What’s at stake for your business in the local elections this week?

Local elections rarely feel like a small business issue. However, this Thursday is going to be different.

On 7 May, voters across England will elect 4,851 councillors across 134 of England's 317 councils, alongside elections to the Scottish Parliament and the Senedd in Wales.

The councillors elected this week will have arrived at an unusual moment, as the English Devolution and Community Empowerment Act became law on 29 April, making them the first to use its new high-street powers, as well as the first business rates revaluation in three years took effect on 1 April.

The Institute for Government's Performance Tracker reports that more than a quarter of council chief executives believe their authority is likely to issue a Section 114 notice in 2026/27 without further financial intervention. That combination matters because councils have more direct influence over running a small business than most owners realise.

What your council actually decides

Business rates are set nationally, but councils administer them and hold real discretion. They decide on local discretionary relief and hardship relief, and how the new permanently lower multipliers for retail, hospitality and leisure are applied on the ground.

Planning, licensing, parking, waste collection charges and street trading rules all sit with the council. So does the High Street Rental Auction power, which lets councils force landlords to let persistently empty units.

Council procurement is one of the largest local markets a small firm can sell into. Under the Procurement Act 2023, councils now have stronger duties around 30-day payment terms, breaking contracts into smaller lots, and reducing barriers for smaller suppliers.

New powers, new councillors

The English Devolution and Community Empowerment Act, passed last week, gives councils significant new tools.

A new Community Right to Buy gives local people first refusal when valued community assets, such as shops and pubs, are put up for sale. New gambling impact assessments will let councils prevent new gambling shops from opening on the high street.

The Act also bans upwards-only rent reviews in new commercial leases, although that provision will not commence until secondary legislation in 2027. Councillors elected this week will be the first to put many of these tools into practice.

The local funding map is being redrawn

Whether your area pulls in serious investment or has to do more with less increasingly depends on geography and local political decisions.

From April, the UK Shared Prosperity Fund has been replaced by the Local Growth Fund, focused on 11 mayoral combined authorities in the North and Midlands, and the Pride in Place Programme, which now supports 284 places across the UK.

Areas outside both face a real gap, as we've covered before.

Five questions to ask candidates this week

If a candidate knocks on your door, or you can get to a hustings, these are worth pressing:

• How will you use the council's discretionary powers over business rates relief to support local independents through this year's revaluation?

• What is your plan for empty units on our high street, and would you use the High Street Rental Auction power?

• How will the council use the new powers under the Devolution Act, including the Community Right to Buy and gambling impact assessments?

• How will you make council procurement more accessible to small local suppliers under the Procurement Act?

• If our area receives Pride in Place or Local Growth Fund money, who will be at the table deciding how it is spent?

Why your vote matters

Local turnout typically sits between 30% and 40%. In wards where small business owners and their staff turn out, candidates notice.

Polling stations are open from 7.00 am to 10.00 pm on Thursday, 7 May. Voters in England need an accepted form of photo ID to vote in person, while voters in Scotland and Wales do not need ID for the Scottish Parliament and Senedd elections.

The councillors elected this week will be making consequential decisions about your high street, your rates bill, and your access to local contracts every month for the next four years. It is worth your time.

People also read:

• Is the UK Shared Prosperity Fund replacement adequate?

• Powering Local Businesses programme

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