Wokingham Borough Council

What Wokingham Borough Council does

Wokingham Borough Council is a UK unitary local authority providing statutory government services to approximately 177,500 residents across 18 wards in the borough of Wokingham, Berkshire. Established in 1974 as part of UK local government reorganisation, the council is governed by 54 elected councillors under Liberal Democrat political control and delivers the full range of mandatory and discretionary local authority services — including adult and children's social care, housing, planning and building control, waste and recycling, highways and roadworks, libraries, council tax billing, environmental health, countryside management, and benefits administration.

The council's digital surface area is centred on its primary citizen-facing website (wokingham.gov.uk), which provides transactional access to services and information, supported by the Engage Wokingham citizen engagement platform (engage.wokingham.gov.uk) for public consultations, an email newsletter subscription service, and an extensive privacy notices portal. Internally, WBC has deployed Microsoft Power BI for cross-service data reporting and joined the UK Department for Science, Innovation and Technology (DSIT) AI Trail Blazer Programme to test central government-developed AI tools across service areas. The council also developed the JOY Social Prescribing App, awarded the Digital Impact category at the 2024 Local Government Chronicle Awards.

WBC funds its operations through a mix of council tax on residential properties, national non-domestic rates (business rates), central government grants (including formula grants and service-specific grants), fees and charges for specific services (planning applications, licensing, parking, garden waste), and commercial income from council-owned property and land. Service delivery is direct-to-resident through the website portal, physical offices (notably the civic offices at Shute End, Wokingham), phone/contact centre channels, and partnerships — most notably the re3 waste partnership with Bracknell Forest Council, Reading Borough Council and FCC Environment. The council has also built an ecosystem of wholly-owned delivery vehicles: WBC (Holdings) Limited and three housing subsidiaries (Berry Brook Homes, Wokingham Housing, Loddon Homes), plus a joint-venture adult social care company (Optalis Limited) with the Royal Borough of Windsor and Maidenhead.

Name

Wokingham Borough Council

Legal name

Wokingham Borough Council

Website

https://wokingham.gov.uk

Company type

Private

Founded year

1974

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1,001–5,000 employees

Short description

Wokingham Borough Council is a UK unitary local authority serving approximately 177,500 residents across 18 wards with statutory services including social care, housing, planning, waste management, and education support, funded by council tax, business rates, and central government grants.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Local Government Services

NAICS

Administration of Housing Programs, Urban Planning, and Community Development (925), Administration of Urban Planning and Community and Rural Development (92512), Administration of Housing Programs (925110), Waste Collection (56211)

SIC

Sanitary Services (4950), Services-To Dwellings & Other Buildings (7340)

akta.pro primary industry

Mayor/City Manager & General Administration (BPAIACAA)

akta.pro secondary industries

Housing & Neighborhood Services (Local Housing Programs) (BPAIACAJ), Street & Public Space Litter Collection (Municipal Cleaning) (BPALAAAE), Affordable & Subsidized Housing Property Management (LIHTC, Section 8) (BPAJAFAD)

Keywords

• Local government services
• Social care provision
• Waste management recycling
• Public housing services
• Planning regulatory services

Headquarters

HQ city

Wokingham

HQ country

United Kingdom

HQ region

Europe

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Infrastructure, Others, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales

Revenue model

1. Council Tax: Local taxation charged to residents based on property bands to fund council services
2. Business Rates: National non-domestic rates collected from businesses operating in the borough
3. Government Grants: Central government funding including formula grants and specific grants for services
4. Service Fees and Charges: Fees for specific council services such as planning applications, licensing, parking, and social care contributions
5. Commercial Property Revenue: Income from council-owned commercial properties and land holdings

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels7 records

Core offering

Wokingham Borough Council is a unitary local authority delivering statutory and discretionary public services to the residents and businesses of Wokingham Borough, including adult and children's social care, waste collection and recycling (via the re3 Partnership), housing allocation and support, planning and building control, council tax administration, libraries, countryside and parks management, and community wellbeing services. The council also operates a digital services platform (wokingham.gov.uk) through which residents access information, transactions, and consultations.

Product overview

Wokingham Borough Council operates a digital services portfolio centered on its primary citizen-facing website (wokingham.gov.uk) which provides access to all major council services including benefits, planning applications, rubbish and recycling, libraries, council tax, and more. Supporting this core platform are the Engage Wokingham citizen engagement platform for consultations, a newsletter subscription service, and an extensive privacy notices portal covering all service areas. The council has adopted Microsoft Power BI for internal reporting and participates in the government's AI Trail Blazer Programme to test AI tools. The council also developed the JOY Social Prescribing App, an award-winning digital service that connects residents to community resources and support.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Council Tax Administration Administration of local council tax including billing, collection, discounts, exemptions, and refunds for residential properties in Wokingham Borough.
• Waste Collection and Recycling (re3 Partnership) Kerbside waste collection, garden waste subscription service, and household recycling centre operations delivered in partnership with Bracknell Forest, Reading councils, and FCC Environment.
• Adult Social Care Care and support services for adults including learning disability support, independent living support, and the Adult Social Care Specialist Accommodation (ASCSA) Programme.
• Children, Families and Young People Services Statutory services for children, families, and young people including childcare, family support, SEND Local Offer, school admissions, and youth services.
• Housing and Tenants Services Housing allocation, tenancy support, tenant engagement, and housing development oversight including wholly-owned subsidiaries Berry Brook Homes, Wokingham Housing, and Loddon Homes.
• Planning and Building Control Local authority planning permission processing, building control approvals, planning policy, Local Plans, Neighbourhood Plans, and developer contributions (s106).
• Libraries

Quantifiable outcome

• Ranked 5th out of 149 councils in IMPOWER Productivity Index
• +3 more outcomes

Named customers3 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature2 records

Partnerships

18 partnerships are on record, tiered core, major and minor.

