Where your money goes
In this section: Your area

Council tax in Pendle

Last updated . Figures refresh every night. How each figure is worked out.

Council tax in Pendle for 2026-27 is £2,640 a year for a Band D home, £1,760 for Band A and £5,280 for the top band. That is £229 above the England average of £2,411. It ranks 20 of 296 billing areas in England. Figures are the council's own set rates.

Figures for the 2026–27 financial year. Source: Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government.

Key figures

  • £2,640Band D a year, 2026-27 up on a year earlier: +£105 (+4.1%) vs 2025-26 As of 6 April 2026
  • £1,760Band A, the lowest As of 6 April 2026
  • +£229Band D against the England average of £2,411 Above average As of 6 April 2026
  • 20 of 296Rank in England, highest first As of 6 April 2026

Source: Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government.

What is the bill for each band?

£2,640
Band D, Pendle, 2026-27
Council tax by band in Pendle, bands A to H
BandA yearA month
Band A
Details for Band A
£1,760.12£146.68
A month
£146.68
Band B
Details for Band B
£2,053.47£171.12
A month
£171.12
Band C
Details for Band C
£2,346.83£195.57
A month
£195.57
Band D
Details for Band D
£2,640.18£220.02
A month
£220.02
Band E
Details for Band E
£3,226.89£268.91
A month
£268.91
Band F
Details for Band F
£3,813.59£317.80
A month
£317.80
Band G
Details for Band G
£4,400.30£366.69
A month
£366.69
Band H
Details for Band H
£5,280.36£440.03
A month
£440.03

Who gets the money?

Pendle 12%Other precepting bodies 88%
Band D bill in Pendle by receiving body
Who receives itBand DShare
Pendle
Details for Pendle
£31712%
Share
12%
Other precepting bodies
Details for Other precepting bodies
£2,32388%
Share
88%

Each body sets its own precept and the council simply collects them together. The council that sends the bill keeps only its own share.

Where your council tax goes: from your bill to each service

How does it compare?

Band D here is £229 above the England average, 20 of 296 councils from the highest.

Pendle among the England councils nearest it, Band D 2026-27

Ranked highest first. Every council is in the full table.

Show as a table
Pendle among the England councils nearest it, Band D 2026-27
NameBand D
16. Bassetlaw£2,645
17. Rushcliffe£2,643
18. Teignbridge£2,643
19. North Devon£2,642
20. Pendle (Pendle)£2,640
21. Walsall£2,627
22. Isle of Wight£2,626
23. Durham£2,622
24. Stockport£2,619

Figures for the 2026–27 financial year. Source: Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government.

How does Pendle compare? The report card

Official figures on complaints, finances, audit, pay and services for Pendle, each from the body that published it and set against the figure for England. See every council on the council map.

  • Council tax rise this year4.1%Lower than the England figure of 4.9%
  • Council tax per head£663Lower than the England figure of £796
  • Reserves as a share of net spending79%Higher than the England figure of 50%
  • Borrowing per home£404Lower than the England figure of £3,474
  • Accounts, 2024-25Delivered by backstop92% of bodies had an opinion delivered by the backstop date
  • Ofsted, children's services (county)Good73% of English councils are good or outstanding
  • CQC, adult social care (county)Requires improvement62% of assessed councils are good or outstanding
  • A roads needing maintenance considered (county)3%Lower than the England figure of 5%
  • Recycling rate26.7%Lower than the England figure of 42.0%
  • Major planning decisions on time92.6%Higher than the England figure of 91.0%

Each figure is set against the figure for England as a whole. They are plain comparisons, one measure at a time: there is no overall score and no ranking of councils. Higher is not always better or worse; what each measure does and does not show is on the methodology page.

What do complaints to the ombudsman show?

