Local authority capital expenditure and receipts in England: 2023 to 2024 final outturn
Published 10 October 2024
Applies to England
© Crown copyright 2024
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1. In this release:
- Capital expenditure by local authorities in England totalled £29.8 billion in 2023-24, up £597 million (2%) in real terms compared to 2022-23.
- Total expenditure on fixed assets totalled £23.7 billion in 2023-24, up £1.4 billion (6%) in real terms compared to 2022-23. This was largely due an increase of £844 million in new construction, conversion and renovation and an increase of £487 million in expenditure on acquisition of land and existing buildings.
- Total financial expenditure totalled £6.1 billion in 2023-24, down £843 million (12%) in real terms compared to 2022-23.
- Housing continues to be the service area with the greatest expenditure, with Housing increasing to £9.9 billion (4%) and Highways & Transport remaining at £8 billion in real terms in 2023-24 compared to 2022-23.
- Capital receipts totalled £3.6 billion in 2023-24, down £1.3 billion (26%) in real terms than in 2022-23.
- Capital grants remained the largest source of financing of capital expenditure in 2023-24 after overtaking prudential borrowing in 2021-22. Capital grants increased to £13 billion, up £769 million (6%) in real terms compared to 2022-23. Prudential borrowing increased to £9.9 billion, up £57 million (1%).
Release date: 10 October 2024
Date of next release: October 2025
Responsible Statistician: Imogen Johnson-Ormston
Contact: CapitalData@communities.gov.uk
Media enquiries: NewsDesk@communities.gov.uk
2. Introduction
Capital expenditure comprises the buying, constructing or improving of physical assets, such as buildings, land, vehicles and other miscellaneous property, including streetlights and road signs. It also includes grants and advances that authorities make to other bodies for capital purposes. Because of the project-based nature of capital expenditure, there can be relatively larger variance in expenditure over time compared with revenue expenditure.
This release provides the final outturn for local authority capital expenditure and receipts in the financial year April 2023 to March 2024. These data are derived from valid Capital Outturn Returns (COR) from 408 out of 410 local authorities in England. Data has been imputed for the following two authorities who have not yet submitted: Pendle Borough Council and Derbyshire County Council. These data are collated by the Data, Analysis and Statistics Division of the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government (MHCLG). COR forms capture local authority capital expenditure and receipts by economic category and service area, as well as a breakdown of how expenditure is financed, prudential system information, and accumulated capital receipts and major repairs reserve levels. COR service areas are consistent with the Service Reporting Code of Practice (SeRCOP).
A provisional outturn was published in a Statistical Release in June 2024. This was based on information from Capital Payments and Receipts Returns 4 (CPR4) submitted by local authorities in England.
3. Local Government Finance Data Review
MHCLG carried out a comprehensive review of local government finance statistics in 2021.
Details of the outcome of the review were published on 11 April 2022 and can be found here: Review of Local Government Finance Statistics.
An update to the review was published on 15 May 2023 and details the progress made against the recommendations. It can be found here: Local government finance statistics: update and review recommendations.
The local authority level data tables accompanying this release include two additional tables covering new data items collected this year. These are:
- Local authority acquisitions, disposals & impairment costs by authority, England, 2023-24
- Local authority value of assets held directly, in trading companies and in subsidiaries by authority, England, 2023-24
4. Capital expenditure and receipts by economic category
Local authorities report capital expenditure, incurred by buying, building or improving capital assets, and capital receipts, received from the sale of a capital asset.
Total capital expenditure is divided into total expenditure on fixed assets, which includes spending on tangible and intangible fixed assets, and total financial expenditure, which includes grants, loans, and acquisitions of share or loan capital for capital purposes.
As shown in Table 1 and Figure 1, capital expenditure by local authorities in England totalled £29.8 billion in 2023-24, up £597 million (2%) in real terms compared to 2022-23. Total financial expenditure decreased by £843 million (12%), down to a total of £6.1 billion, however this was offset by an increase of £1.4 billion (6%) in total expenditure on fixed assets, which totalled £23.7 billion.
