English councils spent record share of core funding on social care in 2025–26

English councils with social care responsibilities spent a record 71.9% of their combined core spending on adult and children’s care in 2025–26, according to a Guardian analysis published on 30 September. Sixteen councils spent more than 80% of their core funding on those services. The figures show how much of the money available for local services is being used for care, leaving a smaller share for other council responsibilities.

The Guardian calculated net care spending of £42.8bn from government outturn figures for the financial year ending in March 2026. Adult social care accounted for 44.5% of combined core spending and children’s services for 27.4%. The corresponding total share in 2017–18 was 62.4%, a rise of 9.5 percentage points by 2025–26.

The government’s published outturn page provides the underlying local authority spreadsheets, including social care expenditure data. The 71.9% share, the £42.8bn total and the count of councils above 80% are the Guardian’s calculations from those figures; they are not presented as a summary on the accessible government page. The Guardian excluded six councils that had not submitted 2025–26 spending data.

Why social care takes a larger share of council spending

Core spending power combines income raised locally, including council tax and business rates, with central government grants. It is not ringfenced, so councils can decide how to allocate it among their services. A rising care share therefore reduces the proportion available for other work, although the spending share alone does not show which services any individual council has cut or prove that care costs caused its financial difficulties.

The Association of Directors of Adult Social Services, or ADASS, reported in its 2026 spring survey that more people were approaching councils for support and that adult care costs had risen for a fourth consecutive year. Its findings describe pressures within adult care rather than independently verifying the Guardian’s calculation of the combined adult and children’s care share.

Halton had the highest reported care spending share

Halton, in Cheshire, had the highest share in the Guardian’s comparison: 92.9% of its core spending power went on social care. Slightly more than half went to adult care and 42% to children’s care, including fostering services. The newspaper reported that an official audit published in August found the council’s finances unsustainable despite cuts and asset sales. Halton received £35m in government-approved exceptional financial support in 2026.

A Halton council spokesperson told the Guardian that demand for services continued to put pressure on its finances. The council was making changes intended to reduce spending while maintaining outcomes for vulnerable residents, the spokesperson said. The Guardian also reported that many of the 16 councils with the highest care shares sought permission this year to borrow to meet day-to-day costs and balance their budgets.

The councils in the high-share group include authorities covering some of England’s most deprived areas, the Guardian reported, naming Blackpool, Middlesbrough and Hartlepool as examples. The published account does not provide a complete named list of all 16 councils. That limits any council-by-council comparison beyond the authorities and rankings it identifies.

Adult care demand and the pressure on other services

ADASS said councils overspent their 2025–26 adult social care budgets by £715m. The Guardian reported that councils had drawn up plans to save £909m in response, including higher charges for care and cuts to services such as day centres. Those figures concern adult care budgets and savings plans; they are distinct from the Guardian’s £42.8bn measure covering both adult and children’s services.

The ADASS survey reported that more than 400,000 people were waiting for an assessment, care and support, a direct payment or a review. Three-quarters of directors said they had seen more people seeking council adult care who previously were, or would have been, eligible for NHS Continuing Healthcare. The association also said 86% of directors reported rising mental health needs in their areas from 2025 to 2026.

Dr Wendy Taylor, chair of the Local Government Association’s health and wellbeing committee, told the Guardian that the adult care overspend remained high and was affecting spending on other council services. She also said councils had less capacity to spend on planned prevention. These accounts describe financial pressure and service demand; the spending percentages do not establish a uniform experience for residents in every council area.

What the government has announced on care reform

The figures come as Prime Minister Andy Burnham has announced that the government will begin laying the groundwork for a National Care Service intended for introduction after the next election, according to the Guardian’s report of his Labour conference speech on Tuesday. An independent review of adult social care led by Louise Casey is expected next year, earlier than its original 2028 timetable. The planned service’s design and eventual effect on council finances remain unsettled.

For now, the 2025–26 outturn figures offer a measure of the strain on councils’ available funding: the Guardian’s comparison puts care at almost three-quarters of combined core spending among authorities responsible for it. The missing submissions from six councils and the difference between a spending share and a measure of service outcomes matter when interpreting what that record proportion means locally.