Local Government and Social Care Ombudsman: Pendle, 2025-26
MeasurePendleFor comparison
Complaints and enquiries received
Details for Complaints and enquiries received
13—
For comparison
—
Complaints and enquiries decided
Details for Complaints and enquiries decided
79 in 2024-25
For comparison
9 in 2024-25
Detailed investigations
Details for Detailed investigations
0—
For comparison
—
Upheld
Details for Upheld
0—
For comparison
—
Uphold rate
Details for Uphold rate
No investigations86% for every body the Ombudsman covers; 74% for similar councils
For comparison
86% for every body the Ombudsman covers; 74% for similar councils
Upheld cases where the council had already offered a satisfactory remedy
Details for Upheld cases where the council had already offered a satisfactory remedy
—13% for every body the Ombudsman covers
For comparison
13% for every body the Ombudsman covers
Ombudsman’s recommendations the council complied with
Details for Ombudsman’s recommendations the council complied with
—99.9% for every body the Ombudsman covers
For comparison
99.9% for every body the Ombudsman covers
Uphold rate in 2024-25
Details for Uphold rate in 2024-25
0%—
For comparison
—

An uphold rate depends on how many complaints reach a detailed investigation. With few investigations, one decision moves it a long way.

Source: Local Government and Social Care Ombudsman, Annual review of local government complaints, 2025-26.

This council is not in the Housing Ombudsman’s landlord tables for 2025-26, which list landlords with five or more findings. Most councils without their own homes are not.

How healthy are its finances?

Reserves, spending and borrowing: Pendle
MeasurePendleFor comparison
Net revenue spending, 2025-26
Details for Net revenue spending, 2025-26
£18.7m—
For comparison
—
Reserves at the end of 2025-26
Details for Reserves at the end of 2025-26
£14.8m—
For comparison
—
Reserves as a share of net spending
Details for Reserves as a share of net spending
79%50% for England; 76% in 2024-25
For comparison
50% for England; 76% in 2024-25
Outstanding borrowing at 30 June 2026
Details for Outstanding borrowing at 30 June 2026
£16.9m—
For comparison
—
Borrowing per home on the valuation list
Details for Borrowing per home on the valuation list
£404£3,474 across English billing authorities
For comparison
£3,474 across English billing authorities

Earmarked and unallocated revenue reserves at the end of the year, excluding schools and public health, as a share of net revenue expenditure. Much of any council’s reserves is set aside for particular purposes. Borrowing is total outstanding loans of every kind; councils borrow mainly to pay for buildings, roads and housing, and the figure does not show what the borrowing was for.

Source: Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government, Local authority revenue expenditure and financing: revenue outturn time series, 2025-26; Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government, Local authority borrowing and investment live table, 30 June 2026; Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government, Council Taxbase statistics, 2025.

What have the auditors said?

Audit of the accounts: Pendle
Accounts yearStatus recorded by PSAAOpinion signed
2024-25Delivered by backstop23 February 2026
2023-24Delivered by backstop27 February 2025

“Delivered by backstop” means the auditor gave an opinion by the statutory backstop date. Many opinions given that way were disclaimed or qualified because the deadline cut the audit short; PSAA publishes which type of opinion each council received only as national totals, so it is not shown here. Auditors’ value-for-money findings are in each auditor’s annual report on the council’s website.

Source: Public Sector Audit Appointments, Monthly audit opinion data, 2024-25.

What are senior staff and councillors paid?

Senior pay and councillor allowances for Pendle have not yet been read from its statement of accounts. There is no central dataset of either; they are being added council by council, each with a link to the page of the accounts it comes from.

How are its services rated?

Service ratings and performance: Pendle
MeasurePendleFor comparison
Children's services, Ofsted overall effectivenessGood (Lancashire County Council)26 January 2023. 73% of English councils judged good or outstanding
Adult social care, CQC assessmentRequires improvement (Lancashire County Council)15 August 2025. 62% of assessed councils rated good or outstanding
A roads where maintenance should be considered, 2024-253% (Lancashire County Council)5% in England
B and C roads where maintenance should be considered, 2024-255% (Lancashire County Council)7% in England
Unclassified roads where maintenance should be considered, 2024-2524% (Lancashire County Council)17% in England
Household waste sent for reuse, recycling or composting, 2024-2526.7%42.0% for England
Major planning decisions on time, 24 months to end of june 202692.6%91.0% for England
Non-major planning decisions on time, 24 months to end of June 202691.7%90.7% for England

Lancashire County Council runs children’s services, adult social care and most roads here, so those rows are the county council’s. Inspections happen at different times, so a rating can be several years old; the date is shown with each. Planning figures are measured differently in each nation: share of decisions made within the statutory time (13 weeks for major, 8 for non-major) or an agreed extension, over 24 months. Recycling rates are measured differently in England, Scotland and Wales, so compare within a nation.

