In this section: Public services
Public services
Last updated . Figures refresh every night. How each figure is worked out.
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Where public money goes by function over the longest run, in cash, real terms, per head and as a share of GDP; then each service, from the UK total through each nation down to the local police force, fire and rescue service, ambulance service and health body, with what is published about its results alongside the money and never as its result. Which emergency services the taxpayer pays for and which are charities, and every service that covers your postcode. Right now, public spending, 2025-26 is £1360.1bn (16 July 2026), and health spending, 2025-26 is £257.5bn (16 July 2026).
Figure as of 16 July 2026. Source: HM Treasury, Home Office, NATO.
Key figures
- £1360.1bnPublic spending, 2025-26
- £257.5bnHealth spending, 2025-26
- £18.5bnPolice funding, England and Wales, 2026-27
Sources: HM Treasury, Home Office, NATO.
Every page in public services
Where the money goes
- Where the £ goes: public spending by function Public spending by function in cash, real terms, per head and as a share of GDP, the longest run for each, and per head by nation. £1,360.1bn UK public spending, 2025-26
- Whole of government: all public spending by function, department, body and programme All UK public spending by function, then department, arm’s-length body and programme, in one treemap, with the reconciliation between HM Treasury’s two measures. £1,360.1bn Whole of government: all public spending by function, department, body and programme, 2025-26
- What it buys: spending and what is published alongside it Each service’s spending beside the outputs and results published for it over the same years, never presented as cause and effect.
- The cost of collection What it costs HMRC, DVLA, councils, TV Licensing, DWP and Social Security Scotland to collect each tax and pay each benefit, for every £100, over as many years as each publishes, with the definition each uses. £15.5bn The cost of collection, 2024-25
- Public services near you Enter a postcode for the police force, fire and rescue service, health body and ambulance service that cover it, each with its budget, per head and performance.
- Funded or charity: who pays for each emergency service The emergency services the taxpayer pays for, beside the ones charities pay for, with each one’s latest spending or income, never added together. £251.3m Funded or charity
Emergency services
- Police funding: grant, precept and each force What the police cost in cash, real terms and per head over the long run; government grant against the council tax precept; officers and staff; and every force, with its results alongside and never as their cause. £31.6bn Police funding: grant, precept and each force, 2025-26
- Fire and rescue: funding, staff, stations and incidents Fire and rescue spending in cash, real terms and per head over the long run, by nation and by service, with incidents, response times, staff, stations and appliances alongside. £4.2bn Fire and rescue: funding, staff, stations and incidents, 2025-26
- Ambulance services: funding, staff and response times What each ambulance service spends, its staff, calls and response times against the targets, and handover delays at hospitals, by trust and nation. £5.5bn Ambulance services: funding, staff and response times, 2024-25
- Search and rescue: what the taxpayer funds and what charities do HM Coastguard and search and rescue helicopters are paid for by the taxpayer; lifeboats, air ambulances and mountain, lowland and cave rescue mostly are not. Each charity’s income, spending, reserves and any government money, from its filed accounts. £451m Search and rescue: what the taxpayer funds and what charities do, 2025-26
Health and defence
- The NHS: spending by nation, down to your health body Health spending over the long run in cash, real terms and per head; by nation, like for like; down to integrated care boards and health boards; with staff and waiting times alongside. £257.5bn The NHS: spending by nation, down to your health body, 2025-26
- The armed forces: spending, people and commitments Defence spending over the longest run in cash, real terms and per head; the NATO share of GDP against the commitments; what the MOD spends on; how many serve; and whether the plans can be paid for. £65.4bn The armed forces: spending, people and commitments, 2025-26
Transport
- Transport: rail, buses, HS2 and active travel What the UK spends on railways, local public transport and other transport over twenty years; government support to the railways since 1985; every train operator’s subsidy per journey with its punctuality alongside; bus support by local transport authority; HS2’s spend and cost estimates; and active travel. £34.7bn Transport: rail, buses, HS2 and active travel, 2025-26
- Roads and roadworks: spending, condition, potholes and who digs them up Spending on roads by nation and council, National Highways’ funding against what it delivered, road condition and the repair backlog, potholes and compensation, who digs up the roads, and motoring taxes beside road spending. £14.2bn Roads and roadworks: spending, condition, potholes and who digs them up, 2025-26
Education and skills
