Council Tax 2026/27: The Seven Councils Granted Permission to Raise Above 5%

Updated 10 May 2026 · Last reviewed 10 May 2026 · Reading time ~13 min

Council tax rose for almost every household in England, Wales and Scotland in April 2026. Most councils in England raised their precept by the maximum 5% permitted without a referendum (3% general plus 2% adult social care). Welsh authorities averaged 4.9%. Scottish councils ranged from 4% to 10% depending on local pressures. Seven councils in England were granted Government permission to raise above the 5% cap. This article walks through what the cap is, who got permission to exceed it, the band-by-band cash impact, and the relief and reduction routes that remain.

What the 5% cap actually is

The cap is not a hard limit. It is a referendum trigger. Under the Localism Act 2011 and the Council Tax (Excessive Increases) Determinations issued each year by the Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities (now MHCLG), a council that wants to raise its precept by more than the published "excessive" threshold must hold a local referendum and get majority support. The threshold for 2026/27 was 3% general plus 2% adult social care for upper-tier authorities, and 3% for shire districts.

The Government can, and does, grant individual councils permission to exceed the threshold without a referendum where the council can demonstrate severe financial pressure, typically arising from issuing a section 114 notice (effective bankruptcy) or being on the verge of one. This permission is given by Direction under the Local Government Finance Act 1992 and is published in the Final Local Government Finance Settlement each February.

For 2026/27, seven councils in England were granted such permission.

The seven councils granted above-cap rises

The seven councils, the rises permitted, and the published rationale:

These figures are the headline council element. Most households also pay precepts for police, fire, parish and (in two-tier areas) shire district. Those precepts have their own caps and rules, so the total bill movement at household level can differ from the headline council number.

What the rises mean in cash terms by band

Council tax bands run A through H based on the property's estimated value as at 1 April 1991 (in England and Scotland) or 1 April 2003 (in Wales). Band D is the reference band; other bands are calculated as a fixed proportion of Band D.

For a household paying the typical English Band D council tax of around £2,280 in 2025/26, here is what the seven above-cap rises produce in cash terms in 2026/27:

For Band A (the lowest band, six-ninths of Band D), the rises are smaller in absolute terms — typically £90 to £125 a year. For Band H (the highest, 18/9ths of Band D, double Band D), the rises are substantially larger — £270 to £375 a year.

These figures cover the council element only. The full bill includes the police, fire and parish precepts, which add £200 to £400 typically. Total household bills in the above-cap councils are therefore £2,000 to £2,500 at Band D, with Band H reaching £4,500 to £5,000 in some of these areas.

How the rest of England, Wales and Scotland compares

Outside the seven, most upper-tier councils in England raised by the full 4.99% available without referendum. Shire districts, which set a smaller share of the bill, raised by 2.99% on average. The combined effect for a typical Band D household in a non-above-cap English authority was a 4.5% to 5.0% rise.

In Wales, the average council tax rise was 4.9%, with Conwy at 7%, Pembrokeshire at 9.85%, and Carmarthenshire at 6%. Welsh councils do not face the same referendum cap, so the spread is wider.

In Scotland, where council tax was frozen for 2023/24, councils returned to setting their own rates from 2024/25. For 2026/27, rises ranged from 4% (Aberdeenshire) to 10% (Argyll and Bute, Falkirk, Clackmannanshire). Scotland also operates additional bands E to H rate multipliers higher than the English ratios, so larger Scottish properties pay disproportionately more than their English counterparts.

What council tax reduction and discount routes are available

Several routes can reduce the bill:

• Council Tax Reduction (formerly Council Tax Benefit). A means-tested scheme run by each local authority. Eligibility and award levels vary because each council sets its own scheme, but pensioners receive a national minimum protected level. Apply via your council's website; the scheme is referenced on gov.uk/apply-council-tax-reduction.
• Single occupant discount. 25% off the bill where only one adult lives at the property. The single occupant must be over 18 and not have any other resident adults (apart from disregarded persons such as full-time students or live-in carers).
• Severely mentally impaired (SMI) disregard. A person medically certified as severely mentally impaired and entitled to certain qualifying benefits is disregarded for council tax purposes, which can result in a 25% or 50% discount or full exemption depending on household composition.
• Student exemptions. Households where all residents are full-time students are exempt from council tax. Where some residents are students and others are not, the students are disregarded.
• Disabled band reduction. If a property has been adapted for a disabled resident (additional bathroom, additional kitchen, room used to meet disability needs), the property can be charged at the band below its actual band. A Band D property qualifying for this reduction is charged at Band C rates.
• Empty property discounts. Vary by council. Many councils now charge double council tax on properties empty for more than two years, so this is more often a penalty than a relief.