The decrease in financial expenditure was largely due to a decrease in grants, loans and other financial assistance to £6 billion, a £457 million (7%) decrease compared to 2022-23.
The increase in expenditure on fixed assets was largely due to an increase in new construction, conversion and renovation of £844 million (5%) compared to 2022-23. New construction, conversion and renovation remained the largest category of capital expenditure at £19.1 billion. Expenditure on acquisition of land and existing buildings, increased to £2.5 billion, a £487 million (24%) increase compared to 2022-23.
Capital receipts totalled £3.6 billion in 2023-24, a decrease of £1.3 billion (26%) in real terms compared to 2022-23.
Expenditure treated as capital by virtue of Section 16(2)(b) Direction decreased to £619 million from a high of £845 million in 2022-23.
Table 1: Local authority capital expenditure & other transactions and capital receipts by category: forecast and final outturn, England, 2019-20 to 2023-24
Real terms series, all monetary figures in 2023-24 prices (£ millions)
| Category | Type | 2019-20 | 2020-21 | 2021-22 | 2022-23 | 2023-24 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Acquisition of land & existing buildings | Forecast (adjusted) | 6,329 | 5,667 | 4,532 | 3,117 | 1,695 |
| Outturn (final) | 5,024 | 3,180 | 2,323 | 2,030 | 2,517 | |
| New construction, conversion & renovation | Forecast (adjusted) | 16,878 | 18,561 | 20,387 | 18,059 | 18,085 |
| Outturn (final) | 16,321 | 16,469 | 18,496 | 18,242 | 19,086 | |
| Vehicles, plant, furniture & equipment | Forecast (adjusted) | 1,518 | 1,794 | 1,864 | 1,942 | 1,849 |
| Outturn (final) | 1,958 | 1,734 | 1,734 | 1,695 | 1,786 | |
| Intangible fixed assets | Forecast (adjusted) | 473 | 343 | 405 | 410 | 269 |
| Outturn (final) | 324 | 324 | 306 | 314 | 336 | |
| Total expenditure on fixed assets | Forecast (adjusted) | 25,199 | 26,365 | 27,188 | 23,527 | 21,898 |
| Outturn (final) | 23,627 | 21,706 | 22,859 | 22,284 | 23,724 |
| Category | Type | 2019-20 | 2020-21 | 2021-22 | 2022-23 | 2023-24 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Grants, loans and other financial assistance | Forecast (adjusted) | 7,323 | 7,204 | 7,363 | 6,105 | 5,869 |
| Outturn (final) | 5,515 | 5,710 | 5,869 | 6,442 | 5,985 | |
| Acquisition of share and loan capital | Forecast (adjusted) | 638 | 488 | 285 | 272 | 191 |
| Outturn (final) | 2,025 | 1,176 | 900 | 518 | 131 | |
| Total financial expenditure | Forecast (adjusted) | 7,961 | 7,693 | 7,649 | 6,376 | 6,060 |
| Outturn (final) | 7,541 | 6,887 | 6,769 | 6,959 | 6,116 |
| Category | Type | 2019-20 | 2020-21 | 2021-22 | 2022-23 | 2023-24 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Total capital expenditure | Forecast (adjusted) | 33,160 | 34,058 | 34,838 | 29,904 | 27,958 |
| Outturn (final) | 31,166 | 28,592 | 29,628 | 29,243 | 29,840 | |
| of which GLA[1] | Forecast (adjusted) | 4,944 | 4,863 | 3,977 | 3,924 | 3,200 |
| Outturn (final) | 4,477 | 3,854 | 3,848 | 3,877 | 3,574 | |
| Payment of LSVT levy | Forecast (adjusted) | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Outturn (final) | 0 | 0 | 5 | 1 | 0 | |
| Expenditure treated as capital by virtue of a Section 16(2)(b) Direction[2] | Forecast (adjusted) | 83 | 71 | 197 | 195 | 400 |
| Outturn (final) | 212 | 217 | 260 | 845 | 619 | |
| Total capital expenditure & other transactions | Forecast (adjusted) | 33,243 | 34,128 | 35,035 | 30,099 | 28,358 |
| Outturn (final) | 31,380 | 28,808 | 29,887 | 30,088 | 30,460 |
| Category | Type | 2019-20 | 2020-21 | 2021-22 | 2022-23 | 2023-24 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Total capital receipts | Forecast (adjusted) | 3,033 | 4,555 | 2,727 | 2,593 | 2,329 |
| Outturn (final) | 3,348 | 2,995 | 4,032 | 4,838 | 3,587 |
Notes:
- Forecasts are unadjusted at the GLA level.
