Watford Borough Council
Watford Borough Council is the local authority for the Watford non-metropolitan district in the south-west of Hertfordshire, England. The council is based in the Town Hall on Hempstead Road. The council comprises 36 councillors plus a directly-elected mayor.
Political Control & Leadership
- Political control
- Liberal DemocratsMajority of seats
- Run by
- Liberal Democrat directly elected mayor
- Seats
- Liberal Democrats 32 · Labour 4 (36 seats)As at May 2026. "Independents and others" includes local parties. Source: Open Council Data UK (public domain).
- Leader
- Favour EzeifediLiberal Democrats
- Chief executive
- Donna Nolan
- Last election
- 2026
Overview
- Population
- 96,767
- Founded
- 1894
- Website
- watford.gov.uk
Area rating
55th of 294 areas in England · band 1 (top fifth) · score 57.6
How the area compares with the rest of England. Much of this depends on things no council controls, such as local incomes and history, so it describes the area, not how well the council is run. The area is close to the edge of its band: in the weight test its band changed in 8 of 16 versions.
Scores run from 0 (lowest of all areas in England) to 100 (highest). For a district, services run by the county and health figures published only for the county come from its county.
Council services
21st of 294 · band 1 (top fifth) · score 70.4 · 6th of 16 among similar councils
Schools and children’s services in this area are run by the county council; recycling and planning by this council. Planning averages major and other decisions made on time. Adult social care will join when the Care Quality Commission’s ratings can be added.
Similar councils
The 15 councils the government’s Statistical Neighbours model (1 July 2026) judges most like Watford, most similar first. This is the fairest comparison.
| Council | Area band | Services score | Warning flags |
|---|---|---|---|
| Watford | 1 ≈ | 70.4 | |
| Hertsmere | 1 | 61.6 | |
| Spelthorne | 1 | 72.6 | Government intervention since 2025 |
| Dartford | 3 | 48.6 | |
| Broxbourne | 2 | 57.0 | |
| Crawley | 5 | 37.9 | |
| Welwyn Hatfield | 1 | 72.0 | |
| Gravesham | 4 | 57.2 | |
| Woking | 1 | 61.7 | Section 114 notice: 2023 Government intervention since 2023 Exceptional financial support: 3 years, latest 2026-27 |
| Cambridge | 1 ≈ | 45.8 | |
| Epping Forest | 2 | 72.3 | |
| Brentwood | 1 | 54.8 | |
| Harlow | 4 | 57.9 | |
| Cheltenham | 1 | 54.5 | |
| Colchester | 1 ≈ | 80.0 | |
| Epsom and Ewell | 1 | 74.0 |
≈ means close to the edge of its band.
Financial health
Usable reserves (money the council holds that is not tied to schools or public health): £80.1m at 31 March 2025, from £91.1m a year earlier (down 12%). That is 290.4% of a year’s spending on services.
No section 114 notice, government intervention or exceptional financial support is on the record for this council.
Reserves: MHCLG, Local authority revenue expenditure and financing England: 2024 to 2025 individual local authority data - outturn (RS, RSX), figures in the council’s own return.
See every area in the council area league table, with how the scores are worked out and where every figure comes from.
Finance
- Annual revenue budget
- £59m
- Council tax (Band D)
- £309This is the council’s own share only. Police and fire precepts (and, in areas with two tiers of council, the county or district precept) are added separately for the final bill. See Council Spending by Service below for how this council itself spends.
Council Spending by Service
- Total
- £28m2025-26 · MHCLG (outturn) · May not match "Annual revenue budget" above. That figure is a different accounting measure (budgeted resource requirement) for a different year than this outturn total.
