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

Sunderland.

Labour Party-controlled metropolitan_borough. £377m net revenue. 25 wards across 3 parliamentary constituencies.

Typemetropolitan_borough
Seats29 councillors · 25 wards
Last election2 May 2024
Websitesunderland.gov.uk ↗
Net revenue · 2025-26
£377m
Core spending power (MHCLG)
Band-D bill
£2,093
For the council slice (incl. precepts)
Composition
21/29
Labour Party 72%
Westminster
3
constituencies overlap · 1 MP party
Dispatch
31 May 2026

Labour Party chamber, Labour Party MPs.

Sunderland is a metropolitan_borough controlled by Labour Party (21 of 29 seats). Net revenue is £377m for 2025-26. It covers 25 wards spanning 3 parliamentary constituencies.

§ 01Composition.29 seats · last contested 2 May 2024

Who sits in the chamber.

Lab 21LD 5Con 3

Labour Party 72% · last contested 2 May 2024

Councillors — the people.

CouncillorWardElected
Fiona TobinLabBarnes2024
Denny WilsonLabCastle2024
Kevin JohnstonLabCopt Hill2024
Melanie ThorntonLabCopt Hill2023
Paul Wilfred Leslie GibsonLDDoxford2024
Michael Peter HartnackConFulwell2024
Stephen Lewis ElmsLabHendon2024
James BlackburnLabHetton2024
John PriceLabHoughton2024
Niall Dane HodsonLDMillfield2024
Steven Boyd DonkinLDPallion2024
Alison SmithLabRedhill2024
Showing 12 of 29·All 29 councillors
§ 02Revenue mix & Band-D bill.MHCLG — Final LGFS 2025-26 Core Spending Power table

Where revenue comes from.

36%
Council tax
£135.9m · median 44%
47%
Central grants
£175.9m · median 41%
17%
Business rates
£64.8m · median 14%

This is a grant-heavy councils (metropolitan_borough): 36% from council tax vs the cohort median of 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£1,796
County / upper-tier£0
Police£196
Fire & rescue£100
GLA precept£0
Parish average£1
Total Band-D£2,093

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 Sunderland 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.

Adult Social Care32.2% of net spend · cohort median 26%
2 of 35+25% vs median
Education27.4% of net spend · cohort median 41%
34 of 35-33% vs median
Children's Services16.9% of net spend · cohort median 15%
10 of 35+12% vs median
Waste & Recycling6.3% of net spend · cohort median 4%
2 of 35+52% vs median
Public Health5.6% of net spend · cohort median 4%
4 of 35+30% vs median
Corporate & Central3.9% of net spend · cohort median 3%
12 of 35+27% vs median
Planning & Economic Development2.2% of net spend · cohort median 2%
4 of 35+44% vs median
Highways & Transport2.1% of net spend · cohort median 2%
8 of 35+37% vs median
Culture & Leisure2.0% of net spend · cohort median 2%
26 of 35-15% vs median
Housing & Homelessness1.4% of net spend · cohort median 2%
22 of 35-16% 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.25 wards split across 3 parliamentary seats
ConstituencyWards% of councilCurrent MP
Houghton and Sunderland South936% Bridget PhillipsonLab
Sunderland Central936% Lewis AtkinsonLab
Washington and Gateshead South728% Sharon HodgsonLab
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 Sunderland
Westminster overlapONS Open Geography Portal
2023 boundaries
PopulationONS mid-year estimates
Pending ingest at LAD level