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Where your council tax goes in Chorley
Last updated . Figures refresh every night. How each figure is worked out.
A Band D council tax bill in Chorley is £2,430.23 for 2026-27, split between Chorley £215.99, Lancashire County Council £1,767.03, Lancashire County Council: adult social care precept, this year's increase £34.72, Lancashire Police and Crime Commissioner and Chief Constable £292.40, Lancashire Combined Fire and Rescue Authority £94.73, Parish and town councils (average for the area) £25.36. Shared out in proportion to what each body spends, the largest single line is adult social care at Lancashire County Council: £730.41 of the bill. Council tax pays for 11% of the council's own spending; the rest is government grant, business rates and fees.
Figures for the 2026–27 financial year. Source: Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government.
Key figures
- £2,430.23Band D bill, 2026-27
- £215.99Goes to Chorley itself (9%)
- £730.41Largest line: adult social care
- 10.9%Of the council's money that comes from council tax, 2025-26
Source: Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government.
Who gets your bill
Figures are for a Band D home. Bands A to H pay a fixed fraction of this, set in law.
Parish precepts differ from parish to parish; this is the average across the area, and a home outside any parish pays none.
And where does that bit go?
Choose any part of the bill to see how it divides, then keep going as far as the published returns allow. Every level has its own link you can share.
Your bill: £2,430.23
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Chorley £215.99
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Lancashire County Council £1,767.03
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Parish and town councils (average for the area) £25.36
Chorley
£215.99 of your bill goes to Chorley. It is shared out below in proportion to how Chorley spent its money in 2025-26, its latest published return.
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Environment and regulation £73.58
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Running the council £60.63
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Housing (not council homes) £15.75
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Public health £2.51
Roads and transport brought in £456k more than it cost; Planning and development brought in £2.7m more than it cost in 2025-26, so they take no share of your bill.
Which councils count as similar
Medians are across the 10 district councils in England closest in population: Welwyn Hatfield, Cheltenham, West Oxfordshire, Gedling, Dover, Wyre, Sevenoaks, North Kesteven, Tunbridge Wells, West Lancashire. Per-resident figures use ONS mid-year population estimates.
Environment and regulation
£73.58 of your bill goes to environment and regulation at Chorley. Here is how its £5.6m of net spending on it divides in the return.
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Waste collection £18.61
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Recycling and waste minimisation £17.76
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Street cleaning £12.21
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Environmental health, food safety, pest control and licensing £11.92
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Community safety and CCTV £9.05
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Cemeteries and crematoria £3.70
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Public toilets £0.26
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Trade waste £0.05
Parks, leisure, libraries and culture
£63.52 of your bill goes to parks, leisure, libraries and culture at Chorley. Here is how its £4.8m of net spending on it divides in the return.
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Parks and open spaces (including play areas) £34.38
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Community centres and public halls £11.19
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Sport and leisure £9.07
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Museums, arts, heritage and archives £8.88
Running the council
£60.63 of your bill goes to running the council at Chorley. Here is how its £4.6m of net spending on it divides in the return.
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Corporate and democratic core £37.20
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Collecting council tax and business rates £17.33
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Elections and electoral registration £3.24
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Non-distributed costs (past pensions, unused assets) £2.79
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Local welfare assistance £0.04
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Emergency planning £0.03
Housing (not council homes)
£15.75 of your bill goes to housing (not council homes) at Chorley. Here is how its £1.2m of net spending on it divides in the return.
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Homelessness and temporary accommodation £10.33
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Housing benefit administration and discretionary payments £3.94
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Private sector housing renewal £1.40
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Housing strategy, advice and enabling £0.09
Council homes are not in this. Council housing is paid for through the Housing Revenue Account, from tenants' rents, and the law keeps it separate from the General Fund that council tax goes into. Chorley reported no Housing Revenue Account for 2025-26: it has no council homes of its own, or they were transferred to a housing association. What council tax does and doesn't pay for.
Lancashire County Council
£1,767.03 of your bill goes to Lancashire County Council. It is shared out below in proportion to how Lancashire County Council spent its money in 2025-26, its latest published return.
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Adult social care £730.41
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Children's social care £372.39
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Education £338.80
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Environment and regulation £117.04
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Roads and transport £91.42
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Running the council £48.44
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Public health £21.55
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Planning and development £18.06
Before sharing out your bill, the part of education paid for by the Dedicated Schools Grant (£1.12bn) and public health paid for by the public health grant (£81.7m) is taken off, because council tax does not pay for it.
Which councils count as similar
Medians are across the 10 county councils closest in population: Surrey County Council, Hertfordshire County Council, Hampshire County Council, Essex County Council, Kent County Council, Norfolk County Council, West Sussex County Council, Staffordshire County Council, Nottinghamshire County Council, Devon County Council. Per-resident figures use ONS mid-year population estimates.
