Local council sick leave costs taxpayers £3m per day

New research from the TaxPayers' Alliance reveals that sickness absence in local government is costing taxpayers approximately £3 million per working day, totaling £667 million annually. The report indicates that council staff take an average of 10 sick days per year, a rate that is double that of the private sector and 30 percent higher than the rest of the public sector.

Mental health issues now account for over a quarter of all local authority sickness absences. The cost associated specifically with mental health-related leave rose to £176 million in a single year, up from £50 million in 2022-23. The data suggests that 9 million working days are lost annually, which is equivalent to the capacity of 41,302 full-time roles.

In addition to direct sickness costs, local councils are spending approximately £1.9 billion to £2 billion per year on agency and temporary staff. The TaxPayers' Alliance has called for limits on the use of expensive agencies and suggested that local government funding should be conditional on authorities addressing high sickness absence rates.