Justice
- Justice: courts, prisons, probation and legal aid Spending on courts, prosecution, prisons, probation and legal aid over the long run, by jurisdiction and body, down to every prison in England and Wales, with the Crown Court backlog, prison crowding, probation caseloads and legal aid alongside. £18.4bn Justice: courts, prisons, probation and legal aid, 2025-26
- Every prison in England and Wales: cost, population and staff Every prison in England and Wales, searchable: its cost per prisoner and per place, how full it is, its staff and where it is, each with its own page. £4.9bn Prisons in England and Wales, 2024-25
Councils and communities
- Local government: what councils spend, where the money comes from, and every council Everything local authorities spend, beyond the council tax bill: the UK and each nation over the long run in cash, real terms and per head; where the money comes from; what it is spent on; staff, capital spending, borrowing and reserves; and every council, linked to its own page. £202.4bn Local government: what councils spend, where the money comes from, and every council, 2024-25
- Social care: adults and children, by council Social care spending in cash, real terms and per head over the long run, by nation and by council, split between adults and children and between care homes and care at home, with people supported, children in care, costs and staff alongside. £56.1bn Social care: adults and children, by council, 2025-26
- Housing: public spending, homelessness and help with rent Housing spending in cash, real terms and per head over the long run, by nation; every council’s spending on homelessness and temporary accommodation; Housing Benefit and the Universal Credit housing element beside it; and the affordable homes built. £22.5bn Housing: public spending, homelessness and help with rent, 2025-26
Environment and rural
Culture and science
- Culture, media and sport: museums, the arts, the BBC and sport What the UK spends on sport, culture and broadcasting over the long run and by nation; DCMS’s budget and every one of its arm’s-length bodies; the national museums’ grant-in-aid and visits; every Arts Council England National Portfolio Organisation’s grant and funding by area; the BBC licence fee, what it raises and where it goes; and UK Sport and Sport England funding by sport and governing body. £15.1bn Culture, media and sport: museums, the arts, the BBC and sport, 2025-26
- Science and R&D: what government spends on research and where it goes Government R&D over the long run in cash, real terms and per head; what it is for and who funds it; UKRI council by council; where awards go by nation, region and university; the people it pays for; and the major programmes, from ARIA to Horizon Europe. £20.8bn Science and R&D: what government spends on research and where it goes, 2025-26
The state itself
- The cost of running the benefits system What DWP, Social Security Scotland and Northern Ireland spend on running benefits, set beside the benefits they pay, over 20 years, with staff numbers. £9.7bn The cost of running the benefits system, 2024-25
- Foreign affairs and aid: the FCDO, embassies and aid UK spending on international services over twenty years in cash, real terms and per head; the FCDO’s budget before and after the merger of the Foreign Office and DFID, split into programmes, capital and running costs; its staff and overseas posts; the British Council and BBC World Service; and aid against the 0.7%, 0.5% and 0.3% targets. £10.3bn Foreign affairs and aid: the FCDO, embassies and aid, 2025-26
- Public sector pensions What the NHS, teachers’, civil service, armed forces, police and firefighters’ pension schemes pay out, what employers and members pay in, the gap the Exchequer meets, what is owed, and the funded Local Government Pension Scheme kept apart. £58.7bn Public sector pensions, 2024-25
- Running government: the Cabinet Office, Treasury, HMRC, Parliament and the Sovereign Grant UK spending on executive and legislative organs over twenty years in cash, real terms and per head, and by nation; the budgets of HMRC, the Treasury and the Cabinet Office and their staff; HMRC’s cost of collection; the cost of Parliament; the Sovereign Grant and the Crown Estate formula behind it; and devolved running costs. £19.9bn Running government: the Cabinet Office, Treasury, HMRC, Parliament and the Sovereign Grant, 2025-26
- Quangos and arm’s-length bodies Every quango, executive agency and non-ministerial department the UK Government sponsors, searchable, with its spending, staff and funding; how many there have been since 2002; and what happened after the 2010 review. £365.7bn Quangos and arm’s-length bodies, 2023-24
Sources for this page
| Source | Publisher | Figures as of | Updated | Licence |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| PESA 2026: chapters 4 and 5 tables | HM Treasury | 16 July 2026 | annual | Open Government Licence v3.0 |
| Police funding for England and Wales 2015 to 2027: data tables (Table 4a) | Home Office | 19 August 2026 | annual | Open Government Licence v3.0 |
| Defence expenditure of NATO countries (2026 release): tables | NATO | — | annual | Quoted with attribution (the publisher’s own terms) link only |
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.