Adult social care
£730.41 of your bill goes to adult social care at Lancashire County Council. Here is how its £617.1m of net spending on it divides in the return.
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Physical support £238.47
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Learning disability support £211.39
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Commissioning, strategy and administration £68.18
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Care assessment and safeguarding £60.60
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Mental health support £51.27
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Assistive equipment and technology £9.49
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Social support (carers, substance misuse, isolation, asylum) £8.98
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Sensory support £3.99
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Information and early intervention £3.93
Physical support
£238.47 of your bill goes to physical support at Lancashire County Council. Here is how its £201.5m of net spending on it divides in the return.
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Aged 65 and over £167.57
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Aged 18 to 64 £70.91
Learning disability support
£211.39 of your bill goes to learning disability support at Lancashire County Council. Here is how its £178.6m of net spending on it divides in the return.
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Aged 18 to 64 £186.28
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Aged 65 and over £25.11
Support with memory and cognition
£74.11 of your bill goes to support with memory and cognition at Lancashire County Council. Here is how its £62.6m of net spending on it divides in the return.
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Aged 65 and over £69.82
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Aged 18 to 64 £4.30
Mental health support
£51.27 of your bill goes to mental health support at Lancashire County Council. Here is how its £43.3m of net spending on it divides in the return.
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Aged 18 to 64 £32.13
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Aged 65 and over £19.14
Sensory support
£3.99 of your bill goes to sensory support at Lancashire County Council. Here is how its £3.4m of net spending on it divides in the return.
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Aged 65 and over £2.11
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Aged 18 to 64 £1.88
Children's social care
£372.39 of your bill goes to children's social care at Lancashire County Council. Here is how its £314.6m of net spending on it divides in the return.
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Children looked after £220.75
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Safeguarding and social work £59.39
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Family support £51.64
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Children's centres and early years £14.35
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Services for young people £10.41
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Asylum-seeking children £10.40
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Youth justice £5.22
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Other children's and families' services £0.23
Education
£338.80 of your bill goes to education at Lancashire County Council. Here is how its £1.40bn of net spending on it divides in the return.
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Primary schools £147.46
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Secondary schools £67.88
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Special schools and alternative provision £52.18
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Early years and nursery £48.43
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Other education £22.86
Environment and regulation
£117.04 of your bill goes to environment and regulation at Lancashire County Council. Here is how its £98.9m of net spending on it divides in the return.
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Waste disposal £109.63
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Trading standards £3.56
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Environmental health, food safety, pest control and licensing £2.50
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Flood defence, land drainage and coast protection £0.86
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Recycling and waste minimisation £0.49
Roads and transport
£91.42 of your bill goes to roads and transport at Lancashire County Council. Here is how its £77.2m of net spending on it divides in the return.
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Support for bus, rail and other public transport £35.51
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Concessionary bus fares £21.41
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Road and bridge maintenance £20.51
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Street lighting (including energy) £7.32
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Winter service (gritting) £4.88
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Transport planning and policy £1.50
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Parking £0.29
Road and bridge maintenance
£20.51 of your bill goes to road and bridge maintenance at Lancashire County Council. Here is how its £17.3m of net spending on it divides in the return.
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Environmental, safety and routine maintenance £16.34
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Structural maintenance (resurfacing, bridges) £4.17
Running the council
£48.44 of your bill goes to running the council at Lancashire County Council. Here is how its £40.9m of net spending on it divides in the return.
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Local welfare assistance £20.16
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Non-distributed costs (past pensions, unused assets) £14.97
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Corporate and democratic core £4.89
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Coroners' and other courts £3.72
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Elections and electoral registration £3.31
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Emergency planning £0.90
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Other central services £0.26
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Registering births, deaths and marriages £0.23
Parks, leisure, libraries and culture
£28.91 of your bill goes to parks, leisure, libraries and culture at Lancashire County Council. Here is how its £24.4m of net spending on it divides in the return.
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Libraries £19.63
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Parks and open spaces (including play areas) £5.18
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Museums, arts, heritage and archives £4.10
Public health
£21.55 of your bill goes to public health at Lancashire County Council. Here is how its £99.9m of net spending on it divides in the return.
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Drug and alcohol services £6.08
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Health visiting and children's 0-5 services £5.49
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Other public health £3.35
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Children's 5-19 programmes £1.88
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Sexual health £1.85
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NHS health checks and health protection £1.04
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Stop smoking and tobacco control £0.92
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Public mental health £0.61
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Obesity and physical activity £0.34
Planning and development
£18.06 of your bill goes to planning and development at Lancashire County Council. Here is how its £15.3m of net spending on it divides in the return.
