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

West Berkshire.

Liberal Democrats-controlled unitary. £172m net revenue. 24 wards across 2 parliamentary constituencies.

TypeUnitary
Seats44 councillors · 24 wards
Last election4 May 2023
Websitewestberks.gov.uk
Net revenue · 2025-26
£172m
Core spending power (MHCLG)
Band-D bill
£2,383
For the council slice (incl. precepts)
Composition
29/44
Liberal Democrats 66%
Westminster
2
constituencies overlap · 2 MP parties
Dispatch
31 May 2026

Liberal Democrats chamber, 2-party MP geography.

West Berkshire is a unitary controlled by Liberal Democrats (29 of 44 seats). Net revenue is £172m for 2025-26. It covers 24 wards spanning 2 parliamentary constituencies. The MP geography crosses 2 parties — a heterogeneous setup.

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

Who sits in the chamber.

LD 29Con 12Green 2Lab 1

Liberal Democrats 66% · last contested 4 May 2023

Councillors — the people.

CouncillorWardElected
Dominic Kevin BoeckConAldermaston2023
Laura CoyleLDBasildon2023
Ross MackinnonConBradfield2023
Chris ReadLDBucklebury2023
Graham Gerald PaskConBucklebury2019
Geoffrey Brian MayesLDBurghfield Mortimer2023
Nick CarterLDBurghfield Mortimer2023
Vicky PooleLDBurghfield Mortimer2023
Heather Carol CodlingLDChieveley Cold Ash2023
Paul Gerard DickConChieveley Cold Ash2023
Clive HookerConDownlands2023
Denise Anne GainesLDHungerford Kintbury2023
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.

76%
Council tax
£131.7m · median 59%
18%
Central grants
£30.3m · median 30%
6%
Business rates
£10.2m · median 11%

This is a high-council-tax unitary authoritie: 76% of revenue from council tax, above the cohort median (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£1,921
County / upper-tier£0
Police£283
Fire & rescue£86
GLA precept£0
Parish average£92
Total Band-D£2,383

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 West Berkshire 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.

Education48.4% of net spend · cohort median 36%
1 of 61+35% vs median
Adult Social Care24.3% of net spend · cohort median 27%
50 of 61-11% vs median
Children's Services10.8% of net spend · cohort median 15%
55 of 61-27% vs median
Waste & Recycling7.5% of net spend · cohort median 6%
9 of 61+31% vs median
Public Health2.0% of net spend · cohort median 4%
58 of 61-46% vs median
Housing & Homelessness1.8% of net spend · cohort median 2%
34 of 61-7% vs median
Culture & Leisure1.6% of net spend · cohort median 2%
45 of 61-25% vs median
Highways & Transport1.6% of net spend · cohort median 3%
49 of 61-40% vs median
Corporate & Central1.2% of net spend · cohort median 3%
54 of 61-59% vs median
Planning & Economic Development0.9% of net spend · cohort median 1%
47 of 61-36% 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.7,966 payments · £62.2m gross · 2 Jan 202631 Mar 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
VEOLIA ES WEST BERKSHIRE LTD (CHAPS ONLY)£6.31m10.2%3
VOLKERHIGHWAYS LTD£3.68m5.9%144
ROYAL BOROUGH OF WINDSOR AND MAIDENHEAD£3.65m5.9%6
MILLBROOK HEALTHCARE LIMITED£3.43m5.5%3
REDACTED£2.44m3.9%1,101
READING BOROUGH COUNCIL£1.66m2.7%15
COMENSURA LTD£1.23m2.0%15
BUPA CARE SERVICES£0.84m1.4%167
NEWBURY COLLEGE£0.75m1.2%2
AFFINITY TRUST SUPPORT LTD£0.74m1.2%145

By service area · top supplier

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

§ 05Westminster constituencies — the overlap.24 wards split across 2 parliamentary seats

West Berkshire’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
Newbury1250% Lee DillonLD
Reading West and Mid Berkshire1250% Olivia BaileyLab
Of note · the mixed-MP geography

This council holds 1 Ind and 1 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
7,966 payments · 2 Jan 202631 Mar 2026
Westminster overlapONS Open Geography Portal
2023 boundaries
PopulationONS mid-year estimates
Pending ingest at LAD level