An independent progress review by a panel of experts has found Ealing Council continues to be a ‘confident, well-run organisation with a clear sense of direction’.
The team of council leaders and senior officers appointed by the Local Government Association (LGA) said that strong political and managerial leadership remain evident at Ealing Council.
Their report says that this is ‘underpinned by Ealing’s Connected Communities approach’ which informs every aspect of the council’s work and aims to improve residents’ lives by strengthening social connection.
In it they highlighted the Learning Academy programme, which is helping to embed this approach across the organisation, with more than 80% of staff having now completed the foundation training.
Staff told reviewers that stronger links between services are helping teams work together and deliver better services for residents.
The panel also praised Your Voice, Your Town and the council’s growing work with partners and communities. This is helping local people have more say in decisions and improving services for residents.
The review, which was carried out in the summer and has now been published, followed a 4-day Corporate Peer Challenge (CPC) in 2025. Run by the LGA, CPCs provide ‘robust, strategic and credible’ challenge to local authorities across the country. After the original CPC the council put an action plan in place to address 9 recommendations. The panel returned this summer to check on progress.
Strong finances despite growing pressures
The original CPC highlighted the council’s strong focus on financial resilience, including reducing reliance on reserves and rebuilding them through planned budget contributions.
The progress review found this focus has continued into 2025/26, with the council closing the financial year with an overall underspend of £0.7million after the budgeted £3.5million contribution to reserves.
This is despite the challenges that all councils are facing from increased demand and rising costs in adult and children’s social care and homelessness services.
The review found that Ealing Council is managing these challenges while improving outcomes for residents and ensuring value for money. Ealing’s preventative approach includes new ways of working that give people greater choice and control, helping them live independently.
Progress on housing
The original CPC highlighted the need for the council to keep focused on addressing housing challenges, including rising demand for temporary accommodation and improvements to landlord services following its self-referral to the Regulator of Social Housing (RSH).
The panel found evidence of progress in this area including an improved grading (C2) from the RSH in November 2025.
The council is continuing to improve housing services across the board, reducing the numbers of families in bed and breakfast, improving the quality of temporary accommodation, working with residents to raise standards in homes and working with partners to tackle homelessness.
The reviewers concluded that there is an opportunity for Ealing to share its learning around social connection and preventative work with other councils.
‘Strengthening social connection’
Council leader Peter Mason, said: “Everything we do is driven by our core belief which is that to lead a healthy and happy life, everyone needs family, friends and a network that can support them. In the borough of Ealing we believe that it is the council’s role to facilitate that by strengthening social connection.
“People also need jobs that pay a living wage and decent homes – and to feel pride in the place where they live and play a part in local decisions. That’s why our council plan is driven by our 3 core values – community for everyone, growth across all 7 towns and putting power back into the hands of local people. Connected Communities is how we put those values into action. There is more to do, but it’s positive that leaders in local government have endorsed Ealing’s approach to changing lives – and believe that others can learn from it.”
