MHCLG · 25 periods · 361 of 361 areas in the latest

How far apart are local authorities on council investments held?

The distribution of council investments held across councils in every period held, from the 10th to the 90th percentile. The gap is a description of dispersion, not a verdict on it.

The gap between the 90th and 10th percentile of local authorities on council investments held decreased from £164.4m in 2020 Q2 to £118.6m in 2026 Q2. Relative to the average, the spread (coefficient of variation) increased from 159.0% to 169.8%.

Money in cash terms: a gap in pounds grows with prices as well as with dispersion. The coefficient of variation column is unaffected by that.

Periodp10p25Medianp75p90p90 − p10p90 ÷ p10CVAreas
2026 Q2£14.1m£25m£42.8m£85.4m£132.7m£118.6m9.40169.8%361
2026 Q1£10.1m£20.4m£37.2m£71.1m£121.8m£111.7m12.04182.6%361
2025 Q4£13.5m£26.6m£45.1m£85.7m£138.7m£125.2m10.29169.2%361
2025 Q3£13.7m£26.2m£46.8m£84.4m£143.7m£130m10.49166.6%361
2025 Q2£13.8m£25m£46m£88m£150.1m£136.3m10.86173.7%361
2025 Q1£9.5m£18.9m£36.5m£75.3m£137.7m£128.3m14.57182.2%361
2024 Q4£11.7m£24.5m£45.3m£81m£151.9m£140.2m12.99176.9%361
2024 Q3£14.1m£24m£44.2m£85.3m£165.1m£151.1m11.75176.3%361
2024 Q2£13m£24m£43.5m£88.1m£164m£151m12.58175.6%361
2024 Q1£11.8m£20.3m£38m£76.8m£148.4m£136.6m12.63188.9%361
2023 Q4£15.6m£28.6m£54.1m£96.4m£178.6m£163m360
2023 Q3£15.4m£28.8m£53m£105.1m£190.8m£175.3m12.36165.7%361
2023 Q2£16.5m£30.1m£53.8m£101.9m£202.6m£186.1m12.31170.4%361
2023 Q1£14.8m£26.2m£47.7m£93.9m£183.9m£169.1m12.44170.4%357
2022 Q4£20.2m£36.5m£61.9m£112.4m£204.4m£184.2m10.11159.9%357
2022 Q3£22.3m£35.7m£66.2m£123.2m£239.1m£216.9m10.75154.1%357
2022 Q2£20.5m£35.1m£62.4m£124.7m£244.9m£224.4m11.96149.0%357
2022 Q1£22.9m£35.7m£63m£125.2m£222.1m£199.2m9.70148.6%357
2021 Q4£21.2m£37.4m£66.8m£130m£228.9m£207.6m10.78150.2%357
2021 Q3£18.9m£33.3m£60.3m£121.3m£214.8m£195.9m11.39152.9%357
2021 Q2£17.2m£29.9m£57.3m£111.6m£205.7m£188.6m11.98149.0%357
2021 Q1£15.8m£24m£47.3m£95.2m£167.8m£152m10.60159.8%355
2020 Q4£16.7m£29m£55.9m£99.5m£185.5m£168.7m11.08153.9%355
2020 Q3£13.9m£25.2m£50.3m£98.6m£182m£168.1m13.11162.3%355
2020 Q2£15.4m£26.4m£50.5m£102.9m£179.8m£164.4m11.65159.0%355

Between 2020 Q2 and 2026 Q2 the median moved −7.7, the 10th percentile −1.3 and the 90th −47.1, in the measure’s own unit.

What this establishes, and what it does not

It establishes how dispersed the published figures for councils were in each period, and whether that dispersion is larger or smaller than it was. It does not establish why, whether any council’s figure is high or low for a good reason, or whether a narrower spread would be better: the site does not hold a view on that.

Percentiles are taken over councils with a published figure for the period, by linear interpolation between sorted values. A period is shown only when at least six in ten councils have a figure for it.

The gap between the 90th and 10th percentile of local authorities on council investments held decreased from £164.4m in 2020 Q2 to £118.6m in 2026 Q2.
Civometry, from MHCLG

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