Your questions answered - Devolution and Local Government Reorganisation

The English Devolution White Paper, published on 16 December 2024 is the Government's statement of its plans to reform local government.

This includes a wide range of proposals on devolution but also plans for local government reorganisation, and changes to local audit.

In England, devolution is the transfer of powers and funding from national to local government. It means decisions are made closer to the local people, communities and businesses they affect.

Devolution will include the creation of new strategic or combined authorities overseen by a directly elected Mayor across a large geography. This body would oversee devolved powers on key issues such as transport and economic development.

In some areas this will see neighbouring areas join up and be led by a directly elected mayor.

Such a model currently exists in London, Greater Manchester and other places.

Local Government Reorganisation is the process by which the structure and responsibilities of local authorities are reconfigured. The government White Paper states that unitary councils can lead to better outcomes for residents, save significant money which can be invested in public services, and improve accountability with fewer politicians who are more able to focus on delivering for residents.

If Surrey were to move to a unitary model, the county and district and borough councils would all dissolve and a new unitary council or councils would deliver all the services. The government agrees that, for Surrey, reorganisation is essential to unlocking devolution options.

Devolution is the transfer of powers and funding from national to local government.

Local Government Reorganisation is a process where all county and district and borough councils in an area are reorganised into fewer, unitary councils.

Unitary authorities are a single tier of local government responsible for all local services in an area. They may cover a whole county, part of a county or a large town or city. For example, Cornwall Council, Nottingham City Council and Reading Borough Council are all unitary councils.

Large urban areas may have a unique form of unitary authorities called metropolitan councils, such as Oldham or Doncaster. London boroughs are also unitary authorities.

Two-tier authorities such as Surrey are where:

1. County councils provide services that cover the whole county such as education, waste disposal and adult social care
2. District councils (sometimes called borough or city councils) are smaller and provide local services such as refuse collection, environmental health, and leisure facilities.
3. Parish and town councils are smaller and have differing local responsibilities

The terms "Unitary Council" and "Strategic Authority" refer to different types of local government bodies in the UK and they serve distinct functions.

Unitary Councils have one tier of local government, combining all the local services that in Surrey are currently provided across District and Boroughs and the county council.

Strategic Authorities (such as a combined authority), are partnerships that bring together local authorities across a large geography. They focus on high-level services and strategic oversight across multiple local councils or regions, overseen by a Mayor.

Examples of Unitary Councils are Wiltshire Council and Buckingham Council.

Examples of Strategic Authorities are the Greater London Authority and the Greater Manchester Combined Authority.

A mayor is a directly elected leader of a geographical region. Many areas of England already have mayors, including London, Greater Manchester and West Yorkshire. There are also directly elected mayors covering single unitary councils.

Directly elected mayors with expanded powers are expected to provide accountability and clearer leadership. Those empowered local leaders will be best positioned to drive economic development in their regions.

The Government believes that within the context of strategic authorities, mayors should have a unique role which allows them to focus fully on devolved responsibilities. Council leaders are expected to continue to focus on leading their place and delivering vital services.

Mayors have strategic powers over a wide area. This means enabling important public services, such as police, fire and health partners, as well as councils to join up and work more collaboratively. Mayors' powers change in different parts of the country and we don't yet know what exactly a mayor overseeing Surrey will be responsible for.

There are two ways in which Local Government Reorganisation (LGR) can take place.

1. The first is for an area to be invited by ministers to become a unitary council. Unanimous agreement from councils in that area is not needed. The government have invited all remaining two tier local government areas to submit proposals for local government reorganisation. The government asked all areas to submit interim proposals by March 2025, with new unitary councils having elections from 2026 onwards.

2. Councils which unanimously agree on a preferred way forward for their area can also make a direct proposal to ministers. Government acknowledges there will likely be differences in views, so this approach is not expected to be used widely.

A unitary council delivering all key services is intended to simplify and streamline local government. Benefits include enhanced efficiency, service delivery and economic growth.

The consolidation of smaller councils into larger authorities is expected to reduce administrative overheads and deliver services more efficiently.

On 5 February 2025, Government confirmed that Surrey is on the accelerated programme​ for Local Government Reorganisation.

Government asked us to submit an interim proposal by 21 March 2025 which we did and the final plan by 9 May 2025, which has also been submitted. ​ Government will make a decision on the best option for Surrey by Autumn this year.

To help us meet the ambitious timelines, government has postponed the Surrey County Council elections for one year to May 2026. ​

It is expected that elections to new 'shadow' unitary council(s) will take place in May 2026, followed by the official 'vesting day' in April 2027, where the unitary council(s) will officially take hold, and existing councils will dissolve. ​

Once LGR has taken place it is then expected that devolution will follow: either through establishing a Mayoral Strategic Authority (MSA), enabling further devolution across Surrey, or through joining a neighbouring MSA.

No. To adhere to the ambitious timelines, government postponed the Surrey County Council elections for one year to May 2026. ​

This was to allow the detailed work of reorganisation and devolution to take place.

The resource, time and public money that would have been spent on elections for a soon-to-be-abolished council is being directed to working on the best possible outcome for Surrey's reorganisation.