The reductions are not automatic. You have to apply, and you need to apply to your specific council — there is no central application route. Check your council's website for the form. If you have been struggling with bills and have not applied, the routes above can save several hundred pounds a year.

What the underlying problem is

Council tax rising at 5% to 10% a year while the council tax base itself remains anchored to 1991 property valuations creates a regressive outcome. A Band A property worth £80,000 in 1991 may now be worth £180,000; a Band H property worth £800,000 in 1991 may now be worth £4M. The Band H household pays double the Band A household, but their property is over twenty times more valuable. The cap mechanism is, in this sense, attempting to manage one symptom of a broader structural problem with the tax base — a problem that has been on the agenda for thirty years and that successive governments have declined to address.

Frequently asked questions

Why did these seven councils get permission to exceed the cap?

Each presented a financial case to MHCLG that demonstrated severe pressure on reserves or specific service areas (typically adult social care, children's services, or special educational needs). The permissions are issued by Direction in February each year alongside the Final Local Government Finance Settlement. The published rationale is in the Settlement papers laid before Parliament.

Can my council still increase by more next year?

Yes. The 2026/27 figures are settled, but the same permission process operates each February. Several other councils — including Birmingham, Croydon, Slough, Thurrock, Woking and Nottingham — have been granted similar permissions in recent years. Whether any specific council seeks permission for 2027/28 depends on its financial position next autumn.

What is a section 114 notice?

A formal notice from a local authority's section 151 officer (the chief finance officer) under the Local Government Finance Act 1988 that the council cannot balance its budget. The notice triggers an immediate freeze on all non-essential spending. Issuing one is the local-authority equivalent of declaring effective insolvency.

Can I refuse to pay if I disagree with the rise?

No. Council tax is a statutory charge under the Local Government Finance Act 1992. Non-payment leads to a reminder, then a court summons, then a liability order, then enforcement action including bailiffs and attachment of earnings. If the bill is genuinely unaffordable, the route is council tax reduction or a payment plan, not refusal.

How do I appeal my council tax band?

Council tax bands are set by the Valuation Office Agency (VOA), not your local council. You can challenge your band on the VOA website if you have evidence that similar properties in your street are in a lower band, or if your property has been altered or downgraded. Successful challenges are rare; check the gov.uk guidance on band appeals before submitting.

Why these particular seven councils — the financial pressures explained

Each of the seven councils faces a distinct combination of pressures, but the patterns repeat. Adult social care, special educational needs (SEND), and historic borrowing decisions dominate the lists.

Worcestershire — the adult social care squeeze

Worcestershire's permission to raise by 9.99% reflects sustained adult social care demand growth that has consistently exceeded the council's funding envelope. Adult social care now consumes around 45% of Worcestershire's total budget, up from 35% a decade ago. The 2 percentage point adult social care precept allowed under standard rules is exhausted; the additional flexibility above that addresses the funding gap directly.

Shropshire — section 114 risk

Shropshire was on the verge of issuing a section 114 notice in late 2025, and only avoided it by drawing down reserves to dangerous levels. The 7.49% rise is part of a recovery plan agreed with MHCLG that includes service cuts, asset disposals, and reserve rebuilding. Without the additional precept, the council would have been formally insolvent.

North Somerset — the SEND deficit

North Somerset's pressure is concentrated in the dedicated schools grant and the high-needs block within it. Special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) statutory services have grown faster than central government funding, and the resulting deficit is now £45M and rising. The 7.99% rise raises general revenue to cross-subsidise the SEND deficit.

Trafford — adult social care plus reserves

Trafford combines adult social care pressure with low reserves following years of using reserves to balance the budget. The 7.49% rise begins the process of rebuilding reserves to a level MHCLG considers safe.

Warrington — borrowing pressures

Warrington's case is unusual in that the dominant pressure is debt service on commercial borrowing the council undertook in the 2010s and 2020s. The council borrowed at low interest rates to invest in commercial property; rising interest rates have pushed annual debt service costs above what the commercial portfolio yields. The 9.98% rise services the gap.

Windsor & Maidenhead — long-running structural deficit

Windsor & Maidenhead has the lowest Band D council tax in the seven, and historically among the lowest in England. The Royal Borough's reserves have been below MHCLG's recommended floor for years. The 8.99% rise is part of a multi-year recovery plan.

BCP — children's services

Bournemouth, Christchurch & Poole is a relatively new merged authority (created in 2019). Children's services costs have grown sharply, and the recent merger has not produced the back-office savings originally projected. The 7.99% rise addresses the children's services gap.

