The local authorityCouncil · metropolitan_borough · England · 1 of 36 councils (metropolitan_borough)

Sefton.

Labour Party-controlled metropolitan_borough. £357m net revenue. 22 wards across 3 parliamentary constituencies.

Typemetropolitan_borough
Seats30 councillors · 22 wards
Last election2 May 2024
Websitesefton.gov.uk
Net revenue · 2025-26
£357m
Core spending power (MHCLG)
Band-D bill
£2,461
For the council slice (incl. precepts)
Composition
25/30
Labour Party 83%
Westminster
3
constituencies overlap · 1 MP party
Dispatch
31 May 2026

Labour Party chamber, Labour Party MPs.

Sefton is a metropolitan_borough controlled by Labour Party (25 of 30 seats). Net revenue is £357m for 2025-26. It covers 22 wards spanning 3 parliamentary constituencies.

§ 01Composition.30 seats · last contested 2 May 2024

Who sits in the chamber.

Lab 25LD 3Con 1Green 1

Labour Party 83% · last contested 2 May 2024

Councillors — the people.

CouncillorWardElected
Lynne ThompsonLDAinsdale2024
Sonya Ann KellyLabBirkdale2024
Diane Elizabeth RoscoeLabBlundellsands2024
Christine HowardLabBlundellsands2023
Mike SammonLDCambridge2024
Neil Anthony DoolinGrnChurch2024
Maria PorterLabDerby2024
Dave RobinsonLabDerby2023
Mike PrendergastConDukes2024
Paulette LappinLabFord2024
Ian MoncurLabFord2023
Karen CavanaghLabHarington2024
Showing 12 of 30·All 30 councillors
§ 02Revenue mix & Band-D bill.MHCLG — Final LGFS 2025-26 Core Spending Power table

Where revenue comes from.

50%
Council tax
£177.5m · median 44%
38%
Central grants
£136.5m · median 41%
12%
Business rates
£43.2m · median 14%

This is a high-council-tax councils (metropolitan_borough): 50% of revenue from council tax, above the cohort median (44%).

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

Band-D bill.

Council slice£2,044
County / upper-tier£0
Police£279
Fire & rescue£96
GLA precept£24
Parish average£18
Total Band-D£2,461

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 35 other councils (metropolitan_borough)

How does Sefton split its revenue across services, compared with peer councils (metropolitan_borough)-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.

Education39.9% of net spend · cohort median 41%
21 of 35-2% vs median
Adult Social Care25.2% of net spend · cohort median 26%
21 of 35-2% vs median
Children's Services17.1% of net spend · cohort median 15%
9 of 35+13% vs median
Public Health4.4% of net spend · cohort median 4%
15 of 35+2% vs median
Corporate & Central3.9% of net spend · cohort median 3%
13 of 35+26% vs median
Waste & Recycling3.2% of net spend · cohort median 4%
23 of 35-23% vs median
Culture & Leisure2.3% of net spend · cohort median 2%
20 of 35-4% vs median
Planning & Economic Development1.7% of net spend · cohort median 2%
16 of 35+7% vs median
Housing & Homelessness1.4% of net spend · cohort median 2%
25 of 35-18% vs median
Highways & Transport1.1% of net spend · cohort median 2%
24 of 35-30% 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.

§ 05Westminster constituencies — the overlap.22 wards split across 3 parliamentary seats
ConstituencyWards% of councilCurrent MP
Bootle836% Peter DowdLab
Sefton Central836% Bill EstersonLab
Southport627% Patrick HurleyLab
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 35 other councils (metropolitan_borough)
Band-DMHCLG CSP · precept schedules
Police, Fire, Parish on top
SuppliersCouncil publication under LGTC
Not yet ingested for Sefton
Westminster overlapONS Open Geography Portal
2023 boundaries
PopulationONS mid-year estimates
Pending ingest at LAD level