Rankings · London borough

Tower Hamlets

35th of 68

London and metropolitan boroughs

Lower middle

Likely range 25th–42nd. Stays in the lower middle in 44% of re-runs. How we work this out

10th of 32

London boroughs only

Upper middle

How Tower Hamlets scores

Service quality40th of 68
Planning38th
Waste & recycling56th
Complaints57th
Children's services20th
Adult social care19th
Special educational needs45th
Homelessness39th
Value for money27th of 66
Adult social care value for money33rd
Children's services value for money43rd
Waste value for money21st
Planning value for money6th
Financial health23rd of 66
Reserves50th
Debt costs9th
Schools funding deficit39th
Government bailouts1st

Bar length shows the share of the 68 councils that Tower Hamlets beats. Overall weights: service quality 60%, value for money 20%, financial health 20%.

Service quality

Planning

Measure	Tower Hamlets	Median of 68	Rank	Period
Major planning decisions made in time (24 months)Higher is better	91.7%	94.5%	=49 / 68	2024 Q3 to 2026 Q2
Non-major planning decisions made in time (24 months)Higher is better	93.5%	93.1%	29 / 68	2024 Q3 to 2026 Q2
Planning decisions in the financial yearHigher is better · context only	998	1,247	–	2025-26

Source: MHCLG — Planning application statistics (PS2)

Waste & recycling

Measure	Tower Hamlets	Median of 68	Rank	Period
Household waste sent for reuse recycling or compostingHigher is better	17.0%	32.9%	=65 / 68	2024-25
Residual household waste per householdLower is better	513 kg	504 kg	37 / 68	2024-25

Source: DEFRA — Local authority collected waste management

Complaints

Measure	Tower Hamlets	Median of 68	Rank	Period
Ombudsman upheld decisions per 100k residentsLower is better	11.2	5.6	59 / 68	2024-25 to 2025-26
Ombudsman investigations upheldLower is better	86.0%	82.4%	45 / 68	2024-25 to 2025-26
Ombudsman recommendations implemented on timeHigher is better	68.6%	74.7%	42 / 68	2025-26
Ombudsman recommendations implementedHigher is better · context only	100.0%	100.0%	–	2025-26
Upheld complaints already remedied by the council before reaching the OmbudsmanHigher is better · context only	6.5%	15.2%	–	2025-26

Source: Local Government and Social Care Ombudsman — annual review data

Children's services

Measure	Tower Hamlets	Median of 68	Rank	Period
Ofsted overall effectiveness (children's services)Higher is better	Outstanding	Good	=1 / 68	latest at 2026-03-31
Ofsted sub-judgements (average)Higher is better	3.50 / 4	Good	=20 / 68	latest at 2026-03-31

Source: Ofsted — Local authority inspection outcomes

Adult social care

Measure	Tower Hamlets	Median of 68	Rank	Period
Quality of life of people who use services (adjusted)Higher is better	0.433	0.416	=16 / 68	2024-25
People who use services satisfied with their care and supportHigher is better	63.0%	63.0%	35 / 68	2024-25
Older people still at home 12 weeks after hospital discharge into reablementHigher is better	69.8%	62.9%	=5 / 64	2024-25
People receiving long-term support who live in their own home or with familyHigher is better	87.5%	84.6%	19 / 67	2024-25
People who use services who feel safeHigher is better	67.0%	69.8%	=48 / 68	2024-25

Source: DHSC — Adult Social Care Outcomes Framework

Special educational needs

Measure	Tower Hamlets	Median of 68	Rank	Period
New EHC plans issued within 20 weeksHigher is better	43.2%	68.3%	45 / 68	2024 to 2025

Source: DfE — Education, health and care plans

Homelessness

Measure	Tower Hamlets	Median of 68	Rank	Period
Homelessness prevented: accommodation secured for 6+ monthsHigher is better	48.3%	51.5%	40 / 68	2025-09 to 2026-03
Homelessness relieved: accommodation secured for 6+ monthsHigher is better	41.5%	31.2%	16 / 68	2025-09 to 2026-03
Households in temporary accommodation per 1000 householdsLower is better	22.0	7.0	58 / 68	2026-03
Families with children in B&B for more than 6 weeksLower is better · context only	0	0	–	2026-03

Source: MHCLG — Statutory homelessness statistics

Value for money

Adult social care value for money

Tower Hamlets spends £689 per adult on adult social care, against about £700 expected after allowing for older people's poverty, how many residents are over 65 and London's higher costs (£10 less). Its adult social care results rank 19th of 68.

Good results, lower cost · value for money rank 33rd of 66

Children's services value for money

Tower Hamlets spends £1,824 per child on children's services, against about £1,766 expected after allowing for child poverty and London's higher costs (£58 more). Its children's services results rank 20th of 68.

Good results, higher cost · value for money rank 43rd of 66

Waste value for money

Tower Hamlets spends £186 per home on waste & recycling, against about £206 expected after allowing for deprivation and London's higher costs (£21 less). Its waste & recycling results rank 56th of 68.

Weaker results, lower cost · value for money rank 21st of 66

Planning value for money

Tower Hamlets spends £-352 per planning decision on planning, against about £413 expected after allowing for London's higher costs (£765 less). Its planning results rank 38th of 68.

Weaker results, lower cost · value for money rank 6th of 66

Financial health

Reserves

Measure	Tower Hamlets	Median of 68	Rank	Period
Usable reserves as a share of net revenue expenditureHigher is better	28.3%	34.7%	45 / 66	2025-26
Change in usable reserves over the year as a share of net revenue expenditureHigher is better	-9.8%	0.3%	=63 / 66	2025-26

Source: Calculated from MHCLG Revenue Outturn, ONS population, MHCLG dwelling stock and planning statistics

Debt costs

Measure	Tower Hamlets	Median of 68	Rank	Period
Debt servicing costs as a share of net revenue expenditureLower is better	3.9%	9.3%	9 / 66	2025-26

Source: Calculated from MHCLG Revenue Outturn, ONS population, MHCLG dwelling stock and planning statistics

Schools funding deficit

Measure	Tower Hamlets	Median of 68	Rank	Period
High-needs (DSG) deficit as a share of net revenue expenditureLower is better	9.1%	8.0%	39 / 66	2025-26

Source: Calculated from MHCLG Revenue Outturn, ONS population, MHCLG dwelling stock and planning statistics

Government bailouts

Measure	Tower Hamlets	Median of 68	Rank	Period
Exceptional Financial Support over three years as a share of net revenue expenditureLower is better	0.0%	0.0%	=1 / 66	2024-25 to 2026-27

Source: Calculated from MHCLG Revenue Outturn, ONS population, MHCLG dwelling stock and planning statistics

Context

Background figures. These don't count towards the score.

Population	334,240	median 296,363	mid-2025
Net service spend per resident	£2,949.61	median £2,139.02	2025-26
Index of Multiple Deprivation average score	30.554	median 26.299	2025
Families with children in B&B for more than 6 weeks	0	median 0	2026-03
Band D council tax (council element)	£1,327.27	median £1,884.22	2026-27
Band D council tax change on previous year	5.0%	median 5.0%	2026-27
Band D council tax total bill (incl. GLA/police/fire/combined authority)	£1,837.78	median £2,319.87	2026-27

What residents say

Ratings from signed-in visitors. They are shown here for context and are not part of the official-data ranking.

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Also responsible in Tower Hamlets

These services are run by other bodies, so they don't count towards Tower Hamlets's score.

Greater London Authority: transport (TfL); strategic planning; police & crime (MOPAC); fire (LFB)

ONS code E09000030 · How we score