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Economic development and business support £17.16
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Environmental initiatives £0.89
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Planning policy £0.01
Lancashire County Council: adult social care precept, this year's increase
£34.72 of your bill is this year's adult social care precept, which councils may raise on top of the usual limit for adult social care. It is shown against how Lancashire County Council's adult social care spending of £617.1m divided in 2025-26. MHCLG publishes only this year's increase; the running total since 2016-17 printed on your bill is in the council part above.
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Physical support £11.34
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Learning disability support £10.05
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Commissioning, strategy and administration £3.24
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Care assessment and safeguarding £2.88
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Mental health support £2.44
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Assistive equipment and technology £0.45
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Social support (carers, substance misuse, isolation, asylum) £0.43
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Sensory support £0.19
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Information and early intervention £0.19
Physical support
£11.34 of your bill goes to physical support at Lancashire County Council. Here is how its £201.5m of net spending on it divides in the return.
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Aged 65 and over £7.97
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Aged 18 to 64 £3.37
Learning disability support
£10.05 of your bill goes to learning disability support at Lancashire County Council. Here is how its £178.6m of net spending on it divides in the return.
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Aged 18 to 64 £8.85
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Aged 65 and over £1.19
Support with memory and cognition
£3.52 of your bill goes to support with memory and cognition at Lancashire County Council. Here is how its £62.6m of net spending on it divides in the return.
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Aged 65 and over £3.32
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Aged 18 to 64 £0.20
Mental health support
£2.44 of your bill goes to mental health support at Lancashire County Council. Here is how its £43.3m of net spending on it divides in the return.
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Aged 18 to 64 £1.53
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Aged 65 and over £0.91
Sensory support
£0.19 of your bill goes to sensory support at Lancashire County Council. Here is how its £3.4m of net spending on it divides in the return.
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Aged 65 and over £0.10
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Aged 18 to 64 £0.09
Lancashire Police and Crime Commissioner and Chief Constable
£292.40 of your bill is this year's adult social care precept, which councils may raise on top of the usual limit for adult social care. It is shown against how Lancashire Police and Crime Commissioner and Chief Constable's adult social care spending of £422.3m divided in 2025-26. MHCLG publishes only this year's increase; the running total since 2016-17 printed on your bill is in the council part above.
Lancashire Combined Fire and Rescue Authority
£94.73 of your bill goes to Lancashire Combined Fire and Rescue Authority. It is shared out below in proportion to how Lancashire Combined Fire and Rescue Authority spent its money in 2025-26, its latest published return.
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Fire and rescue £93.17
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Running the council £1.56
Which councils count as similar
Medians are across the 10 fire and rescue authorities closest in population: Dorset and Wiltshire Fire and Rescue Authority, South Wales Fire Authority, Merseyside Fire and Rescue Authority, South Yorkshire Fire and Rescue Authority, Devon and Somerset Combined Fire and Rescue Authority, Essex Combined Fire and Rescue Authority, Kent Combined Fire and Rescue Authority, Hampshire and Isle of Wight Fire and Rescue Authority, Avon Combined Fire and Rescue Authority, Nottinghamshire Combined Fire and Rescue Authority. Per-resident figures use ONS mid-year population estimates.
Fire and rescue
£93.17 of your bill goes to fire and rescue at Lancashire Combined Fire and Rescue Authority. Here is how its £79.2m of net spending on it divides in the return.
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Firefighting and rescue £79.55
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Community fire safety £8.99
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Fire emergency planning £4.64
Parks, street cleaning and roads here
What Chorley and Lancashire County Council spent, net of income, on the lines readers ask about most. Roads and street cleaning are also shown per mile of road the council looks after, where it is the highway authority. Gully cleaning and verge cutting are inside routine maintenance; no return splits them out.
