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Basics & History
- What is Local Government Reorganisation (LGR)? Learn more in our glossary.
- LGR is a structural reform programme to simplify England's system by replacing two-tier local government (county and district) with unitary authorities. It is the fourth major wave of restructuring since 1965, announced in the December 2024 Devolution White Paper.
- What are Unitary Authorities? Learn more in our glossary.
- A single local government organisation responsible for all services in an area. It combines functions split between county and district tiers (like education, social care, planning, and waste) into one body. Learn more in our glossary.
- Why Does the Government Want to Reorganise? Learn more in our glossary.
- Strategic reasons include: streamlining services, improving financial sustainability by removing administrative duplication, and creating governance structures strong enough for devolution.
- What are the "Six Priority Programme" Areas? Learn more in our glossary.
- Selected in Feb 2025: Cheshire & Warrington, Cumbria, Greater Essex, Hampshire & the Solent, Norfolk & Suffolk, and Sussex & Brighton. These combine devolution with LGR.
- Which Areas are Involved in LGR?
- 21 two-tier areas including Surrey (accelerated), Kent, Essex, Hertfordshire, Norfolk, Suffolk, Cambridgeshire, Lancashire, Cheshire, Cumbria, Hampshire, and Sussex.
- What Happened in Previous Local Government Reorganisations? Learn more in our glossary.
- England restructured in 1974 (establishing the current two-tier system), 1995–1998, 2009, and most recently in 2019–2023 creating unitaries like Somerset and North Yorkshire. Learn more in our glossary.
Process & Timeline
- What is the Timeline for Implementation? Learn more in our glossary.
- Nov 2025: Final proposal deadline.
- Spring/Summer 2026: Government decisions.
- May 2027: First elections.
- April 2028: New councils operational.
Note: Surrey follows an accelerated timeline (operational April 2027).
Learn more in our glossary.- How Will the Proposals Process Work? Learn more in our glossary.
- A 5-stage process: 1) Proposal Development, 2) Public Consultation, 3) Decision & Statutory Process, 4) Secondary Legislation (Structural Changes Order), and 5) Elections & Implementation. Learn more in our glossary.
- What Do Different Models Look Like? Learn more in our glossary.
- Options include Single Unitary (one council per county), Two-Unitary splits (e.g., East and West Surrey), or Three+ Unitary models which maintain more local identity but increase costs. Learn more in our glossary.
- What Happens if a Council Proposes a Model the Government Rejects? Learn more in our glossary.
- If councils cannot agree on a consensus model, the government has the power to impose a structure as a "backstop" to ensure the reorganisation proceeds according to the national timeline. Learn more in our glossary.
- Will There Be Elections Before New Councils are Established? Learn more in our glossary.
- Most scheduled elections for 2025/2026 have been postponed. The primary elections for new unitary authorities will occur on 6 May 2027, with the councils becoming operational a year later.
Finance & Savings
- What is the Population Threshold for New Unitary Authorities? Learn more in our glossary.
- The target is 500,000+ residents. Analysis suggests larger authorities achieve higher economies of scale. Smaller councils (300k population) can actually cost an area more due to disaggregation. Learn more in our glossary.
- How Much Could LGR Save?
- PwC and County Councils Network analyses estimate potential savings of £1.8bn to £2.9bn over five years if implemented at a large scale (500,000+ population). Learn more in our glossary.
- What is Disaggregation? Learn more in our glossary.
- This is the cost of splitting up integrated county services—especially social care—across multiple new councils. It requires duplicating management, IT systems, and admin structures, making it expensive. Learn more in our glossary.
- How Much Will LGR Cost?
- Upfront transition costs are significant: IT consolidation, redundancy packages, rebranding, and office rationalisation. These often exceed initial expectations in previous reorganisations. Learn more in our glossary.
- What is the Financial Impact on Council Tax? Learn more in our glossary.
- While the government argues LGR saves money, councils may freeze taxes during transition or face rises if costs exceed savings. Rates usually "harmonize" across the new area over several years.
Governance
- Will There Be Fewer Councillors?
- Yes. Unitary authorities typically have fewer councillors than the combined totals of the previous county and district tiers. A boundary review by the LGBCE decides exact numbers later. Learn more in our glossary.
- What Happens to Parish Councils? Learn more in our glossary.