We are still waiting for full guidance on what transition arrangements will look like.

It is anticipated there would be a shadow unitary authority(ies) established 12 months in advance of any handover.

This would ensure as smooth a transition as possible for our residents.

Yes. The county council and the 11 district and borough councils are to be abolished and replaced with new unitary council(s).

It is expected that elections to new 'shadow' unitary council(s) will take place in May 2026, followed by the official 'vesting day' in April 2027, where the unitary council(s) will officially take hold, and existing councils will dissolve. ​

There are no immediate changes to the operation of Surrey County Council's (SCC) services. Throughout this process, our vital work supporting residents will continue - services will be delivered and we will still be here for those who need us most.

Local government reorganisation has taken place in several areas in the last decade, including Dorset, Cumbria, Northamptonshire and Wiltshire. We are talking to colleagues in other parts of the country to take on board learnings and ensure a smooth transition.

There are potentially a number of ways to go about local government reorganisation and government has asked all interested councils to develop an interim business case for reorganisation. Our final plan has now been submitted. As part of our business case, we are working with partners such as Surrey Fire and Rescue Service (SFRS), police and health colleagues to propose the best model for Surrey.

The engagement of residents, staff, the voluntary sector, local businesses, community groups and councils, and public sector providers such health, police and fire has been at the forefront of our work in shaping the future of local government in Surrey. An extensive programme of insight, communications and engagement has been carried out to inform the development of the final plan, and to understand what matters most to the people of Surrey. This insight will also help future unitary councils set their direction and values. See the final plan for more information.

We recognise the urgent need to address the debt levels that are held across a number of Surrey councils. SCC Leader Tim Oliver has been clear that he will not accept debt being spread across the county, and we’re in talks with government requesting that the stranded debt be written off, as well as providing financial support to those borough councils that need it.

The government has already confirmed its intention to provide financial support to aid the reduction of Woking Borough Council’s debt ahead of the proposed reorganisation of local government in Surrey.

More information about our approach to this issue is in our final plan document.

No decisions have been made yet on the number of unitaries.

There are potentially a number of ways to go about local government reorganisation and government.

Surrey County Council's preferred recommendation, backed by supporting evidence, is that Surrey's current 12 councils are replaced by two new unitary councils, one for each half of the county.

Two unitary councils in Surrey would deliver:

• More efficient council services and better partnership working
• Millions of pounds in reduced costs year on year
• The right economies of scale to deliver at less cost
• The right structure and governance to engage communities at a local level
• Clarity for residents on who is responsible for all services
• The opportunity for devolved powers from government to a Mayoral Strategic Authority, in line with the government's ultimate plan for UK devolution

Financial analysis also shows that the more councils created through reorganisation, the smaller the saving to the public purse.

Lots of work has gone into considering options, and we've carefully analysed data and drawn on our existing knowledge of our county, our communities and our residents - and this proposal would create simpler, more effective, sustainable, and cheaper local government for Surrey.
Details on how the county could be split are shown in our final plan

Government is asking county and district and borough councils to reorganise into unitary councils. Town and parish councils are not currently being asked to change.

There is always a possibility that council tax could increase – it is the main source of funding for council services. Surrey County Council will be setting a budget next year, and any council tax increase would be decided in February 2026.

The government set out their ambition for devolution in their manifesto before they came to power. While it didn't go into detail of exactly how they would do this until the white paper in December, their intentions were clear. We are now working to secure the best possible deal for you as Surrey residents and businesses.

We had to signal our interest to government quickly to apply to be part of the first wave, in order to get the full benefits of devolution as soon as possible. We will be engaging with partners and residents over the coming months about what that could look like for Surrey.

We cannot confirm the cost at this stage. Currently, there is no government funding for LGR or Devolution, councils are expected to fund this as it will create efficiencies in the long term. As a county council, we are constantly having to find savings to keep council tax as low as possible whilst delivering vital services.

We anticipate that investment and resourcing for implementation will be a collaborative approach between all Surrey councils, with a multi-disciplinary change team being set up with representatives from all 12 councils. Details on anticipated costs are shown in our final plan.

No, all councils in Surrey will be abolished.

It is expected that elections to new 'shadow' unitary council(s) will take place in May 2026, followed by the official 'vesting day' in April 2027, where the unitary council(s) will officially take hold, and existing councils will dissolve.

Surrey County Council (SCC) is currently the registered scheme administrator and as part of the proposal made to central government by SCC, the scheme administrator in the new structure will either see one of the new authorities assume this role or, the pension fund may operate independently as a separate authority.

Surrey County Council is the largest of 400 employers within the Surrey Local Government Pension Scheme (LGPS) but the administration and funding of the scheme operates independently from Surrey County Council and, with the pension you are currently in receipt of being paid from Surrey Pension Fund, not Surrey County Council, payments to its members will continue as normal.

The recent response from the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government (MHCLG) on May 29th also looked to provide assurance to members of the LGPS in section 1.5 by stating the following:

'The government notes that many of the scheme members who responded to the consultation were concerned about the security of their pensions. For the avoidance of doubt and to reassure members, LGPS members’ benefits and pensions are guaranteed in law and will not be affected by these policy measures.'