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Where your council tax goes in Leeds

A Band D home pays £2,271.51 this year, up 4.6%. Council tax covers about 26% of what the council spends on day-to-day services; government grants pay 62%, including the money passed straight to schools, and business rates 14%.

Band D bill£2,272up 4.6% on last year
Council budget£1,828mday-to-day, including schools
Paid by council tax26%of the budget
The council keeps84%of the Band D bill

Your bill

Pick your band. The council keeps 84% of it; the rest goes to the Mayor of West Yorkshire, for police, and the fire and rescue service.

Band D, 2026/27
£2,271.51
£227.15 a month over 10 instalments, or £189.29 over 12
Leeds City Council£1,903.74Police and fire (West Yorkshire)£367.77
Police£278.28
Fire and rescue£89.49
At Band D the police and fire share went up £20.00 this year: £15.00 more for police and £5.00 more for the fire and rescue service.
sourcedBand D bill for 2026/27sourcedPolice and fire (West Yorkshire) by body (government council tax tables)

Your £1,903.74 to the council pays for

Care for older and disabled adults£651
Children's services£430
Debt costs and levies£245
Streets, waste and transport£187
Schools and education£161
Parks, libraries and leisure£117
Community safety and regulation£41
Housing and homelessness£25
Running the council£25
Planning and the local economy£24
Show your bill as a table
Band D, 2026/27: where your council tax goes
Your billShare
Care for older and disabled adults£650.7328.6%
Children's services£430.2218.9%
Debt costs and levies£245.2110.8%
Streets, waste and transport£186.598.2%
Schools and education£161.037.1%
Parks, libraries and leisure£116.825.1%
Community safety and regulation£41.121.8%
Housing and homelessness£25.141.1%
Running the council£24.511.1%
Planning and the local economy£23.771.0%
Leeds City Council, all services£1,903.7483.8%
Police£278.2812.3%
Fire and rescue£89.493.9%
Police and fire (West Yorkshire), all£367.7716.2%
Your bill£2,271.51100%

Homes in Leeds’s 31 parishes also pay their parish or town council: on average £46.32 at Band D, on top of the bill above.

Split in proportion to the £1,071m the council pays for itself, after schools and public health, which have their own ring-fenced grants. Council tax pays about 45p of every £1 of that; government grants and business rates pay the rest.

sourcedSplit by service, 2026/27 budget return

The council’s budget

What the council spends on day-to-day services after fees and charges, and where the money comes from, including grants that can only be spent on schools or public health. It must balance by law.

FundingReserves (one-off)Services
Council tax to Net budgetRevenue Support Grant to Net budgetBusiness rates kept locally to Net budgetSchools grants (ring-fenced) to Net budgetPublic health grant (ring-fenced) to Net budgetOther government grants to Net budgetCouncil tax surplus and other to Net budgetDrawn from public health reserves to Net budgetNet budget to Schools and educationNet budget to Care for older and disabled adultsNet budget to Children's servicesNet budget to Debt costs and leviesNet budget to Streets, waste and transportNet budget to Public healthNet budget to Parks, libraries and leisureNet budget to Community safety and regulationNet budget to Housing and homelessnessNet budget to Running the councilNet budget to Planning and the local economySourced from a published documentCouncil tax£477.9m, 26%Sourced from a published documentRevenue Support Grant£185.5m, 10%Sourced from a published documentBusiness rates kept locally£255.4m, 14%Sourced from a published documentSchools grants (ring-fenced)£690.5m, 38%Sourced from a published documentPublic health grant (ring-fenced)£65.7mSourced from a published documentOther government grants£198.5m, 11%Sourced from a published documentCouncil tax surplus and other£0.0mSourced from a published documentDrawn from public health reserves£1.3mSourced from a published documentSchools and education£780.9m, 43%Sourced from a published documentCare for older and disabled adults£366.0m, 20%Sourced from a published documentChildren's services£242.0m, 13%Sourced from a published documentDebt costs and levies£137.9m, 8%Sourced from a published documentStreets, waste and transport£104.9mSourced from a published documentPublic health£66.2mSourced from a published documentParks, libraries and leisure£65.7mSourced from a published documentCommunity safety and regulation£23.1mSourced from a published documentHousing and homelessness£14.1mSourced from a published documentRunning the council£13.8mSourced from a published documentPlanning and the local economy£13.4m£1,828m

Not drawn in the flow, because they are below zero: Drawn from schools reserves (−£0.3m), Drawn from council reserves (−£46.5m). They are in the tables.

Show the budget as a table
Where the money comes from, 2026/27
£mShare of the net budget
Council tax£477.9m26.1%
Revenue Support Grant£185.5m10.1%
Business rates kept locally£255.4m14.0%
Schools grants (ring-fenced)£690.5m37.8%
Public health grant (ring-fenced)£65.7m3.6%
Other government grants£198.5m10.9%
Council tax surplus and other£0.0m0.0%
Drawn from schools reserves (one-off)−£0.3m0.0%
Drawn from public health reserves (one-off)£1.3m0.1%
Drawn from council reserves (one-off)−£46.5m−2.5%
Net budget£1,828.0m100%
What it pays for, 2026/27
£mShare of the net budget
Schools and education£780.9m42.7%
Care for older and disabled adults£366.0m20.0%
Children's services£242.0m13.2%
Debt costs and levies£137.9m7.5%
Streets, waste and transport£104.9m5.7%
Public health£66.2m3.6%
Parks, libraries and leisure£65.7m3.6%
Community safety and regulation£23.1m1.3%
Housing and homelessness£14.1m0.8%
Running the council£13.8m0.8%
Planning and the local economy£13.4m0.7%
Net budget£1,828.0m100%

Where the money comes from

Council tax£477.9m
Revenue Support Grant£185.5m
Business rates kept locally£255.4m
Schools grants (ring-fenced)£690.5m
Public health grant (ring-fenced)£65.7m
Other government grants£198.5m
Council tax surplus and other£0.0m
Drawn from schools reserves−£0.3m
Drawn from public health reserves£1.3m
Drawn from council reserves−£46.5m
Net budget£1,828.0m

What it pays for

Schools and education£780.9m
Care for older and disabled adults£366.0m
Children's services£242.0m
Debt costs and levies£137.9m
Streets, waste and transport£104.9m
Public health£66.2m
Parks, libraries and leisure£65.7m
Community safety and regulation£23.1m
Housing and homelessness£14.1m
Running the council£13.8m
Planning and the local economy£13.4m
sourcedAll lines

Council tax over the years

The council’s own share of a Band D bill went from £1,644.93 in 2023/24 to £1,903.74 in 2026/27, up 16%.

Band D council tax in Leeds each year
YearThe council’s shareWhole bill, with police and fire
2023/24£1,644.93£1,968.38
2024/25£1,726.84£2,066.22
2025/26£1,813.13£2,172.39
2026/27£1,903.74£2,283.73

Still to come for Leeds

For Hammersmith & Fulham, Borough Book also tracks every party’s manifesto pledges, every council payment over £500, Cabinet and Full Council decisions, how this year’s budget gap was closed and a tool to balance next year. Those need the council’s own papers, read by hand, and come here next. See Hammersmith & Fulham.

Councillors and how each ward voted: Leeds City Council’s democracy website turns away requests from software like ours, so its list of councillors is not shown here yet. See the council’s own list of councillors.

sourcedBill, budget and history: government returns, checked against their own totals (11 Jun 2026)
Where every figure on this page comes from