England Local Authorities
All 153 of England’s local authorities, grouped by region. Each council plans school places, runs admissions, supports SEND and employs teachers across its maintained schools. Open any authority for its schools, teacher pay, pupil–teacher ratio, school spending, key services and live teaching jobs.
Totals across England’s 153 education authorities. Schools and pupils from GIAS; teacher FTE and median pay from the DfE School Workforce Census 2024-25 (state-funded schools; national pupil–teacher ratio 18.6). Open Government Licence.
North East
12 local authorities · 1,222 schools
County Durham
Darlington
Gateshead
Hartlepool
Middlesbrough
Newcastle upon Tyne
North Tyneside
Northumberland
Redcar and Cleveland
South Tyneside
Stockton-on-Tees
Sunderland
North West
24 local authorities · 3,619 schools
Blackburn with Darwen
Blackpool
Bolton
Bury
Cheshire East
Cheshire West and Chester
Cumberland
Halton
Knowsley
Lancashire
Liverpool
Manchester
Oldham
Rochdale
Salford
Sefton
St. Helens
Stockport
Tameside
Trafford
Warrington
Westmorland and Furness
Wigan
Wirral
Yorkshire and The Humber
15 local authorities · 2,460 schools
Barnsley
Bradford
Calderdale
Doncaster
East Riding of Yorkshire
Kingston upon Hull, City of
Kirklees
Leeds
North East Lincolnshire
North Lincolnshire
North Yorkshire
Rotherham
Sheffield
Wakefield
York
East Midlands
10 local authorities · 2,313 schools
Derby
Derbyshire
Leicester
Leicestershire
Lincolnshire
North Northamptonshire
Nottingham
Nottinghamshire
Rutland
West Northamptonshire
West Midlands
14 local authorities · 2,763 schools
Birmingham
Coventry
Dudley
Herefordshire, County of
Sandwell
Shropshire
Solihull
Staffordshire
Stoke-on-Trent
Telford and Wrekin
Walsall
Warwickshire
Wolverhampton
Worcestershire
East of England
11 local authorities · 2,851 schools
Bedford
Cambridgeshire
Central Bedfordshire
Essex
Hertfordshire
Luton
Norfolk
Peterborough
Southend-on-Sea
Suffolk
Thurrock
London
33 local authorities · 3,196 schools
Barking and Dagenham
Barnet
Bexley
Brent
Bromley
Camden
City of London
Croydon
Ealing
Enfield
Greenwich
Hackney
Hammersmith and Fulham
Haringey
Harrow
Havering
Hillingdon
Hounslow
Islington
Kensington and Chelsea
Kingston upon Thames
Lambeth
Lewisham
Merton
Newham
Redbridge
Richmond upon Thames
Southwark
Sutton
Tower Hamlets
Waltham Forest
Wandsworth
Westminster
South East
19 local authorities · 4,031 schools
Bracknell Forest
Brighton and Hove
Buckinghamshire
East Sussex
Hampshire
Isle of Wight
Kent
Medway
Milton Keynes
Oxfordshire
Portsmouth
Reading
Slough
Southampton
Surrey
West Berkshire
West Sussex
Windsor and Maidenhead
Wokingham
South West
15 local authorities · 2,660 schools
Bath and North East Somerset
Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole
Bristol, City of
Cornwall
Devon
Dorset
Gloucestershire
Isles of Scilly
North Somerset
Plymouth
Somerset
South Gloucestershire
Swindon
Torbay
Wiltshire
How England’s local authorities work
England has 153 local authorities (LAs) responsible for education — a mix of county councils, unitary authorities, metropolitan and London boroughs. Each is the strategic education body for its area: it forecasts the number of school places needed, runs the co-ordinated admissions round, commissions support for special educational needs and disabilities (SEND), and arranges home-to-school transport for eligible pupils.
For teachers, the authority matters because it shapes the local jobs market. In council-maintained schools the LA is the legal employer and sets pay in line with the national framework; in academies and free schools the academy trust employs staff directly. Most areas now have a mix of both, so a single authority can contain maintained schools, several academy trusts and independent schools — all of which you’ll find on that authority’s page.
Use these pages to compare authorities as employers: median teacher pay, pupil–teacher ratios, spend per pupil and the number of open vacancies. Then drill into a council to browse its schools by town, check Ofsted ratings and exam results, and apply for live teaching jobs.
Local authority FAQs
What is a local authority in England?
A local authority (LA), also called a council, is the body responsible for state education in its area. It plans school places, runs the admissions process for community and voluntary-controlled schools, supports special educational needs (SEND), arranges home-to-school transport and employs teachers in maintained schools. England has 153 local authorities responsible for education.
Who employs teachers — the local authority or the school?
It depends on the type of school. In council-maintained schools the local authority is the legal employer, though the school manages day-to-day staffing. In academies and free schools the academy trust is the employer. Either way, you apply for teaching jobs through the school, the trust, the council or a recruitment agency.
How do school admissions work across a local authority?
Each local authority runs a single co-ordinated admissions scheme for its area, so you apply through your home council using one application — even for schools in a neighbouring authority. Deadlines and catchment rules are set by the LA. Use the official GOV.UK service on each authority page to apply by postcode.
Do academies belong to the local authority?
No. Academies and free schools are funded directly by central government and run by academy trusts, outside local-authority control. They still sit within an authority’s geographic area, so they appear on our LA pages, but their finances and staffing are managed by the trust.