East Sussex councils are half-a-billion in debt

Debts held by East Sussex County Council accounted for a little under half of the overall figure

Councils in East Sussex hold combined debts of more than half-a-billion pounds, analysis by the BBC's Shared Data Unit (SDU) has found.

Using figures from the Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, the county's six main local authorities were found to owe more than £597m at the end of the 2024/25 financial year.

Eastbourne Borough Council (EBC) held debts of almost £183.5m - equating to about £1,768 per person - at the close of that period, the analysis showed.

An EBC spokesman said about a quarter of this overall figure (£54m) was tied to its Housing Revenue Account - a ring-fenced fund tied to the construction and maintenance of council housing.

They added that the council had also invested £30m into affordable housing, as well as citing "exceptionally high levels of homelessness resulting in the council spending up to £5m annually on temporary accommodation".

Debts held by East Sussex County Council (ESCC) accounted for a little under half of the overall debt figure, with the authority close to £211.6m at the end of 2024/25 - equating to about £381 per person.

It had reduced its own debts by £5m, with a spokeswoman for the council saying the move was in line with its treasury management strategy, which seeks to reduce debt levels where possible.

'Not sustainable'

Meanwhile, Hastings Borough Council (HDC) held debts of about £64m, Lewes District Council (LDC) about £57m, Rother District Council (RDC) close to £29m and Wealden District Council (WDC) almost £53m.

But these debt levels were significantly lower than some found elsewhere in the UK - more than 20 councils had debts of more than £1bn. However, 32 had no borrowing on their books at the end of 24/25.

Experts including Jonathan Carr-West of the Local Government Information Unit (LGIU) said the spiralling levels of debt at local authorities was "extremely worrying" and "not sustainable".

LDC added about £13m to its debt pile by the end of the 24/25 year, while WDC added £8.3m.

An LDC spokesperson said its increase was "almost exclusively related to the council's determination and long-standing commitment to building much-needed social housing".

A WDC spokesperson also said its "additional borrowing" was to "fund housing development".

The other authorities in East Sussex each reduced their own level of debts when compared to the previous year.

RDC reduced its debts from about £31.7m to just under £29m in 2024/25.

While this was not the largest drop in cash terms, it was largest proportionally - amounting to a 10% reduction in the council's debt levels.

Meanwhile, HBC reduced its debts by £659,000.