- Expenditure which does not fall within the definition of expenditure for capital purposes but is treated as capital expenditure by a direction under section 16(2)(b) of the Local Government Act 2003.
- Sources: CER 2019-20 to 2023-24 and COR 2019-20 to 2023-24
Figure 1: Local authority capital expenditure in real terms by economic category, England, 2019-20 to 2023-24
A grouped bar chart showing a consistently large expenditure on ‘new construction, conversion and renovation’ compared to other main expenditure areas.
Figure 2 shows the difference between unadjusted forecasts, adjusted forecasts, and outturn data for total capital expenditure since 2019-20. Forecasts are adjusted as local authority forecasts are consistently higher than subsequent outturn. Differences between them can be caused by slippage in timings of projects, changes in service priorities or in financial capabilities of an authority throughout the year.
Caution should be taken when comparing outturn and forecast data over time in this release. This is especially true for 2020-21 since these forecasts were based on local authority estimates made prior to the impact of coronavirus (COVID-19) outbreak in early 2020.
Figure 2: Total capital expenditure in real terms: unadjusted forecast, adjusted forecast, and final outturn, England, 2019-20 to 2023-24
A line graph showing a consistent overestimation of capital expenditure by the unadjusted forecast and a more accurate estimate by the adjusted forecast.
5. Capital expenditure by service area
Local authorities report capital expenditure and receipts across 13 service areas, as shown in Table 2.
Figure 3 shows how capital expenditure across these service areas has changed since 2019-20.
Housing Services and Highways & Transport Services continued to account for the majority of local authority capital expenditure in 2023-24, with the two accounting for £9.9 billion (33%) and £8 billion (27%) of all capital expenditure respectively. Over the last five years, in real terms, the proportion of total capital expenditure attributed to Housing Services has increased by 10 percentage points.
Expenditure on Housing Services was up by £351 million (4%) in real terms compared to the previous year.
Expenditure on Highways & Transport Services was down £9 million (less than 1%) in real terms compared to the previous year. Greater London Authority (GLA) continues to have the highest expenditure from a single authority (£1.9 billion) despite a decrease of £227 million (11%) in real terms compared to the previous year.
Expenditure on Trading Services totalled £959 million in 2023-24, down £427 million (31%) in real terms from the previous year. This is the lowest level of expenditure on trading services over the past five years and is the fourth consecutive year of decline.
Table 2: Local authority total capital expenditure by service: final outturn, England, 2019-20 to 2023-24
Real terms series, all monetary figures in 2023-24 prices (£ millions)
| Service | 2019-20 Outturn (final) | 2020-21 Outturn (final) | 2021-22 Outturn (final) | 2022-23 Outturn (final) | 2023-24 Outturn (final) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Education | 2,739 | 2,422 | 2,465 | 2,229 | 2,434 |
| Highways & Transport | 8,862 | 9,013 | 8,455 | 7,963 | 7,954 |
| of which GLA | 3,208 | 2,886 | 2,431 | 2,107 | 1,880 |
| Social Care | 440 | 330 | 399 | 408 | 511 |
| Public Health | 25 | 27 | 29 | 41 | 26 |
| Housing | 7,177 | 6,847 | 8,281 | 9,528 | 9,879 |
| of which London Boroughs | 2,721 | 2,681 | 3,247 | 3,991 | 4,004 |
| of which GLA | 687 | 355 | 751 | 1,254 | 922 |
| Culture & Related Services | 1,473 | 1,311 | 1,463 | 1,422 | 1,547 |
| Environmental & Regulatory Services | 844 | 841 | 1,035 | 1,370 | 1,297 |
| Planning & Development Services | 2,242 | 1,994 | 2,284 | 2,076 | 2,425 |
| Digital Infrastructure | 165 | 202 | 261 | 190 | 155 |
| Police | 900 | 959 | 837 | 820 | 835 |
| Fire & Rescue Services | 193 | 192 | 185 | 212 | 275 |
| Central Services[1] | 2,231 | 2,276 | 2,122 | 1,596 | 1,543 |
| Trading[2] | 3,876 | 2,178 | 1,813 | 1,386 | 959 |
| Total Capital Expenditure | 31,166 | 28,592 | 29,628 | 29,243 | 29,840 |
Notes:
- Central Services include court costs, local tax collection, and other core council services costs (such as IT).
