Public Finances

KCC Spending: The £75m Rise, The £158m Mystery, And The Adult Social Care Reality

May 11, 2026 // 0 Comments

Kent County Council’s published payments over £250 rose by £75m in a year. Adult social care climbed by £62m. Children’s services appeared to fall by £97m. And more [...]

Folkestone & Hythe District Council’s New Finance System Raises Old Questions

April 8, 2026 // 0 Comments

Cllr Tim Prater says Folkestone & Hythe District Council’s new finance system should improve things. He may be right. But the awkward truth is that this is not really a [...]

Folkestone & Hythe DC Funding 2025/26–2028/29: Core Spending Power, Council Tax and the Real Squeeze

December 28, 2025 // 0 Comments

On 17 December 2025, Government published the provisional Local Government Finance Settlement for 2026/27 to 2028/29 (a three-year settlement, with later years still subject [...]

Folkestone & Hythe District Council Expenses: Missing Receipts and Audit Rights

September 29, 2025 // 0 Comments

In a plot twist nobody saw coming (except literally everyone), a diligent resident exercised their lawful right to look at how Folkestone & Hythe District Council’s top [...]

Is this surprising? UK Local Government: About 75% of Britons Feel Little or No Influence Over Local Decisions

September 18, 2025 // 0 Comments

Only 23% of Britons say they have any influence over decisions in their local area. About three-quarters (75%) say they have little or no influence over local decisions; 23% [...]

Grant Thornton Audit Fees Tripled Across 12 Kent Councils

September 11, 2025 // 0 Comments

Kent’s 12 district councils are grappling with a dramatic rise in the cost of their annual audits, as new data reveals fees tripled between 2022/23 and 2023/24. The [...]

“Buy Local” Tony Vaughan MP Spends £346 on Non-Local Plants — Some Imported from China

August 12, 2025 // 1 Comment

When Tony Vaughan KC MP for Folkestone & Hythe (pictured) penned his 24 July 2025 column, Buying Local is the Bedrock of Community, it was an unambiguous call to arms. [...]

Kent Council Under Fire for Investing in Fossil Fuels and Arms Firms Linked to Gaza Conflict

August 8, 2025 // 1 Comment

As the climate crisis intensifies and war rages in Gaza, scrutiny is mounting over how public institutions invest our money. New analysis reveals Kent County Council (KCC) [...]

Everything Adds Up Except the Future: How Kent’s £1.25bn Budget Balances on Delay, Denial and Disappearing Millions

July 20, 2025 // 0 Comments

Kent County Council’s Draft Statement of accounts 2024/25 have arrived — spreadsheeted, formatted, and radiating confidence — with what appears to be a balanced and [...]

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