SIGOMA Chair responds to final settlement and Council Tax flexibilities

Posted on February 12, 2025

Our Chair spoke to The Guardian about Council Tax increases

 Sir Stephen Houghton, the leader of Barnsley council and chair of the Sigoma group of English urban authorities, said above-cap rises were the culmination of years of underfunding from central government. “Places like Bradford don’t do this for no good reason. Residents won’t like it but the council’s first priority has to be to stabilise the council.

Community Care covered the range in views among councils on the Settlement & Recovery Grant

 The County Councils Network (CCN) … took aim at the government for redirecting money away from these areas through a £600m ‘recovery grant’, the distribution of which was based on deprivation levels, which ministers said were a proxy for population need.

 In her statement, Rayner described this is the “first meaningful step” towards reforming funding based on “an up-to-date assessment of councils’ funding needs and financial resources”, which would be implemented from 2026-27.

 The grant was welcomed by metropolitan councils’ body the Special Interest Group of Municipal Authorities (SIGOMA), which said it would “provide welcome relief to the most deprived areas after a decade of disproportionate cuts and increases in demand”.