In accordance with paragraph 2 of Schedule 1 to the Local Government Act 2003, a parish or town council may borrow money.  Before a council in England can borrow a sum of money, it must first apply for approval to borrow from the Department for Levelling Up, Housing, Communities (DLUHC). A copy of the Borrowing Approval Guidance can be found here:  A Guide to Parish and Town Council Borrowing in England

Councils may borrow money from any approved source. The Public Works Loan Board provides competitive loans for local councils or a bank could be used. Loans may also be taken out from individuals or private sector organisations. In England there is no national limit on the annual amount of borrowing available.

Parish, Town and Community Councils should contact the KALC office for an application form.  Please email mailto:chief.executive@kentalc.gov.uk.  Completed applications for borrowing approval from Councils in Kent should be sent to KALC. Our role is to check applications to ensure that the application form is complete with no obvious omissions or errors and that the application is made in good faith and will then forward the application on to DLUHC. If there are any obvious omissions or errors, then KALC will inform councils.

DLUCH is responsible for assessing applications and deciding whether to grant borrowing approval.