Walsall Council: local authority assessment

Demographics

Walsall Council is a metropolitan borough situated in the West Midlands and is one of 4 local authorities comprising the Black Country. It contains 6 urban district centres. Walsall Town Centre lies at the heart of the borough, surrounded by Aldridge, Bloxwich, Brownhills, Darlaston, and Willenhall. The borough covers 40 square miles and is bisected by the M6 motorway. Socio-economically, there is a stark geographical divide between the more deprived West, and the less deprived East. 

Walsall has a proud, diverse community and is home to 182,271 people. 59.44% of the population are of working age (18-64), with 19.32% aged 65 and over and 21.24% under 18. The majority of the population are White British 71.35% with 18.72% Asian, 4.6% Black, Caribbean, or African, 3.30% mixed, and 2.10% Other. Walsall has an Index Multiple Deprivation score of 9 (with 10 being the highest and most deprived) and is rated 25th out of 153 local authorities (1st being most deprived). Life expectancy is 76.6 years for men and 81.2 years for women, with men expected to live 17.6 years, and women 22.8 years with poor health. Approximately 20% of people in Walsall identify as disabled due to experiencing a long-term condition limiting their daily lives. 1 in 50 (2%) of people aged 16+ identified as LGBTQ+ in the 2021 census, and 11.4% of all adults in Walsall provided unpaid care for a family member, friend, or neighbour.

Walsall Council is located within the Black Country Integrated Care System (ICS) which covers Walsall, Dudley, Sandwell, and Wolverhampton. The local authority has strong links with the Black Country Integrated Care Board (ICB) which is made up of 4 local authorities, 3 NHS trusts, multiple hospitals including Walsall Manor Hospital and the new Midland Metropolitan University Hospital, based in Sandwell which opened in October 2024, and 1 regional ambulance service. 

Walsall is a Conservative-led local authority, which has 60 Councillors, 3 for each of the 20 wards. There are currently 37 Conservative, 13 Labour, 8 Walsall Independent Group, and 1 Independent Group Councillor, with 1 Councillor not affiliated to any political group. 

Financial facts

• The local authority estimated in 2023-2024, its total budget would be £543,497,000. Its actual spend for the year was £563,648,000, which was £26,151,000 more than estimated.  

• The local authority estimated it would spend £97,355,000 of its total budget on Adult Social Care in 2023-2024. Its actual spend was £121,912,000, which was £24,557,000 more than estimated.  

• In 2023-2024, 21.63% of the budget was spent on Adult Social Care.  

• The local authority has raised the full Adult Social Care precept for 2023-2024, with a value of 2%. Please note the amount raised through Adult Social Care precept varies from local authority to local authority.  

• Approximately 4,320 people were accessing long-term Adult Social Care support, and approximately 1,670 people were accessing short-term Adult Social Care support in 2023-2024. It is standard for local authorities to spend money on a range of Adult Social Care services, including supporting individuals. No two care packages are the same and vary significantly in their intensity, duration, and cost.