- Central services
- £9m
- Environmental and regulatory services
- £7m
- Housing services (GFRA only)
- £6m
- Cultural and related services
- £4m
- Planning and development services
- £2m
- Highways and transport services
- £1m
Claimant count
3,235 people claiming unemployment-related benefits, August 2026
4.6% of residents aged 16 to 64 · +40 on August 2025
| August 2026 | Claimants | % aged 16 to 64 |
|---|---|---|
| Men | 1,670 | 4.8% |
| Women | 1,565 | 4.4% |
Yearly and recent figures
| Month | Claimants | % aged 16 to 64 |
|---|---|---|
| August 2026 | 3,235 | 4.6% |
| July 2026 | 3,145 | 4.4% |
| June 2026 | 3,195 | 4.5% |
| May 2026 | 3,130 | 4.4% |
| April 2026 | 3,120 | 4.4% |
| March 2026 | 3,150 | 4.5% |
| February 2026 | 3,125 | 4.4% |
| January 2026 | 3,015 | 4.3% |
| December 2025 | 2,980 | 4.2% |
| November 2025 | 2,990 | 4.2% |
| October 2025 | 3,050 | 4.3% |
| September 2025 | 3,135 | 4.4% |
| August 2025 | 3,195 | 4.5% |
| July 2025 | 3,170 | 4.5% |
| June 2025 | 3,280 | 4.6% |
| May 2025 | 3,180 | 4.5% |
| April 2025 | 3,150 | 4.5% |
| March 2025 | 3,165 | 4.5% |
| February 2025 | 3,155 | 4.5% |
| January 2025 | 3,070 | 4.3% |
| December 2024 | 3,145 | 4.4% |
| November 2024 | 3,155 | 4.5% |
| October 2024 | 3,250 | 4.6% |
| September 2024 | 3,255 | 4.6% |
| August 2026 | 3,235 | 4.6% |
| August 2025 | 3,195 | 4.5% |
| August 2024 | 3,090 | 4.4% |
| August 2023 | 2,540 | 3.6% |
| August 2022 | 2,160 | 3.2% |
| August 2021 | 3,185 | 4.7% |
| August 2020 | 4,250 | 6.3% |
| August 2019 | 1,560 | 2.3% |
| August 2018 | 1,340 | 2.0% |
| August 2017 | 910 | 1.4% |
| August 2016 | 855 | 1.3% |
| August 2015 | 925 | 1.4% |
| August 2014 | 1,075 | 1.7% |
| August 2013 | 1,650 | 2.6% |
| August 2012 * | 1,840 | 3.0% |
| August 2011 * | 1,840 | 3.0% |
| August 2010 * | 1,755 | 3.0% |
| August 2009 * | 1,795 | 3.1% |
| August 2008 * | 850 | 1.5% |
| August 2007 * | 910 | 1.6% |
| August 2006 * | 1,070 | 1.9% |
| August 2005 * | 1,075 | 2.0% |
| August 2004 * | 935 | 1.7% |
| August 2003 * | 955 | 1.8% |
| August 2002 * | 1,005 | 1.9% |
| August 2001 * | 770 | 1.4% |
| August 2000 * | 880 | 1.7% |
| August 1999 * | 1,120 | 2.1% |
| August 1998 * | 1,210 | 2.3% |
| August 1997 * | 1,455 | 2.8% |
| August 1996 * | 2,280 | 4.5% |
| August 1995 * | 2,715 | 5.5% |
| August 1994 * | 3,340 | 6.8% |
| August 1993 * | 4,450 | 9.1% |
| August 1992 * | 4,000 | 8.1% |
| August 1991 * | 2,870 | n/a |
| August 1990 * | 1,255 | n/a |
| August 1989 * | 1,140 | n/a |
| August 1988 * | 1,645 | n/a |
| August 1987 * | 2,365 | n/a |
| August 1986 * | 2,865 | n/a |
* Before 2013: Unemployment Benefit or Jobseeker’s Allowance claimants only. n/a means no share was published for that year.
The Claimant Count is people claiming Jobseeker’s Allowance plus people on Universal Credit who are required to look for work. Before 2013 it counted only Unemployment Benefit or Jobseeker’s Allowance claimants, so earlier years are not strictly comparable. Universal Credit requires more people to search for work than Jobseeker’s Allowance did, so as it replaced older benefits from 2013, part of the rise in the count reflects that change rather than more unemployment. It is not the official unemployment rate, which comes from a survey. The latest month can be revised.
Source: Office for National Statistics, Claimant Count (via Nomis). Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.
Welfare spending
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Child poverty
Children under 16 living in low-income families, 2024-25
| Year | Children | Share |
|---|---|---|
| 2021-22 | 2,642 | 12.4% |
| 2022-23 | 2,754 | 12.7% |
| 2023-24 | 2,790 | 12.6% |
| 2024-25 | 3,063 | 13.6% |
A child is counted if their family’s income is below 60% of the UK median for that year and the family claimed Child Benefit plus at least one other benefit (Universal Credit, tax credits or Housing Benefit). The two measures can differ a lot: housing costs push the after-housing-costs figure far higher in expensive areas such as London. Figures are provisional and years before 2021-22 are not comparable, so the trend starts there.
Source: Department for Work and Pensions, Children in Low Income Families: local area statistics (FYE 2022 to 2025, published 26 March 2026).
