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

Cornwall.

Liberal Democrats-controlled unitary. £711m net revenue. 87 wards across 6 parliamentary constituencies.

TypeUnitary
Seats88 councillors · 87 wards
Last election1 May 2025
Websitecornwall.gov.uk
Net revenue · 2025-26
£711m
Core spending power (MHCLG)
Band-D bill
£2,460
For the council slice (incl. precepts)
Composition
27/88
Liberal Democrats 31%
Westminster
6
constituencies overlap · 2 MP parties
Dispatch
31 May 2026

Liberal Democrats chamber, 2-party MP geography.

Cornwall is a unitary controlled by Liberal Democrats (27 of 88 seats). Net revenue is £711m for 2025-26. It covers 87 wards spanning 6 parliamentary constituencies. The MP geography crosses 2 parties — a heterogeneous setup.

§ 01Composition.88 seats · last contested 1 May 2025

Who sits in the chamber.

LD 27Ref 26Ind 16Con 9Lab 4Mebyon Kernow - The Party for Cornwall 3

Liberal Democrats 31% · last contested 1 May 2025

Councillors — the people.

CouncillorWardElected
Adrian ParsonsLDAltarnun Stoke Climsland2025
Dan RogersonLDBodmin St Marys St Leonard2025
Leigh Lansbury FrostLDBodmin St Petrocs2025
Peter John La BroyIndBude2025
Peter John La BroyLDBude2021
Andrew John LongIndCallington St Dominic2025
Angus Black CrockerRefCalstock2025
James Michael Alexander BallIndCamborne Roskear Tuckingmill2025
Paul WhiteIndCamborne Trelowarren2025
Karen KnightRefCamborne West Treswithian2025
Mark BurnettLDCamelford Boscastle2025
Anna Thomason-KenyonRefConstantine Mabe Mawnan2025
Showing 12 of 88·All 88 councillors
§ 02Revenue mix & Band-D bill.MHCLG — Final LGFS 2025-26 Core Spending Power table

Where revenue comes from.

59%
Council tax
£418.8m · median 59%
31%
Central grants
£220.6m · median 30%
10%
Business rates
£72.0m · median 11%

Revenue mix is close to the unitary authorities median: 59% council tax, 31% central grants.

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

Band-D bill.

Council slice£1,987
County / upper-tier£0
Police£288
Fire & rescue£0
GLA precept£0
Parish average£185
Total Band-D£2,460

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.11 buckets · vs 62 other unitary authorities

How does Cornwall 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 Care35.0% of net spend · cohort median 27%
2 of 61+28% vs median
Education27.2% of net spend · cohort median 36%
55 of 61-24% vs median
Children's Services11.3% of net spend · cohort median 15%
54 of 61-24% vs median
Waste & Recycling8.1% of net spend · cohort median 6%
5 of 61+40% vs median
Highways & Transport4.3% of net spend · cohort median 3%
10 of 61+62% vs median
Housing & Homelessness3.9% of net spend · cohort median 2%
5 of 61+102% vs median
Public Health3.4% of net spend · cohort median 4%
34 of 61-7% vs median
Protective Services2.9% of net spend · cohort median 4%
3 of 3-23% vs median
Corporate & Central1.9% of net spend · cohort median 3%
50 of 61-35% vs median
Culture & Leisure1.5% of net spend · cohort median 2%
47 of 61-30% vs median
Planning & Economic Development0.8% of net spend · cohort median 1%
50 of 61-41% 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.58,449 payments · £261.5m gross · 4 Dec 202527 Feb 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
CORSERV SOLUTIONS LTD T/A CORMAC SOLUTIONS£28.16m10.8%11,712
REDACTED - PERSONAL DATA£15.77m6.0%8,640
CORNWALL ENERGY RECOVERY LTD£9.85m3.8%36
ACORN CARE & EDUCATION LTD (SALES)£5.85m2.2%9
ENERVEO LTD£3.75m1.4%436
PLYMOUTH CITYBUS LTD£3.73m1.4%852
LORNE STEWART PLC£3.69m1.4%57
BIFFA ENVIRONMENTAL MUNICIPAL SERVICES LTD (CORY)£3.57m1.4%3
CORSERV SOLUTIONS LTD T/A CORSERV CARE£3.04m1.2%289
THE BRANDON TRUST£2.98m1.1%482

By service area · top supplier

ServiceTop supplierPaid
Planning And EconomicCORSERV SOLUTIONS LTD T/A CORMAC SOLUTIONS£27.18m
Corporate And CentralREDACTED - PERSONAL DATA£11.58m
Adult Social CareCORNWALL ENERGY RECOVERY LTD£9.04m
Childrens ServicesACORN CARE & EDUCATION LTD (SALES)£5.85m
§ 05Westminster constituencies — the overlap.87 wards split across 6 parliamentary seats

Cornwall’s territory crosses 6 Westminster constituencies, with 2 MP parties represented. The middle column shows how much of the council each seat carries.

ConstituencyWards% of councilCurrent MP
Truro and Falmouth1720% Jayne KirkhamInd
North Cornwall1517% Ben MaguireLD
Camborne and Redruth1416% Perran MoonLab
South East Cornwall1416% Anna GelderdLab
St Austell and Newquay1416% Noah LawLab
St Ives1315% Andrew GeorgeLD
Of note · the mixed-MP geography

This council holds 3 Ind and 2 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
58,449 payments · 4 Dec 202527 Feb 2026
Westminster overlapONS Open Geography Portal
2023 boundaries
PopulationONS mid-year estimates
Pending ingest at LAD level