• FCC EnvironmentcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 March 2025FCC Environment is the private sector partner in the re3 Partnership waste management collaboration with Bracknell Forest, Reading and Wokingham Borough Councils. This partnership operates recycling centres and manages waste services across the three boroughs.
• Bracknell Forest CouncilcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerJoint waste management partnership (re3) operating recycling centres in Bracknell, Reading and Wokingham boroughs
• Reading Borough CouncilcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerJoint waste management partnership (re3) operating recycling centres in Bracknell, Reading and Wokingham boroughs
• Institute of Health Equity at University College LondonmajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerThe council is working with the Institute of Health Equity at UCL, led by Professor Sir Michael Marmot, to reduce unfair and avoidable differences in health using the Marmot approach to build healthier and fairer communities.
• Department for Science, Innovation and Technology (DSIT)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCouncil selected to join the AI Trail Blazer Programme to test and make use of AI tools developed by Central Government, providing early access to innovative tools.
• WBC (Holdings) LimitedcoreOthersCouncil-owned company providing governance over the housing group on behalf of the Council as Shareholder. Part of council's commercial subsidiaries.
• Berry Brook Homes LimitedcoreOthersCouncil-owned housing provider/developer subsidiary company
• Wokingham Housing LimitedcoreOthersCouncil-owned housing provider/developer subsidiary company
• Loddon Homes LimitedcoreOthersCouncil-owned housing provider/developer subsidiary company
• Optalis LimitedmajorOthersAdult social care company jointly owned with Royal Borough of Windsor and Maidenhead
• Joint Waste Disposal BoardminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerJoint committee for waste disposal services
• Berkshire Prosperity BoardminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerRegional partnership for economic prosperity across Berkshire
• Joint Public Protection CommitteeminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerJoint committee for public protection services across Berkshire
• Thames Valley Police and Crime PanelminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerJoint oversight panel for police and crime matters across Thames Valley region
• Adopt Thames Valley Regional Adoption AgencyminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerRegional adoption agency governance board for Thames Valley area
• Health Overview and Scrutiny Committee - Buckinghamshire, Oxfordshire and Berkshire WestminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerJoint health scrutiny committee for Berkshire West region
• Parking and Traffic Regulations Outside London Adjudication Joint CommitteeminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerJoint committee for parking and traffic adjudication across non-London authorities
• Communities Vision 2035 Steering GroupmajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerMulti-agency steering group bringing together partners from across the borough to guide the Communities Vision, ensuring it remains rooted in the community

Scale indicators18 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Broad incumbents

• Hampshire County Council: Hampshire County Council is a larger, broader-serving incumbent in the South East operating across multiple districts and unitary councils. Provides a wider set of services including education and social care at county tier, useful as a strategic comparator for tier-of-government trade-offs.
• Surrey County Council: Surrey County Council is a broad incumbent operating at the county tier across the South East. Useful comparator given Wokingham's similar affluent commuter-belt demographics and joint regional initiatives.

Direct peers

• Bracknell Forest Council: Bracknell Forest Council is the third party in the re3 waste partnership with Wokingham and Reading. A unitary authority of similar demographic and size profile, sharing direct operational partnership across waste management and regional governance.
• Reading Borough Council: Reading Borough Council is a co-founding partner in the re3 waste partnership with Wokingham Borough Council, sharing recycling centres and waste disposal services across the boroughs. Directly comparable on size, structure (unitary authority), and service portfolio in the Berkshire region.
• Royal Borough of Windsor and Maidenhead: Royal Borough of Windsor and Maidenhead is the joint venture partner with Wokingham in Optalis Limited, the adult social care delivery company. A directly comparable unitary authority by size, affluence and service mix in the same Berkshire region.

Regional players

• West Berkshire Council: West Berkshire Council is a neighbouring Berkshire unitary authority sharing Berkshire-wide joint committees (Public Protection, Health Overview & Scrutiny) with Wokingham. Comparable as a unitary authority serving a mix of urban and rural communities in Berkshire.
• Oxford City Council: Oxford City Council is a unitary authority in the Thames Valley region serving a similar knowledge-economy, growth-pressured population. Comparable as a smaller unitary with strong partnership and regeneration profile.
• Buckinghamshire Council: Buckinghamshire Council is a large unitary authority in the South East covering similar demographic profile (affluent commuter belt with growth pressures). Both participate in joint health scrutiny bodies covering the Berkshire/Buckinghamshire area, making them strong regional comparators.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat6 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• YouTubeyoutube.com/WokinghamBC
• Facebookfacebook.com/wokinghamboroughcouncil
• Instagraminstagram.com/wokinghamboroughcouncil
• Xx.com/WokinghamBC

Compliance4 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles4 records

Subsidiaries5 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Wokingham Borough Council