- Trading Services include the maintenance of direct labour and service organisations, such as civic halls, retail markets and industrial estates, and commercial activity.
- Source: COR 2019-20 to 2023-24
Figure 3: Local authority capital expenditure in real terms by service, England, 2019-20 to 2023-24
A line graph showing increased expenditure on Housing Services in the last two years, surpassing the level of expenditure on Highways and Transport in 2022-23.
Notes:
- Other services includes expenditure on Social Care, Public Health, Culture & Related Services, Environmental & Regulatory Services, Planning & Development Services, Digital Infrastructure, Police Services, Fire & Rescue Services and Central Services.
6. Difference between 2023-24 provisional and final outturn
Table 3 details changes in expenditure between provisional and final outturn for 2023-24.
Provisional outturn figures are collected on a quarterly basis in the Capital Payments Return (CPR). For the first three quarters (CPR1-3) local authorities only provide all-service totals of capital expenditure and receipts. For the fourth quarter (CPR4) they provide annual outturn figures at the service level as well as financing and prudential data. The provisional outturn figures in Table 3 are from CPR4.
The level of capital spending varies between CPR4 and COR because local authority accounts are not yet finalised when CPR4 is collected.
Local authorities in England reported £29.8 billion of capital expenditure at final outturn, up £244 million (1%) compared to the provisional outturn.
The increase in the final outturn compared to the provisional outturn was largely caused by an increase in expenditure on housing, which increased by £210 million (2%). This was largely driven by an increase in reported expenditure on housing from London Boroughs and from the Greater London Authority, which increased by £328 million (9%) and £104 million (13%) respectively compared to their provisional figures.
Expenditure on trading services increased by £265 million (38%) compared with provisional figures. Typically, this category shows more spend at final outturn due to recategorisation, as local authorities are reminded to report commercial acquisitions in this category. Other categories, notably central services, show lower spend at final outturn because of this; expenditure on central services decreased by £311 million (17%).
Total Capital Receipts increased by £241 million (7%) compared with provisional figures.
Table 3: Local authority total capital expenditure and total capital receipts: provisional and final outturns by service, England, 2023-24
Cash terms table, all monetary figures as reported (£ millions)
| Service | Provisional | Outturn | Change | Percentage Change |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Education | 2,326 | 2,434 | 108 | 5 |
| Highways & Transport | 7,933 | 7,954 | 21 | 0 |
| of which GLA | 1,875 | 1,880 | 5 | 0 |
| Social Care | 543 | 511 | -32 | -6 |
| Public Health | 24 | 26 | 2 | 8 |
| Housing | 9,669 | 9,879 | 210 | 2 |
| of which London Boroughs | 3,676 | 4,004 | 328 | 9 |
| of which GLA | 818 | 922 | 104 | 13 |
| Culture & Related Services | 1,495 | 1,547 | 52 | 4 |
| Environmental & Regulatory Services | 1,302 | 1,297 | -5 | 0 |
| Planning & Development Services | 2,471 | 2,425 | -46 | -2 |
| Digital Infrastructure | 166 | 155 | -11 | -7 |
| Police | 846 | 835 | -11 | -1 |
| Fire & Rescue Services | 274 | 275 | 1 | 0 |
| Central services[1] | 1,854 | 1,543 | -311 | -17 |
| Trading[2] | 694 | 959 | 265 | 38 |
| Total Capital Expenditure | 29,596 | 29,840 | 244 | 1 |
| Total Capital Receipts | 3,346 | 3,587 | 241 | 7 |
Notes:
- Central Services include court costs, local tax collection, and other core council services costs (such as IT). Some local authorities report commercial activity within this category. New categories and guidance were issued in Spring 2018 encouraging such expenditure to be recorded under Trading Services.