| Line | Net spending | Per resident | Similar councils, per resident | Per mile of road | Change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Parks and open spaces (including play areas)Details for Parks and open spaces (including play areas) | £2.6m | £21 | £12 | — | up 22.8% on 2024-25 |
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Street cleaningDetails for Street cleaning | £924k | £7.59 | £11 | — | down 3.5% on 2024-25 |
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Street lighting (including energy)Details for Street lighting (including energy) | £68k | £0.56 | £0.58 | — | down 29.9% on 2024-25 |
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| Line | Net spending | Per resident | Similar councils, per resident | Per mile of road | Change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Parks and open spaces (including play areas)Details for Parks and open spaces (including play areas) | £4.4m | £3.34 | £2.67 | — | up 32.5% on 2024-25 |
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Road and bridge maintenanceDetails for Road and bridge maintenance | £17.3m | £13 | £26 | £4,001 (similar: £7,207) | up 13.0% on 2024-25 |
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Environmental, safety and routine maintenanceDetails for Environmental, safety and routine maintenance | £13.8m | £11 | £23 | £3,188 (similar: £5,551) | up 23.1% on 2024-25 |
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Structural maintenance (resurfacing, bridges)Details for Structural maintenance (resurfacing, bridges) | £3.5m | £2.69 | £2.56 | £814 (similar: £739) | down 14.5% on 2024-25 |
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Winter service (gritting)Details for Winter service (gritting) | £4.1m | £3.16 | £2.65 | £953 (similar: £781) | down 19.3% on 2024-25 |
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Street lighting (including energy)Details for Street lighting (including energy) | £6.2m | £4.73 | £8.04 | £1,428 (similar: £1,892) | down 27.3% on 2024-25 |
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Miles of road: Department for Transport road lengths, 2025; locally managed major roads and all minor roads. More on what council tax does and doesn't pay for.
What it adds up to
| Service | Per resident | Median |
|---|---|---|
Environment and regulationDetails for Environment and regulation | £46 | £56 |
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Parks, leisure, libraries and cultureDetails for Parks, leisure, libraries and culture | £39 | £23 |
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Running the councilDetails for Running the council | £38 | £41 |
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Housing (not council homes)Details for Housing (not council homes) | £9.79 | £24 |
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Public healthDetails for Public health | £1.56 | £0.47 |
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Roads and transportDetails for Roads and transport | £-3.74 | £-4.53 |
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Planning and developmentDetails for Planning and development | £-22.56 | £22 |
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- Chorley spent 30.4% of its gross service spending on its own staff in 2025-26 (median for district councils in England: 39.3%); the rest went on suppliers, contractors, grants, benefits and other running costs.
| Service | Per resident | Median |
|---|---|---|
EducationDetails for Education | £1,073 | £714 |
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Adult social careDetails for Adult social care | £472 | £447 |
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Children's social careDetails for Children's social care | £240 | £241 |
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Public healthDetails for Public health | £76 | £52 |
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Environment and regulationDetails for Environment and regulation | £76 | £57 |
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Roads and transportDetails for Roads and transport | £59 | £68 |
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Running the councilDetails for Running the council | £31 | £21 |
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Parks, leisure, libraries and cultureDetails for Parks, leisure, libraries and culture | £19 | £16 |
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Planning and developmentDetails for Planning and development | £12 | £4.63 |
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- Lancashire County Council spent 40.1% of its gross service spending on its own staff in 2025-26 (median for county councils: 28.1%); the rest went on suppliers, contractors, grants, benefits and other running costs.
What this data does and doesn't show
- These are each body's own figures, as reported to government in its revenue outturn return. Net spending is after the fees, charges and grants a service brings in.
- Your bill is for 2026-27; it is shared out using the latest published return, which covers an earlier year. The mix of spending changes little from one year to the next, but it does change.
- Council tax is not ring-fenced: this shows your bill in proportion to spending, not what your money bought. Where a precept is set aside for adult social care, it is shown against adult social care.
- No council publishes spending at street or property level, so nothing here says what was spent near you.
- Sub-service lines are the ones the national returns itemise. Councils describe their own budgets differently; their budget books and statements of accounts have more detail.
Sources
- Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government, Council Tax levels set by local authorities in England: Table 10, local authority level data, published 25 March 2026. Open Government Licence v3.0.
- Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government, Local authority revenue expenditure and financing: Revenue Outturn multi-year data set, published 28 September 2026. Open Government Licence v3.0.
How the split is worked out, and how the three nations' returns are matched to one list of services, is on the methodology page. The dataset is on the data page. See also council tax in Chorley and everything else about Chorley.
Common questions
- What does council tax pay for in Chorley?
- A Band D bill of £2,430.23 is split between Chorley, Lancashire County Council, Lancashire County Council: adult social care precept, this year's increase, Lancashire Police and Crime Commissioner and Chief Constable, Lancashire Combined Fire and Rescue Authority, Parish and town councils (average for the area). In proportion to spending, the largest line is adult social care, £730.41.
- Is council tax ring-fenced for particular services?
- No. Council tax is pooled with grants, business rates and fees. The adult social care precept is the exception: councils raise it for adult social care.
Sources for this page
| Source | Publisher | Figures as of | Updated | Licence |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Council Tax levels set by local authorities in England | Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government | the 2026–27 financial year | annual | Open Government Licence v3.0 |
| Local authority revenue expenditure and financing: Revenue Outturn multi-year data set | Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government | 28 September 2026 | annual | Open Government Licence v3.0 |
Each source's figures are used under the licence shown. Our own words, analysis, charts and derived calculations are ours, under CC BY 4.0.