort median 14%
139 of 158-64% vs median
Highways & Transport-15.4% of net spend · cohort median -2%
148 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.2,530 payments · £24.5m gross · 15 Dec 2025 – 30 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
UBICO LIMITED£5.13m20.9%31
LOVELL PARTNERSHIPS LIMITED£2.71m11.1%17
IAN WILLIAMS LIMITED£2.55m10.4%64
REDACTED£1.92m7.8%178
SPELLER METCALFE LIVING LTD£1.01m4.1%5
PERSIMMON HOMES SOUTH MIDLANDS£0.95m3.9%1
JOYNER P A LTD£0.68m2.8%14
BRYT ENERGY LIMITED£0.53m2.2%99
PURCHASE OF REDACTED£0.49m2.0%3
PUBLICA GROUP (SUPPORT) LIMITED£0.47m1.9%4

By service area · top supplier

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

§ 05Westminster constituencies — the overlap.20 wards split across 2 parliamentary seats

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

ConstituencyWards% of councilCurrent MP
Cheltenham1890% Max WilkinsonLD
Tewkesbury210% Cameron ThomasInd
Of note · the mixed-MP geography

This council holds 1 LD and 1 Ind MPs. That’s an unusually heterogeneous geography for a Liberal Democrats-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
2,530 payments · 15 Dec 2025 – 30 Apr 2026
Westminster overlapONS Open Geography Portal
2023 boundaries
PopulationONS mid-year estimates
Pending ingest at LAD level