Reference
Methodology and data sources
Every number on this site traces back to a published source. This page says which source, how often we refresh it, where we are estimating rather than reporting, and how to cite any of it.
Where the data comes from
We publish two kinds of figure. Most are reported — taken directly from an official publication and reproduced. A few are estimated, and those are labelled as such wherever they appear.
| Page | Source | Updated | Type |
|---|---|---|---|
| Rates | PWLB interest rate notices, UK Debt Management Office | Each notice, on publication | Reported |
| PWLBpredict | Intraday gilt yields, applied to the most recent DMO PWLB reset | Through the trading day | Estimated |
| SONIA | Published forward curves, Bank of England | Daily, after the Bank publishes | Reported |
| Sector activity | PWLB lending data, UK Debt Management Office | Monthly, as released | Reported |
| PWLBbenchmark | MHCLG local authority returns (England collection) | As each return is published | Reported |
| PWLBbrief | Written from the above on the day | Each trading day; archived from December 2025 | Commentary |
Where a page shows a figure we did not calculate, the source is named on the page itself. Nothing here is licensed or redistributed data: it is public information from the DMO, the Bank of England and MHCLG, presented for treasury teams who would otherwise be reading it a PDF at a time.
How implied PWLB rates are estimated
PWLBpredict is the one place we publish a number the DMO has not published yet, so it is worth being precise about what it is.
We apply intraday gilt-yield moves at the loan's weighted-average life to the most recent PWLB reset, with a per-segment delay calibration that aligns the previous fix to within ±1bp of the published rate. The chart's anchor markers visualise that calibration.
What that estimate cannot tell you
The DMO does not publicly document the exact moment it samples the gilt curve, nor the precise par-yield interpolation it uses to set rates between knot points. Our estimate is therefore directional, not authoritative — useful for treasury decisions on timing and trend, but not a substitute for the official PWLB notice when transacting. Always confirm the agreed rate against the live DMO notice.
Coverage and other limits
- PWLBbenchmark is England only. The dataset is MHCLG's England collection, so Scottish, Welsh and Northern Irish authorities are genuinely absent rather than missing by error.
- Reported figures inherit their source's revisions. When the DMO or MHCLG restates a published figure, the page follows on the next refresh. We do not hold a separate corrected series.
- Rates move after we publish. Every page carries the time it was last updated. For anything you are about to transact on, the official notice is the authority, not this site.
- Nothing here is advice. The site reports and estimates market data for treasury professionals. It is not financial advice and does not account for any authority's particular position.
Corrections
If a figure looks wrong, tell us and we will check it against the source. An authority that disputes a number about itself can use the same route and we will publish a correction where one is due. Write to admin@pwlbtoday.org.
How to cite this site
Committee papers and treasury strategies are welcome to cite these pages. The form we suggest:
PWLBtoday, <page title>, retrieved <date>, <URL>
For example: PWLBtoday, PWLBpredict, retrieved 3 September 2026, https://pwlbtoday.org/predictor
Individual briefings have permanent URLs of their own and carry a suggested citation at the foot of each one, so a report can point at the exact update it drew on rather than at the archive.
Who publishes this
PWLBtoday is published by the team behind PWLBacademy. Briefings are written by Russell Tew; the data pages are built from the sources above. You can see who we are on the team page, and the about page explains why the site exists.
This page describes the site as it stands. If a source or a method changes, it is changed here at the same time.