Bristol City Council: local authority assessment
How we assess local authorities
Assessment published: 30 May 2025
About Bristol City Council
Demographics
Bristol is the largest city in the southwest of England. It is the 10th largest city in the United Kingdom. It has a population of around 483,000 people. Bristol’s population grew by an estimated 45,800 people over the decade from 2012 to 2022: a 10.6% increase and is currently projected to grow by 15% over a 25-year period from 2018 to 2043.
The population of Bristol has become increasingly diverse, and some local communities have changed significantly. There are now more than 287 different ethnic groups in the city, more than 185 countries of birth represented, at least 45 religions and more than 90 languages are spoken by people living in Bristol. In terms of ethnicity, 81.09% people are white, 6.62% Asian or Asian British, 5.90% Black, Black British, Caribbean or African, 4.47% are of a Mixed or Multiple ethnic group and 1.92% are Other.
More than 81,000 people in Bristol (17.2% of the population) have long-term physical or mental health conditions or illnesses resulting in their day-to-day activities being limited. In 2021, Bristol had 60,760 people aged 65 and over: 13% of the total population. Of these, 27,890 people were 75 and over. There are 6,660 older people providing unpaid care, this is almost 1 in 10 people aged 65 and over.
Bristol’s healthy life expectancy gap does not compare well with other local authority areas. Out of 149 local authorities in England, Bristol is 27th worst for males and 23rd worst for females. The council footprint has an index of multiple deprivation score of 7. A local authority with a decile of 1 means it is in the least deprived group (lowest 10%), while a local authority with a decile of 10 means it is in the most deprived group (highest 10%).
An integrated care partnership operates in Bristol comprising the Integrated Care Board (ICB), the voluntary sector and two other local authorities, North Somerset and South Gloucestershire. Bristol City Council has a Green party political majority.
Financial facts
The Financial facts for Bristol City Council are:
- The local authority estimated that in 2023/24, its total budget would be £729,941,000. Its actual spend for that year was £769,651,000, which was £39,710,000 more than estimated.
- The local authority estimated that it would spend £215,986,000 of its total budget on adult social care in 2023/24. Its actual spend was £239,203,000 which is £23,217,000 more than estimated.
- In 2023/2024, 31.08% of the budget was spent on adult social care.
- The local authority has raised the full adult social care precept for 2023/24, with a value of 2%. Please note that the amount raised through ASC precept varies from local authority to local authority.
- Approximately 6735 people were accessing long-term adult social care support, and approximately 1225 people were accessing short-term adult social care support in 2023/24. Local authorities 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.
This data is reproduced at the request of the Department of Health and Social Care. It has not been factored into our assessment and is presented for information purposes only.