London council update on services impacted in cyber attack – how you can get help

The council is prioritising work to restore critical services, especially those used by vulnerable residents

A Central London council has revealed which services have been impacted in a recent cyber attack and how residents can get help. Westminster City Council said it is still responding to a cyber attack which took place last Monday (November 24) and warned though services are running, residents should expect some disruption.

It is one of three London councils impacted by the strike, with the others being Kensington and Chelsea Council and Hammersmith and Fulham Council. Westminster City has followed other authorities in issuing an update on which services remain problematic.

Which services have been impacted?

In an update on December 2, Westminster City said it was working to restore critical services and shared a list of those currently being impacted by the attack. It has also provided advice on how to get help.

It said it is prioritising critical services, especially for vulnerable residents, and created a webpage dedicated to updates. Here is a breakdown of the impacted services:

Reporting issues

The Report It tool is currently unavailable but residents can still report an issue on the Report It webpage. The council cannot currently view or carry out reports from Fix My Street.

Council Tax Payments

Residents and businesses are currently unable to make Council Tax and Business Rate payments via the council’s website. All other payment methods detailed on Council Tax and Business Rate bills are working, including Direct Debit. If in doubt, the council has established a webpage to view other methods of payment.

Births, deaths and marriage certificates

The council’s certificate ordering system is currently out of action due to ongoing IT maintenance. This means it will not be possible to order a certificate online or by phone with contact centre staff for now. To order a certificate during this time, people are being urged to contact the General Register Office on 0300 123 1837.

Children’s Services

The council currently cannot accept online referrals. To make a referral, call 0207 641 4000 and choose Option 1. If you’re still unable to get through, please contact the following numbers:

• 07866 077 169
• 07790 979 387
• 07814 187 144
• 07971 026 078
• 07890 380 175

Any partners who have made or tried to submit a MARF referral online are being advised to follow up on all enquiries by calling 0207 641 4000 and choosing Option 1.

Complaints

The council is unable to process complaints at the moment. Those wishing to submit one are being told response times might be outside of published timescales.

Committees and decisions

The committees and decisions webpages cannot be updated at the moment, but the council has created a dedicated page for updates.

Licensing

Representations or comments on applications can’t currently be submitted to the online portal. Residents and businesses are advised to submit these through the Licensing Team inbox via email at [email protected]. You can also call the licensing team if you have questions on 020 7641 6500.

Waste and recycling

Online forms to order recycling bags, food waste liners and food waste bins, report missed collections and request bulky waste collections are not currently available. Residents must call Veolia’s commercial waste helpline on 020 7641 6180 during this period.

If you need recycling bags or food waste liners, please pick up a pack from your local library. Waste and recycling and street cleansing schedules are also unavailable online.

Libraries

All council-run libraries are open as usual, with free events continuing in person only. You will be able to use the guest WiFi but during this time you won’t be able to join a library as a new user. You can check out and return items using self-service kiosks. Staff will be on hand to help with any questions.

Contacting the council

The council’s contact centre remains open. Opening hours have changed to 9am to 5pm for the main contact centre, and 8.30am to 5pm for the housing contact centre. Waiting times may be longer than usual. The council said it is working to increase capacity.

Some digital services are still available. People can still use the council’s chatbot to ask general questions via the contact us page, however the authority is currently unable to escalate you to an agent.

For general enquiries, including emergencies, contact 020 7641 6000. For housing, call 0800 358 3783 and for adult social care, try 020 7641 2500.

What happened and how long will it take to fix?

Westminster City said it detected a “cyber security incident” affecting shared IT systems with Kensington and Chelsea Council, and Hammersmith and Fulham Council. The attack took place on Monday, November 24, 2025.

Kensington and Chelsea Council and Westminster City Council first identified the attack that day.The council said it took immediate steps to contain the issue and protect its systems.

Since then, it said teams have worked around the clock with cyber security experts and the National Cyber Security Centre to “secure our environment and maintain essential services,” according to a December 3 update on its website.

Westminster City said restoring systems safely was a “complex process” and that it would take “several weeks” for a full return to business as usual.

The council said its priority is to “do this securely and protect the integrity of all systems,” according to a statement on its website. Residents can get the latest updates on the council’s website or through official channels, like X.

What happens now?

Westminster City shares some services with the other affected councils and are working closely with them to investigate the full nature of the data breach which was identified on Friday, November 28.

The council said it has a team of specialists working to understand the extent and potential implications of any breach of data from shared services.

At this time investigations continue, and everyone is urged to follow advice to keep cyber safe with service users asked to be extra vigilant when called, emailed or sent text messages.

Where there has been a breach of an individual’s details the council will always be in touch directly to offer help and support.

What have other affected councils said?

Kensington and Chelsea Council said it could take “months” for services to return to normal and promised to carry out a review of the incident “when the time is right”.

During a Full Council meeting Wednesday night (December 2), leader Elizabeth Campbell said staff had worked “literally day and night” and warned of set-backs as the council recovers. She also warned of weeks of disruption, adding: “Let me be crystal clear: this remains an incredibly serious incident. We expect disruption to continue for at least two weeks and the ramifications to rumble on for months after that.”

The council also issued an update saying many on-street services like twice weekly bin collections and street cleaning will go ahead as normal while other more digitally-reliant services remain disrupted.

The council said residents who pay council tax by Direct Debit may experience issues, namely that payment will not be taken on the usual date but instead at a later date once its systems are back online.

Residents are being urged to keep the funds in their account so the payment can be collected when the service resumes. They said business rates and council tax are still due and payable and that while Direct Debit remains temporarily unavailable, other payment methods remain operational and secure.

The council also said the cyber-attack coincided with the weekly pay-run for its internal foster carers and it is working on a solution to ensure payments are made and that all payments due will be updated and paid.

The authority also said no one will be subject to rent arrears action if rent is due but cannot be collected because of the current cyber issues.

On Friday, the council confirmed some of its data has been “copied and taken away”. The council said it believes the breach only impacts historical data, understood to be archived 2006-2020 data.

Hammersmith and Fulham Council said it is continuing to take a “series of enhanced security measures” but believes its systems have not been compromised.

It said My Account and other online systems are temporarily unavailable. Those services can be found on the council’s Service and IT update page.

Have you been affected by this? If so, contact Adrian at [email protected] or Callum at [email protected]

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