A parish sector council is able to borrow money to fund anything that they are empowered by legislation to provide. Common projects are street lighting, play equipment, purchase of buildings for community purposes or a council office and land for burials. Where a council wishes to borrow money, irrespective of how much it wants to borrow, it must obtain the permission of the Secretary of State for the Department of Levelling Up, Housing and Communities (DLUHC). It must complete an application form, which must be returned to YLCA as we are responsible in the Yorkshire area for the initial check of the application to ensure that basic information is present. Any council that wants to borrow money should download the following documents which can be found on this website:

A council will also need to decide where to borrow the money from. It can apply to its preferred lender when it has received the written permission to borrow from the DLUHC. Any reputable source is acceptable, but most councils use the Public Works Loans Board. A fact sheet regarding the application process to that body can be found at: lc2-august-2018-finalv1.pdf (dmo.gov.uk)

Importantly too, if your council is keen to borrow money, please speak to YLCA about the project before pressing ahead with it.