Fuel poverty
4,491 households in fuel poverty, 2024
10.8% of 41,534 households · England 9.9%
Across this area’s 58 neighbourhoods, estimates range from 4.4% to 18.7%; 30 are above the England rate of 9.9%.
| Neighbourhood | Households | Fuel poor |
|---|---|---|
| Watford 006C | 632 | 18.7% |
| Watford 010C | 784 | 18.5% |
| Watford 009I | 631 | 17.9% |
| Watford 009F | 566 | 17.5% |
| Watford 004C | 546 | 17.2% |
A household is counted as fuel poor if its home has an energy efficiency rating of band D or below and, after paying for housing and the energy it needs, its income is below the poverty line (60% of the national median). These are modelled estimates: the government advises using them for broad comparisons and to spot areas of particularly high or low fuel poverty, not to track year-to-year changes, so only the latest year is shown. Neighbourhoods are small census areas (lower layer super output areas) of roughly 1,500 people, named after their council and a reference number; their estimates are less certain than the council figure.
Source: Department for Energy Security and Net Zero, Sub-regional fuel poverty data (2024 data). Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.
House prices
£404,299 average house price, July 2026
−0.7% over 12 months · +2.1% over 1 month · 47 sales in May 2026
Yearly figures
| July 1995 | £62,102 |
| July 1996 | £62,800 |
| July 1997 | £72,775 |
| July 1998 | £83,358 |
| July 1999 | £93,638 |
| July 2000 | £117,032 |
| July 2001 | £131,267 |
| July 2002 | £145,231 |
| July 2003 | £174,671 |
| July 2004 | £198,548 |
| July 2005 | £199,877 |
| July 2006 | £203,252 |
| July 2007 | £238,964 |
| July 2008 | £234,304 |
| July 2009 | £201,696 |
| July 2010 | £223,551 |
| July 2011 | £223,772 |
| July 2012 | £225,514 |
| July 2013 | £236,432 |
| July 2014 | £271,430 |
| July 2015 | £306,428 |
| July 2016 | £364,010 |
| July 2017 | £367,904 |
| July 2018 | £353,912 |
| July 2019 | £352,988 |
| July 2020 | £356,977 |
| July 2021 | £383,796 |
| July 2022 | £410,610 |
| July 2023 | £393,473 |
| July 2024 | £390,176 |
| July 2025 | £407,120 |
| July 2026 | £404,299 |
| Type | Average price | 12 months |
|---|---|---|
| Detached | £932,291 | −0.5% |
| Semi-detached | £534,461 | +0.9% |
| Terraced | £430,030 | +0.7% |
| Flat or maisonette | £263,145 | −2.6% |
| First home buyers | £350,934 | −0.8% |
| Existing owners moving home | £499,307 | −0.4% |
| Cash buyers | £367,883 | −1.2% |
| Mortgage buyers | £411,270 | −0.6% |
Average prices are HM Land Registry’s estimates for the whole area, adjusted for the mix of homes sold, not the price of any one home. Figures for the latest months are provisional: sales can take weeks or months to be registered, so each month is revised for a year after it is first published. Sales counts are published about three months behind prices. In areas with fewer sales, figures can swing noticeably from month to month.
Source: HM Land Registry, UK House Price Index (July 2026 data). Contains HM Land Registry data © Crown copyright and database right 2026. This data is licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.
Homelessness
130 households were owed help by the council because they were homeless or at risk, January to March 2026
246 households in temporary accommodation on 31 March 2026
6.0 per 1,000 households · 182 with children · 377 children
Quarterly figures
| Quarter | Owed help | In temporary accommodation |
|---|---|---|
| April to June 2019 | 54 | 124 |
| July to September 2019 | 62 | 179 |
| October to December 2019 | 86 | 177 |
| January to March 2020 | 107 | 126 |
| April to June 2020 | 82 | 128 |
| July to September 2020 | 84 | 120 |
| October to December 2020 | 75 | 107 |
| January to March 2021 | 77 | 110 |
| April to June 2021 | 76 | 122 |
| July to September 2021 | 112 | 121 |
| October to December 2021 | 75 | 85 |
| January to March 2022 | 91 | 105 |
| April to June 2022 | 92 | 100 |
| July to September 2022 | 92 | 92 |
| October to December 2022 | 105 | 113 |
| January to March 2023 | 110 | 101 |
| April to June 2023 | 96 | 130 |
| July to September 2023 | 96 | 163 |
| October to December 2023 | 115 | 165 |
| January to March 2024 | 114 | 194 |
| April to June 2024 | 139 | 205 |
| July to September 2024 | 122 | 239 |
| October to December 2024 | 128 | 266 |
| January to March 2025 | 125 | 256 |
| April to June 2025 | 139 | 228 |
| July to September 2025 | 172 | 238 |
| October to December 2025 | 147 | 225 |
| January to March 2026 | 130 | 246 |
| Type | Households | With children |
|---|---|---|
| Bed and breakfast hotels | 17 | 4 |
| Rooms or flats with own facilities, paid nightly | 113 | 100 |
| Hostels and refuges | 50 | 15 |
| Private homes leased for the purpose | 0 | 0 |
| Council or housing association homes | 66 | 63 |
| Other (including private landlords) | 0 | 0 |
82 households placed in temporary accommodation in another council's area · 3 owed temporary accommodation but none yet secured
Councils must help households threatened with homelessness within 56 days (prevention duty) and those already homeless (relief duty), and may house them in temporary accommodation while more settled housing is found. Figures for January to March 2026 are provisional and may be revised. “Not published” means the council did not submit figures or MHCLG suppressed small numbers to protect households.
