Oxfordshire County Council: local authority assessment

How we assess local authorities

Assessment published: 5 September 2025

About Oxfordshire County Council

Demographics

Oxfordshire County Council is an upper-tier local authority in Southeast England. The local authority covers the county of Oxfordshire and works with five district councils: Oxford City, Cherwell, South Oxfordshire, Vale of White Horse, and West Oxfordshire. The county comprises a mix of urban and rural settings, including the historic city of Oxford, market towns, and villages.

Oxfordshire is ranked 144 out of 153 least deprived local authorities in England, with different levels of deprivation across the districts. It is the 9th most affluent place in England with an overall index of multiple deprivation (IMD) of 1 (10 is the most deprived, 1 is the least deprived), However, there are 10 wards which include areas ranked in the 20% most deprived in England.  

Oxfordshire has 725,300 residents; the census confirmed that the population grew by 10.9% between 2011 and 2021. Over the same period, the number of people aged over 65 grew by 25% with 21.92% of the population in Oxfordshire being above 65 years of age, which is slightly higher than the England average of 18.61%. The county also has an aging population, with a notable increase in residents aged 65 and over. The demographic distribution varies across the county with some areas having a higher concentration of older residents.  

Census (2021) data shows that the county has a predominantly white population (86.9%), with Black, Asian, and Minority Ethnic people making up 13.1% of the population. The largest minority groups are Asian (6.4%), mixed or multiple (3.1%), Black (2.1%), and other ethnic groups (1.6%). Urban areas, such as Oxford City, have higher concentrations of ethnic minorities compared to rural districts.    

The local authority is under Buckinghamshire, Oxfordshire, Berkshire West Integrated Care System (BOB ICS). Oxfordshire County Council is a Liberal Democrat Green Party alliance that has been running the local authority as a minority administration. There are 63 county councillors representing 61 wards. 

Financial facts  

• The local authority estimated that in 2023/24, its total budget would be £932,285,000. Its actual spend for that year was £969,147,000, which was £36,862,000.00 more than estimated.  
• The local authority estimated that it would spend £266,232,000 of its total budget on adult social care in 2023/24. Its actual spend was £258,247,000 which is £7,985,000 less than estimated. In 2023/24, 26.65% of the budget was spent on adult social care.  
• The local authority has raised the full adult social care precept for 2023/24, with a value of 4%. Please note that the amount raised through ASC precept varies from local authority to local authority.​  
• Approximately 7965 people were accessing long-term adult social care support, and approximately 2300 people were accessing short-term adult social care support in 2023/24. ​Local authorities spend money on a range of adult social care services, including supporting individuals. No two care packages are the same and vary significantly in their intensity, duration, and cost.  

This data is reproduced at the request of the Department of Health and Social Care. It has not been factored into our assessment and is presented for information purposes only.