Councils need urgent funding to prepare for climate change

Funding and resource deficits facing schools and academies are forcing council leaders to make “impossible decisions”

The Local Government Association (LGA) has called for a ‘rapid acceleration’ in work to prepare for the escalating impacts of climate change.

It follows the release of polling data that indicates that just 5% of the public feel prepared for the impacts of climate change, such as excess heat, flooding and storms.

The survey, carried out by YouGov, found that 63% of respondents are worried about climate change while only 12% think it will not impact their local area.

Cllr Darren Rodwell, environment spokesperson for the LGA, said: “As extreme weather events become more frequent and intense, the public sense of unpreparedness will undoubtedly harden and grow.

“The public trust us most because we are rooted in communities and understand places, we must be given the tools and funding needed to make that happen.” 

The LGA’s Autumn Statement submission warned that councils in England face a funding gap of £4 billion over the next two years. The LGA said the Government needs to provide ‘immediate funding’ so councils can deliver the 2023/24 budgets they set this year without having to make drastic cuts to services.

Isaac Beevor, Co-Director, Climate Emergency UK, which works with councils to help tackle climate change, said that one of the ‘biggest barriers’ to local climate action is the “continued piecemeal, competitive and short-term funding pots that exist for council climate action”.

He said: “The UK Government missed a huge opportunity to provide worthwhile funding for council climate action in the Autumn Statement, with the absence of any funding for climate adaptation, leaving our local communities less prepared for the more extreme flooding and fires we are already facing.

“The government should place net-zero and adaptation at the heart of any future devolution deals, including the funding provided, and provide long term funding for all local authorities to meet their net-zero targets.”

Beevor added that councils could still act, such as releasing Climate Bonds and raising money from new development through section 106 agreements. New income streams could also come from the expansion of residential parking permits that are ring fenced for climate action, they added.

“Councils have an increasing statutory duty to deliver environmental improvements such as Local Nature Recovery, but with decreased budgets and [inflating] costs.” 

Jo Pettifer, a climate action advisor for Let’s Go Zero, a national campaign aiming to help schools tackle climate change, said that the funding and resource deficits facing local authority-maintained schools and academies are forcing leaders to make impossible decisions. This included choosing between adult social care and young people’s mental health or mitigating the impact of climate change.

Pettifer said: “Councils have an increasing statutory duty to deliver environmental improvements such as Local Nature Recovery, but with decreased budgets and inflating service delivery costs.” 

Graham Stuart, Minister of State for Energy Security and Net Zero said that he recognised the “important and tireless efforts undertaken by local councils”.

He said there had been an increase in “core spending power of £3.1billion of taxpayer subsidy to councils in England, before local decisions about council tax changes are made.”

Stuart added that to help increase the effectiveness and efficiency of the current funding system, the government has published plans to simplify the funding landscape for local authorities.

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