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

Stoke-on-Trent.

Labour Party-controlled unitary. £321m net revenue. 34 wards across 3 parliamentary constituencies.

TypeUnitary
Seats44 councillors · 34 wards
Last election4 May 2023
Websitestoke.gov.uk
Net revenue · 2025-26
£321m
Core spending power (MHCLG)
Band-D bill
£2,078
For the council slice (incl. precepts)
Composition
29/44
Labour Party 66%
Westminster
3
constituencies overlap · 1 MP party
Dispatch
31 May 2026

Labour Party chamber, Labour Party MPs.

Stoke-on-Trent is a unitary controlled by Labour Party (29 of 44 seats). Net revenue is £321m for 2025-26. It covers 34 wards spanning 3 parliamentary constituencies.

§ 01Composition.44 seats · last contested 4 May 2023

Who sits in the chamber.

Lab 29Con 14City Independents 1

Labour Party 66% · last contested 4 May 2023

Councillors — the people.

CouncillorWardElected
Steve WatkinsLabAbbey Hulton2023
Carl EdwardsConBaddeley Milton Norton2023
Dave EvansConBaddeley Milton Norton2023
Duncan WalkerLabBaddeley Milton Norton2023
Shaun PenderLabBasford Hartshill2023
Lynn WatkinsLabBentilee Ubberley Townsend2023
Sarah Jane ColcloughLabBentilee Ubberley Townsend2023
Adrian KnapperLabBirches Head Northwood2023
Steve BlakemoreLabBirches Head Northwood2023
Lorraine BeardmoreConBlurton2023
Andy PlattLabBoothen2023
Gurmeet Singh KallarLabBradeley Chell Heath2023
Showing 12 of 44·All 44 councillors
§ 02Revenue mix & Band-D bill.MHCLG — Final LGFS 2025-26 Core Spending Power table

Where revenue comes from.

37%
Council tax
£117.5m · median 59%
46%
Central grants
£148.8m · median 30%
17%
Business rates
£54.7m · median 11%

This is a grant-heavy unitary authoritie: 37% 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£1,699
County / upper-tier£0
Police£288
Fire & rescue£92
GLA precept£0
Total Band-D£2,078

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 Stoke-on-Trent 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.

Education27.6% of net spend · cohort median 36%
51 of 61-23% vs median
Children's Services25.6% of net spend · cohort median 15%
2 of 61+73% vs median
Adult Social Care23.9% of net spend · cohort median 27%
53 of 61-12% vs median
Waste & Recycling5.4% of net spend · cohort median 6%
38 of 61-6% vs median
Public Health5.1% of net spend · cohort median 4%
14 of 61+40% vs median
Highways & Transport5.1% of net spend · cohort median 3%
4 of 61+96% vs median
Housing & Homelessness2.3% of net spend · cohort median 2%
25 of 61+21% vs median
Culture & Leisure2.1% of net spend · cohort median 2%
32 of 61-1% vs median
Planning & Economic Development2.0% of net spend · cohort median 1%
18 of 61+45% vs median
Corporate & Central0.7% of net spend · cohort median 3%
57 of 61-75% 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.34 wards split across 3 parliamentary seats
ConstituencyWards% of councilCurrent MP
Stoke-on-Trent Central1338% Gareth SnellInd
Stoke-on-Trent North1132% David WilliamsLab
Stoke-on-Trent South1029% Allison GardnerLab
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
Not yet ingested for Stoke-on-Trent
Westminster overlapONS Open Geography Portal
2023 boundaries
PopulationONS mid-year estimates
Pending ingest at LAD level