How councils are organised

In England, local government comes in two main shapes. Some areas have two tiers, a county council and several district councils splitting the services between them. Everywhere else has a single unitary authority doing everything. Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland each have their own single-tier systems. Which type of council covers an area decides which jobs it advertises, from social workers to planning officers.

Two-tier areas: counties and districts

In two-tier areas the county council runs the big, expensive services: adult social care, children’s services, education and SEND, highways and transport, libraries, trading standards and waste disposal. District councils (also called borough or city councils in some places) run housing, planning applications, council tax and benefits, environmental health, licensing, waste collection, leisure and parks.

This split is why a district council has no social workers and a county council does not collect your bins. If you are looking for a particular kind of job, check which tier does that work before searching.

The government plans to replace the remaining two-tier areas with unitary councils through local government reorganisation, alongside new strategic authorities led by mayors. In areas going through reorganisation, existing councils will be abolished and staff transferred to the new ones, which is covered under TUPE or the statutory transfer arrangements that apply to reorganisation.

Unitary authorities

A unitary council provides all local services in its area. England has several kinds:

Type	Where	Notes
Unitary authority	Many cities and shire areas	Created at various reorganisations
Metropolitan borough	Greater Manchester, West Midlands, West Yorkshire and other former metropolitan counties	Often grouped in a combined authority
London borough	Greater London, plus the City of London	Greater London Authority covers strategic matters

Unitary councils are usually the largest local employers in their area, and the range of jobs is widest: social care, schools support, planning, housing, highways, finance, IT and more.

Combined authorities, mayors and parish councils

Combined authorities and mayoral strategic authorities cover several councils and handle transport, skills, economic development and sometimes policing. They employ smaller numbers of staff in policy, programme and transport roles.

At the bottom level, parish and town councils run allotments, community halls and small local services. They are separate employers, often with only a clerk and a few staff.

Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland

Scotland has single-tier councils, which advertise through myjobscotland. Council staff in Scotland are covered by the Scottish Joint Council rather than the NJC, so pay rates and the pension scheme (LGPS Scotland) differ. See public sector jobs in Scotland.

Wales has unitary principal councils, each advertising on its own website. They use the NJC Green Book. Welsh language skills are required or desirable for many posts; see Welsh language skills in public sector jobs.

Northern Ireland’s councils have fewer responsibilities than elsewhere. Education, social care, roads and housing are run by other public bodies.

How council pay and terms are set

In England and Wales, most council staff are on the NJC “Green Book” terms. The NJC pay spine runs from SCP 3 (£25,614 from 1 April 2026) to SCP 43 (£56,293), after a 3.3 per cent award. Each council attaches its own grades to the spine through job evaluation, so a grade 6 in one council is not the same as a grade 6 next door. Above SCP 43, chief officers and chief executives are on separate JNC terms and local pay.

Green Book annual leave is at least 23 days rising to 26 after five years, plus 8 public holidays and 2 extra-statutory days. Staff join the Local Government Pension Scheme, with member contributions from 5.5 per cent to 12.5 per cent depending on pay. The NJC spine and grades are in the NJC pay spine, and wider perks in benefits of working for a council.

Councillors and officers

Councils are run by elected councillors, but the work is done by paid staff, known as officers. Councillors set the budget and policy, usually through a leader and cabinet, or in some councils a committee system or a directly elected mayor. Officers advise them and carry out the decisions. The chief executive (head of paid service) leads the officers, with statutory roles for the monitoring officer, the chief finance officer and, in social care authorities, the directors of children’s and adult services.

As an officer you serve the council as a whole, not any political party. Staff in senior or sensitive posts are usually “politically restricted”, which means they cannot stand for election or take an active public role in party politics while in the job. The advert or contract will tell you if a post is restricted.

Who employs whom

Your employer is the council, not the department. Councils also deliver services through arm’s length companies, trusts and partners, such as leisure trusts, housing companies and outsourced waste contracts. Staff in those organisations may have very different terms, and their service may not count as local government service. When a service is outsourced or brought back in house, staff normally transfer under TUPE.

Councils mostly advertise on their own websites, with some sharing regional portals. Where councils advertise jobs lists the main ones.