The Finances of the London Borough of Hillingdon
An Attempt to Shed Some Light for Residents
You may have heard that Hillingdon Council is in financial difficulty, with a cabinet member stating on national media that “we’ve run out of money”. Council finances are a complex issue, and we’ve done our best to create a readable, non-partisan look at what has been happening over the last year, and what may happen in the near future.
Hillingdon Council risks going bankrupt before March and is seeking a government bailout
Hillingdon Council is facing a severe financial crisis. Its latest financial report forecasts the 2025/26 budget to be £31.6 million overspent as of the end of August.. (Note: The council's...
Glossary of names and terms
This series of articles has been written by residents, for residents, and while the subjects covered are both nuanced and complex, we have aimed to keep the language simple and...
A Timeline of Warnings, Shifting Explanations, and Internal Failures
Hillingdon Council’s financial crisis has not happened overnight. It has unfolded through a sequence of predictable steps, starting with the drawing down of significant sums from reserves - which last...
Hillingdon Council isn’t going bankrupt because of the cost of asylum seekers, refugees, Chagossians or aliens
The council's most-used public explanation for the financial crisis is a multi-million-pound cost for supporting asylum seekers and Chagossian arrivals, which it claims the government should be funding. The council...
What Has Actually Gone Wrong? The Three Core Failures
The council's £31.6 million deficit is not a mystery, nor is it explained by the public reasons related to asylum seekers and/or Chagossian arrivals, National Insurance hikes or decisions the...
The London Councils video: A smokescreen for a local failure?
On October 24, 2025, Hillingdon Council shared a five-month-old video from London Councils via social media . The council's post stated the video illustrates pressures like "rising inflation," "escalating demands,"...
The Council’s Financial Crisis Explained
The council's finances are in a worse state than the headline numbers suggest. The true total hit to reserves this year is £31.6 million, which will leave the council with...
A “Bailout” Explained: What is Exceptional Financial Support?
Since July’s Cabinet meeting and as recently as this week’s Cabinet meeting, Hillingdon Council has regularly confirmed it is in discussions with the central government to secure "Exceptional Financial Support"...
If the council goes bankrupt, what differences would residents see?
Councils can’t actually go bankrupt, but their equivalent is declaring ‘Section 114’. We understand that once that happens, how the council spends money changes - and the council’s Monitoring Officer...