Source: Ofsted, Children's social care: local authority inspection outcomes, as at 31 March 2026; Care Quality Commission, Local authority assessments, latest assessment; Department for Transport, Road condition statistics: data tables (RDC), 2024-25; Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, Local authority collected waste management: annual results, 2024-25; Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government, Live tables on planning application statistics (P151, P153), 24 months to end of June 2026.

What about the county council, Lancashire County Council?

Lancashire County Council sets its own share of the council tax bill here and runs social care, children’s services, most roads and waste disposal. Its own figures:

Lancashire County Council: its own figures
MeasureLancashire County CouncilDetail
Ombudsman uphold rate
Details for Ombudsman uphold rate
85%275 complaints decided, 2025-26
Detail
275 complaints decided, 2025-26
Reserves as a share of net spending
Details for Reserves as a share of net spending
37%2025-26
Detail
2025-26
Outstanding borrowing
Details for Outstanding borrowing
£965.8mat 30 June 2026
Detail
at 30 June 2026
Accounts, 2024-25
Details for Accounts, 2024-25
Post backstop opinion deliveredSigned 6 March 2026
Detail
Signed 6 March 2026
Employees paid £50,000 or more, 2025-26
Details for Employees paid £50,000 or more, 2025-26
4,2902024-25: 3,250. Statement of accounts
Detail
2024-25: 3,250. Statement of accounts

Official events for Lancashire County Council:

  1. Audit
    PSAA records the status as “Post backstop opinion delivered”; auditor Grant Thornton UK LLP.
    Public Sector Audit Appointments

Source: Local Government and Social Care Ombudsman, Annual review of local government complaints, 2025-26; Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government, Local authority revenue expenditure and financing: revenue outturn time series, 2025-26; Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government, Local authority borrowing and investment live table, 30 June 2026; Public Sector Audit Appointments, Monthly audit opinion data, 2024-25.

What has happened recently?

Decisions and publications by official bodies about Pendle, newest first. Each links to the body that made or published it. News reports are not included.

  1. Election
    Independent 4, Reform UK 4, Conservative and Unionist Party 1, Liberal Democrats 1
    Democracy Club
  2. Council tax
    Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government
  3. Audit
    PSAA records the status as “Delivered by backstop”; auditor Grant Thornton UK LLP.
    Public Sector Audit Appointments
  4. Audit backstop
    Draft accounts published by the deadline: yes. Audit opinion delivered by the backstop date: yes.
    Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government
  5. Election
    Independent 5, Conservative and Unionist Party 4, Liberal Democrats 3
    Democracy Club
  6. Election
    Conservative and Unionist Party 5, Labour Party 4, Liberal Democrats 3
    Democracy Club
  7. Election
    Conservative and Unionist Party 7, Labour Party 3, Liberal Democrats 2
    Democracy Club

Does the council think something here is wrong?

If you represent Pendle and think a figure here is wrong, out of date or unfairly presented, email hello@whereyourmoneygoes.co.uk with this page’s address and the source you would point to. Every correction is logged, with its date, on the corrections page.

How much of the council's spending does this cover?

Council tax paid for 12.4% of the money Pendle had to spend in 2025-26. The rest came from government grants (32.7%), business rates (11.7%) and fees, charges and other income (43.3%). That is why a grant cut can raise your bill even when the council has not changed what it does. See where it goes.

Where can I find out more?

What council tax is and why it works this way, including why the bands are still based on 1991 property values in England and Scotland, and how every area compares, everything else on Pendle: parking, roads, your MP and local services, and Pendle on the council map.

Common questions

How much is council tax in Pendle?
Band D is £2,640 a year for 2026-27. Band A is £1,760 and the top band £5,280.
Is council tax in Pendle higher than average?
Yes. Band D here is £229 above the England average of £2,411.

Sources for this page

SourcePublisherFigures as ofUpdatedLicence
Council Tax levels set by local authorities in EnglandMinistry of Housing, Communities and Local Governmentthe 2026–27 financial yearannualOpen 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.

Sections