- Trading Services include the maintenance of direct labour and service organisations, such as civic halls, retail markets and industrial estates.
- Sources: CPR4 2023-24 and COR 2023-24
7. Financing of capital expenditure
Authorities finance their capital spending in a number of ways. A breakdown of the main elements of local authority capital funding is given below:
- Capital grants are provided by government departments and other organisations. The majority of governmental grants are not ring-fenced, giving authorities flexibility to choose how to spend this money, provided it is used for capital purposes.
- Prudential borrowing is borrowing freely undertaken by the local authority within the affordability limits stated by their auditors, as specified in the Local Government Act 2003.
- Capital receipts are from the sale of capital assets.
- Revenue resources can be used by local authorities to support capital spend. There is no restriction on revenue funds being used in this way, although accounting convention prevents capital resources being used to cover revenue spend.
As shown in Table 4 and Figure 4, capital grants continues to be the largest source of financing of capital expenditure in 2023-24, increasing to £13 billion, up £769 million (6%) in real terms compared to 2022-23. Prudential borrowing at increased slightly by £57 million (1%) to £9.9 billion.
Capital grants made up 43% of total financing of capital expenditure in 2023-24 compared to 40% in 2022-23, whilst prudential borrowing made up 33% in 2023-24 compared to 32% in 2022-23.
Table 4: Financing of local authority capital expenditure by source: final outturn, England, 2019-20 to 2023-24
Real terms series, all monetary figures in 2023-24 prices (£ millions)
| Source | 2019-20 | 2020-21 | 2021-22 | 2022-23 | 2023-24 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Total capital grants | 9,782 | 10,457 | 11,575 | 12,190 | 12,959 |
| Grants from central government departments | 7,153 | 7,799 | 9,164 | 9,737 | 10,328 |
| Grants from European structural & investment funds | 56 | 56 | 58 | 97 | 53 |
| Grants from private developers & leaseholders, etc. | 1,403 | 1,240 | 1,303 | 1,370 | 1,532 |
| Grants from non-departmental public bodies[1] | 529 | 588 | 595 | 754 | 911 |
| Grants from the National Lottery | 65 | 54 | 42 | 46 | 37 |
| Grants from Local Enterprise Partnerships | 575 | 720 | 412 | 186 | 98 |
| Total capital receipts | 2,650 | 2,379 | 2,692 | 3,042 | 2,553 |
| Total revenue resources | 5,260 | 4,540 | 5,623 | 5,694 | 4,720 |
| Housing Revenue Account | 627 | 475 | 754 | 506 | 464 |
| Major Repairs Reserve | 2,140 | 1,956 | 2,060 | 1,993 | 2,069 |
| General Fund (CERA) | 2,493 | 2,108 | 2,809 | 3,195 | 2,186 |
| Total prudential borrowing[2] | 13,626 | 11,935 | 10,281 | 9,824 | 9,881 |
| Loans & other financial assistance from Local Enterprise | 32 | 13 | 11 | 13 | 35 |
| Other borrowing & credit arrangements not supported by central government | 13,593 | 11,923 | 10,268 | 9,812 | 9,847 |
| Total resources used to finance capital expenditure | 31,319 | 29,312 | 30,169 | 30,752 | 30,113 |
Notes:
- Non-Departmental Public Bodies, organisations that are not government departments but which have a role in the processes of national government, such as the Sport England, English Heritage and Natural England.
- The Prudential System, which came into effect on 1 April 2004, allows local authorities to raise finance for capital expenditure - without Government consent - where they can afford to service the debt without extra Government support.