Source: Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government, Statutory homelessness: detailed local authority level tables (accredited official statistics). Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.
Crime
11,878 crimes recorded in the 12 months to August 2026
122.7 per 1,000 residents · Up 3.6% on the previous 12 months
Monthly figures
| September 2025 | 933 |
| October 2025 | 960 |
| November 2025 | 886 |
| December 2025 | 903 |
| January 2026 | 889 |
| February 2026 | 848 |
| March 2026 | 993 |
| April 2026 | 950 |
| May 2026 | 1,043 |
| June 2026 | 1,145 |
| July 2026 | 1,195 |
| August 2026 | 1,133 |
| Type of crime | Crimes | Per 1,000 |
|---|---|---|
| Violence and sexual offences | 3,953 | 40.9 |
| Anti-social behaviour | 2,417 | 25.0 |
| Other theft | 976 | 10.1 |
| Shoplifting | 927 | 9.6 |
| Criminal damage and arson | 719 | 7.4 |
| Public order | 700 | 7.2 |
| Vehicle crime | 600 | 6.2 |
| Drugs | 486 | 5.0 |
| Burglary | 290 | 3.0 |
| Bicycle theft | 188 | 1.9 |
| Theft from the person | 182 | 1.9 |
| Other crime | 171 | 1.8 |
| Robbery | 167 | 1.7 |
| Possession of weapons | 102 | 1.1 |
Source: data.police.uk, the official police crime data for England and Wales, summed to this council’s boundary from the small local area each crime is recorded in. Locations are approximate by design to protect privacy. Includes antisocial behaviour. Excludes fraud, which is recorded nationally, and the small number of crimes (about 1.4% in recent months) that police record with no location.
Crime figures last updated 13 October 2026.
Road casualties
Roads here (apart from motorways and major trunk roads) are the responsibility of Hertfordshire County Council, which shows road casualty figures for the whole county.
Public Health
- Smoking (adults)
- 5.8%2025 · OHID Fingertips
- Physically active (adults)
- 62.1%2024/25 · OHID Fingertips
- Overweight or obese (adults)
- 61.9%2024/25 · OHID Fingertips
- Life expectancy (male)
- 79.3 years2021 to 2023 · ONS
- Life expectancy (female)
- 83.5 years2021 to 2023 · ONS
Schools
Schools here are the responsibility of Hertfordshire County Council, which publishes Ofsted inspection results for every state school in the county.
Broadband and mobile
95.0% of 45,444 homes and businesses can get gigabit-capable broadband, January 2026
0 premises can't get decent broadband · 39% of premises use full fibre
| Superfast (30 Mbit/s or more) | 99.6% |
| Ultrafast (100 Mbit/s or more) | 96.8% |
| Ultrafast (300 Mbit/s or more) | 96.0% |
| Gigabit-capable (1,000 Mbit/s) | 95.0% |
| Full fibre to the premises | 87.8% |
| Can’t get 10 Mbit/s | 0.0% |
| Can’t get decent broadbandfrom a fixed line or fixed wireless | 0.0% |
| 4G indoors from at least one networkshare of premises | 100.0% |
| 4G indoors from all four networksshare of premises | 99.9% |
| 4G outdoors from at least one networkshare of premises | 100.0% |
| 5G outdoors from at least one networkshare of premises | 100.0% |
| Indoor phone calls from at least one networkshare of premises | 100.0% |
| Land with no outdoor 4G from any networkshare of the area | 0.0% |
These figures show what is available, not what people buy. “Decent” broadband means 10 Mbit/s download and 1 Mbit/s upload, the standard set by the broadband Universal Service Obligation. Full-fibre use is the share of all premises with a full-fibre connection in use. Mobile figures count the four networks Ofcom reports (EE, O2, Three and Vodafone) and are modelled predictions of signal strength; 5G figures use Ofcom’s high-confidence measure.
Source: Ofcom, Connected Nations (January 2026 data). Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.