Key Points
- Barking and Dagenham Council is forecast to spend £20.5million more than planned this financial year.
- Rising demand and escalating costs in social care services are the primary drivers of the budget deficit.
- Children’s social care is projected to overspend by £13million, largely due to private care home placement fees and complex needs.
- Adult social care is on course to exceed its budget by £9.7million, while temporary homelessness accommodation faces a £2.5million overspend.
- Underspending in other council departments partially offsets the total deficit, bringing the net figure to £20.5million.
- Council leader Cllr Dominic Twomey stated that councils are “grossly underfunded in social services” but emphasised that protecting the vulnerable remains a priority.
Barking (East London Times) November 12, 2026 – Barking and Dagenham Council is on course to spend £20.5million more than planned this year as rising demand and costs for social care services put increasing pressure on its budget.
- Key Points
- How much are children’s social care costs contributing to the deficit?
- What is driving the overspend in adult social care and housing services?
- What risks do council papers warn could worsen the financial position?
- How has the council leadership responded to the projected overspend?
- Background
- Prediction
According to the council, increasing demand alongside escalating expenses for care services means the local authority is projected to exceed the annual budget it set in February. While some council departments have spent less than anticipated, partially offsetting the deficit, the authority remains on track for a substantial net overspend with four months remaining before the financial year ends in March.
How much are children’s social care costs contributing to the deficit?
The largest single pressure on the local authority’s finances comes from children’s services. The council is on course to spend £13million more on children’s social care than originally budgeted in February.
The local authority attributes this sharp increase to heightened demand and rising expenses, specifically citing the cost of private care home placements and the complex needs of the children placed within them.
Speaking to council leaders on Tuesday, 10 November, senior Labour councillor Jane Jones, who holds responsibility for children’s social care, explained that staff were doing “everything they can” to keep spending down. However, Cllr Jones highlighted the scale of the market price increases facing the borough, stating:
“We have seen such horrendous hikes in service charges for placements and things like that, that the budgets are just not keeping up.”
What is driving the overspend in adult social care and housing services?
Alongside children’s services, adult social care and housing are experiencing severe financial strain due to demand-led pressures.
The council’s adult social care service is currently on course to spend £9.7million more than planned. Officials have attributed this shortfall to high demand for care and rising provider costs, particularly for individuals requiring placements in “high cost” care homes.
Meanwhile, the council’s housing service is forecast to overspend by £2.5million. This deficit is driven by increasing demand for temporary homelessness accommodation across the borough. Together, the overspends in children’s social care, adult social care, and housing total £25.2million, before being reduced to a net overspend of £20.5million by underspends in other council departments.
What risks do council papers warn could worsen the financial position?
Official council papers outline the ongoing volatility facing local government budgets as the winter months approach. The documents state:
“The council continues to face significant financial pressure arising from increasing demand for social care, rising provider costs and volatility in the use of high-cost temporary accommodation.”
With four months remaining until the end of the financial year in March, the papers warn that there is an “inherent risk that demand-led costs will continue to rise”. Furthermore, the reports caution that any unforeseen spending or unexpected drops in income “could further worsen the council’s financial position”.
How has the council leadership responded to the projected overspend?
Local authorities across the country are currently struggling to cover rocketing costs in social care and temporary accommodation, both of which are statutory services that councils are required to provide by law.
Addressing the financial outlook, Labour council leader Cllr Dominic Twomey stated that councils are “grossly underfunded in social services” and acknowledged that the predicted overspend is “clearly not a position we would like to be in”.
Despite the budgetary pressures, Cllr Twomey maintained that safeguarding residents remains the administration’s primary focus. He added:
“Most importantly – and it’s not a monetary thing – we are still continuing to protect the most vulnerable in our community, and we’ve always said that’s massively important.”
Background
Local authorities in England operate under strict statutory duties to provide essential welfare services, including safeguarding vulnerable children, supporting adults with care needs, and providing temporary accommodation to residents facing homelessness. Because these services are demand-led, councils cannot legally refuse assistance to eligible individuals regardless of budgetary constraints. Over recent years, local governments nationwide have reported significant strain on their finances as inflation, provider fee increases, and rising complex care needs have outpaced annual budget allocations set at the beginning of each financial year.
Prediction
The projected £20.5million overspend presents direct implications for Barking and Dagenham residents, taxpayers, and service users. If demand-led costs continue to rise over the final four months of the financial year as warned in council papers, the local authority may be required to draw down on its financial reserves or implement spending controls across non-statutory services to balance its books by March. For vulnerable residents relying on children’s services, adult care, and temporary housing, the council has committed to maintaining frontline protection, though sustained provider fee hikes could force the authority to seek further efficiencies when setting its next annual budget in February.
