Councils in the West Midlands have received more than £462 million in new funding since March 2020 as part of a total of £859 million of extra support that West Midlands has received.

The Government has given councils in England a total of over £7 billion in additional support through the pandemic, with £3 billion more confirmed for next year. 

Marco Longhi MP has welcomed new analysis showing that local authorities across the West Midlands have so far received an extra £462m to support vital local services during the Covid-19 pandemic, with further funding confirmed for next year. Commenting on the level of support, Marco Longhi MP said: 

“Councils across the Black Country have done an incredible job providing local services and keeping people safe under the most difficult of circumstances. This community spirit is why I am volunteering three days, every week, to support the Vaccination Hub at the Black Country Living Museum.

"The sooner more people are protected the better. The Government have rightly recognised the additional financial pressures they have faced as a result. That is why I am delighted that the Government has supported council leaders across the West Midlands with an extra £462 million since March last year, helping to protect vital services and ensure our council has the resources it needs to support our community. 

“This level of funding shows that the Conservatives are delivering on their promise to support vulnerable families and local people during the pandemic, and I am confident this will continue.” 

Over half of this funding has not been ring-fenced, meaning local leaders can decide how to use the additional funds and which local services to boost investment to. This could include counselling services, delivering essential supplies to vulnerable families, and ensuring cherished green spaces are well maintained and covid-secure. 

Local authorities have also received over £2 billion in further grant funding since March last year to deliver specific schemes, such as providing emergency support for rough sleepers, preventing children going hungry, setting up local test and trace services and measures to make care homes, high streets and town centres Covid-secure. 

In total, the Government has provided local authorities across England with more than £7 billion in additional support and introduced a range of measures to help council’s manage pressures on their finances created by the pandemic, worth billions more. A further £3 billion will be allocated to councils from April onwards. Communities Secretary, Robert Jenrick, added: 

“From the start of the pandemic, we committed to ensuring that councils had the resources they needed to step up and support their communities. 

“That commitment remains undimmed, which is why we have provided councils with more than £7 billion of additional funding for Covid-19 expenditure, and will continue to ensure they have the resources they need to provide vital local services and held their communities build back better from the pandemic.”