The Welsh and Scottish picture

Wales has 22 unitary authorities. There is no formal cap on council tax increases in Wales — the cap mechanism is an English creation under the Localism Act 2011. Welsh councils set their own rates, with the Welsh Government providing oversight and indicative guidance. For 2026/27, the Welsh average was 4.9%, with Conwy at 7%, Pembrokeshire at 9.85%, Carmarthenshire at 6%, and Wrexham at 4.9%.

Wales also has a distinctive Council Tax Reduction Scheme that was unified across all 22 authorities in 2013. The scheme protects low-income households at a fixed rate set by the Welsh Government rather than allowing each authority to design its own rules (as in England).

Scotland has 32 unitary authorities. Council tax was frozen in Scotland from 2008 to 2017, then increased modestly until a fresh freeze in 2023/24. From 2024/25 onwards, councils have been able to set their own rates again, and the spread has widened significantly. For 2026/27, Argyll and Bute, Falkirk, Clackmannanshire and others raised by 10%; Aberdeenshire by 4%; most authorities by 6% to 8%.

Scotland also has different band ratios. Bands E to H pay proportionally more than the equivalent English bands, reflecting reforms made in the 2010s to make the Scottish system slightly more progressive (within the constraints of the 1991 valuation base).

What about Northern Ireland?

Northern Ireland does not use council tax. Property-related taxation in NI is the rates system — domestic rates, payable to the Department of Finance — which is a percentage charge on the property's capital value as last revalued in 2005 and updated. Rates are billed annually and the average household bill is around £1,300 to £1,600 a year, which is materially lower than English Band D council tax in most areas.

The NI rates system is genuinely different — it is based on actual property values (albeit historic) rather than 1991 bands, and includes a capping mechanism on individual property values to prevent very large bills on the most expensive homes.

What council tax actually pays for

For an upper-tier English council collecting around £2,000 per Band D household per year, the typical spending pattern is roughly: 35-45% adult social care, 15-25% children's services, 10% waste collection and disposal, 5-8% highways and transport, 5-10% libraries, leisure, and culture, 10% corporate and democratic costs, balance on housing, planning, and other statutory services.

The "discretionary" services — libraries, leisure, parks, cultural grants — typically account for less than 15% of the total budget but are usually where the most visible cuts fall when councils are under pressure. The reason is structural: adult social care and children's services are statutory duties that cannot be cut without breaching legislation. Discretionary services can.

Council tax reduction — a more detailed look

The Council Tax Reduction (CTR) scheme replaced Council Tax Benefit in 2013 in England, with each council designing its own scheme subject to a national framework that protects pensioner support at a minimum level.

For pensioners, the rules are largely consistent across England: full council tax reduction is available where Pension Credit Guarantee Credit is in payment; partial reduction is available on a sliding scale up to a savings threshold (typically £16,000).

For working-age claimants, the rules vary by council. Some councils maintain something close to the pre-2013 Council Tax Benefit rules; others have introduced minimum payment requirements (so even claimants entitled to full reduction must pay 10-20% of the bill themselves), savings thresholds, and earnings disregards.

To check what applies in your area, search "council tax reduction" plus your council name. The application is via your council's website. Apply within one calendar month of the bill arriving to ensure backdating where eligible.

Can I challenge an above-cap rise?

The above-cap rises were granted by Direction from the Secretary of State and are legally binding on the council and on residents. Individual residents cannot challenge the rise. The political route is to vote in the next local election or contact your MP; the legal route is essentially closed.

What happens if I cannot afford to pay?

Apply for council tax reduction immediately. Set up a payment plan with the council — most accept ten-month or twelve-month payment plans, and some accept weekly payments. Do not ignore reminders or summons; the costs of liability orders, attachment of earnings, and bailiff action are added to the original bill and make the situation materially worse.

Are above-cap rises a one-off or will they continue?

The same permission process operates each February. Whether any specific council seeks permission for 2027/28 depends on its financial position next autumn. Several other councils — including Birmingham, Croydon, Slough, Thurrock, Woking and Nottingham — have been granted similar permissions in recent years; some are still in recovery and may seek further permissions.

How are council tax bands actually set?

The Valuation Office Agency (an executive agency of HMRC) values every property in England and Wales for council tax purposes. The valuation date for England is 1 April 1991; for Wales, 1 April 2003. Properties built since the valuation date are assigned a band based on what they would have been worth on the valuation date. The VOA publishes its band decisions on the gov.uk website; you can look up any property by postcode.

Why has council tax not been revalued since 1991?

Politically, revaluation is unpopular because it produces winners and losers. Properties whose relative values have risen would move up bands and pay more; properties whose values have fallen would move down. Successive governments have judged the political cost of revaluation higher than the benefit of a fairer base. Wales revalued in 2003. Scotland and England have not revalued since 1991, despite repeated recommendations from independent reviews including the Lyons Inquiry (2007) and the Institute for Fiscal Studies.