- Sources: COR 2019-20 to 2023-24
Figure 4: Financing of local authority capital expenditure in real terms by source, England, 2019-20 to 2023-24
A line graph showing gradual increase of Total Capital Grants and gradual decrease of Total Prudential Borrowing over recent years, with Total Capital Grants being the highest category for the last two years.
8. Accompanying tables and open data
8.1 Symbols used
0 = zero or negligible
[x] = Data missing / not available
[z] = Not applicable
[r] = Revision
[b] = Discontinuity
8.2 Rounding
Where figures have been rounded, there may be a slight discrepancy between the total and the sum of constituent parts.
8.3 Tables
Accompanying tables are available to download alongside this release. These are:
Table 1a: Local authority capital expenditure & other transactions and capital receipts by category: forecast and final outturn, England, 2019-20 to 2023-24 (Real terms table, all monetary figures in 2023-24 prices)
Table 1b: Local authority capital expenditure & other transactions and capital receipts by category: forecast and final outturn, England, 2019-20 to 2023-24 (Cash terms table, all monetary figures as reported)
Table 2a: Local authority total capital expenditure by service: final outturn, England, 2019-20 to 2023-24 (Real terms table, all monetary figures in 2023-24 prices)
Table 2b: Local authority total capital expenditure by service: final outturn, England, 2019-20 to 2023-24 (Cash terms table, all monetary figures as reported)
Table 3: Local authority total capital expenditure and total capital receipts: provisional and final outturns by service, England, 2023-24 (Cash terms table, all monetary figures as reported)
Table 4a: Financing of local authority capital expenditure by source: final outturn, England, 2019-20 to 2023-24 (Real terms table, all monetary figures in 2023-24 prices)
Table 4b: Financing of local authority capital expenditure by source: final outturn, England, 2019-20 to 2023-24 (Cash terms table, all monetary figures as reported)
Table 5: Local authority total capital expenditure and total capital receipts: final outturn by service and category, England, 2023-24 (Cash terms table, all monetary figures as reported)
Table 6: Local authority prudential system information: final outturn by category, England, 2023-24 (Cash terms table, all monetary figures as reported)
Table 7a: Local authority prudential system information: net debt as at 31 March by class of authority, England, 2019-20 to 2023-24 (Real terms table, all monetary figures in 2023-24 prices)
Table 7b: Local authority prudential system information: net debt as at 31 March by class of authority, England, 2019-20 to 2023-24 (Cash terms table, all monetary figures as reported)
Table 8a: Local authority prudential system information: self-financed borrowing by class of authority, England, 2019-20 to 2023-24 (Real terms table, all monetary figures in 2023-24 prices)
Table 8b: Local authority prudential system information: self-financed borrowing by class of authority, England, 2019-20 to 2023-24 (Cash terms table, all monetary figures as reported)
Table 9: Local authority total value of assets, as at 31 March 2024: final outturn by category, England, 2023-24 (Cash terms table, all monetary figures as reported)
All data in this release are available at local authority level for:
COR A1: Total capital expenditure and receipts, England, 2023-24
COR A2: Further details of capital expenditure on Social Care, Grants & Loans, Roads, Street Lighting & Road Safety, and Section 16(2)(b) Direction, England, 2023-24
COR A3: Total acquisitions, disposals & impairment costs, England, 2023-24
COR B1: Financing of capital expenditure, England, 2023-24
COR B2: Grants from central government used to finance capital expenditure by authority, England, 2023-24
COR C: Prudential system information, England, 2023-24
COR D: Accumulated capital receipts and Major repairs reserve, England, 2023-24
COR E: Local authority trading companies, subsidiaries, associates and joint ventures by authority, England, 2023-24
COR F: Total value of assets held by the local authority directly, in trading companies and in subsidiaries, England, 31 March, 2023-24
2023 to 2024 supplementary data: Housing Revenue Account capital receipts, expenditure and financing
See the Local authority capital expenditure, receipts and financing webpage for all tables and workbooks, as well as related statistical releases.
9. Technical notes
Please see the accompanying technical notes document for further details.
Information on Official Statistics is available via the UK Statistics Authority website.
Information about statistics at MHCLG is available via the Department’s website.