- Parish and town councils remain. They are an opportunity to maintain community-level governance, and many new unitaries may devolve hyperlocal functions to them.
- What Are the Governance and Democratic Implications? Learn more in our glossary.
- Accountability is clearer as one council is responsible for everything, but larger authorities may feel more "distant" from local communities compared to smaller districts. Learn more in our glossary.
- What is the Role of Combined Authorities? Learn more in our glossary.
- These legal bodies (often with a Mayor) manage devolved powers like transport. They require constituent councils to be unitary, which is a key driver for the LGR pLGRess.
Service Impact
- What are the Advantages of Unitary Authorities? Learn more in our glossary.
- Efficiency through economies of scale, better integration of services like housing and care, financial resilience, clearer voter accountability, and greater capacity for devolution. Learn more in our glossary.
- What are the Disadvantages and Risks? Learn more in our glossary.
- Risks include a loss of local responsiveness, service disruption during transition, high upfront costs, and a potential "one-size-fits-all" approach that doesn't suit diverse towns.
- How Will Services Transfer Between Councils? Learn more in our glossary.
- Via a managed transition: staff transfer under TUPE, IT systems are migrated, assets like buildings move to the new authority, and budgets are consolidated under the Structural Changes Order.
- What are the Key Challenges for Councils in Transition?
- Digital transformation (merging systems), dual delivery (operating while merging), strategic collaborative leadership, and maintaining "business as usual" for residents. Learn more in our glossary.
- How Will LGR Affect My Local Services?
- Residents should see better integration (e.g., waste and housing in one place), but there may be changes to office locations, contact numbers, and unified policies for services like planning. Learn more in our glossary.
About the Initiative
Rowan Cole
- What is Rowan Cole's role in Local Government Reorganisation analysis? Learn more in our glossary.
- Rowan Cole serves as Editorial Lead of the Local Government Reorganisation Initiative, overseeing research and policy analysis on unitary authority creation and council restructuring in England. Learn more in our glossary.
- What experience does Rowan Cole bring to council restructuring?
- His experience spans elected office, senior advisory roles, planning policy communications and governance consultancy, providing practical insight into executive leleadershipscrutiny and planning committee decision making.
- Does Rowan Cole advise on Section 114 contexts?
- He advises on managing internal stakeholders and external communications in Section 114 and other high-pressure contexts. He specialises in communications, engagement and accountability.
- How does planning reform intersect with Local Government Reorganisation? Learn more in our glossary.
- He examines how restructuring affects Local Plan timetables, development management performance and democratic accountability within planning systems.
Professor Amelia Hadfield
- What is Professor Amelia Hadfield's role in the Local Government Reorganisation Initiative? Learn more in our glossary.
- She serves as Senior Academic and Policy Adviser, providing comparative governance expertise and academic oversight.
- What expertise does Professor Hadfield contribute to Local Government Reorganisation analysis? Learn more in our glossary.
- Her scholarship covers sovereignty, institutional restructuring and multi level governance systems, offering comparative perspective on structural reform in the United Kingdom.
- Why is comparative governance relevant to English council restructuring?
- Comparative analysis demonstrates how institutional design choices affect democratic accountability, executive authority and public legitimacy during structural transition. Learn more in our glossary.
- What is Professor Hadfield's experience in policy advisory environments? Learn more in our glossary.
- She holds senior university leadership roles and contributes to international governance and sustainability initiatives, linking academic research with applied policy contexts.
Oliver Deed
- What is Oliver Deed's role in the Local Government Reorganisation Initiative? Learn more in our glossary.
- Oliver Deed contributes strategic communications and stakeholder engagement expertise to the Initiative, focusing on how governance reform and council restructuring are communicated to residents and stakeholders.
- What experience does Oliver Deed have in public sector communications? Learn more in our glossary.
- He has led communications and engagement strategies for local authorities, regeneration bodies and infrastructure projects in the United Kingdom and Australia. Learn more in our glossary.
- Why is communications strategy important during Local Government Reorganisation? Learn more in our glossary.
- Structural reform can create uncertainty and political sensitivity. Clear, consistent communication helps maintain public confidence, democratic legitimacy and stakeholder trust during transition.
- What sectors has Oliver Deed worked across? Learn more in our glossary.
- He has worked across residential development, infrastructure, regeneration and public sector projects, advising both public authorities and private sector partners. Learn more in our glossary.