Gedling Borough Council leaders will join with other authority chiefs next week at a meeting to discuss how to progress with plans to merge councils across Nottinghamshire.
In February, the Government wrote to local authorities formally inviting them to submit proposals to create new structures of unitary authorities – which is a single tier of local government responsible for all local services in an area. The aim is to create more efficient and effective local government, potentially leading to streamlined services and cost savings for residents.
Now all nine local councils will come together at their Full Council meetings to discuss progress.
They will discuss an interim submission to Government (due on March 21), that outlines three core options.
In Nottingham and Nottinghamshire, the nine existing local authorities would be abolished, to create new unitary councils with a higher population of residents.
The three options for the formation of unitary councils up for discussion are as follows:
At their meeting on March 5, leaders accepted that some councils may still wish to continue to explore additional proposals alongside the three core options being tabled.
A spokesperson for the council leaders said: “This is arguably the biggest shake-up of local government in 50 years. In Nottingham and Nottinghamshire we are absolutely determined to work together to ensure the best outcome for local people.
“Councils will meet to note the submission of a collective interim plan, but it’s important to note that there is no decision being made at this point – this is simply one step in the Government’s process.
“We’ve been given an incredibly tight timescale to pull together these initial submissions, and we don’t yet have enough data to make a fully informed decision on a single option, but this is a good first step.
“Between now and November we are committed to further exploration of data that will allow us to make informed decisions, that also considers how we engage with local people and businesses – making our submission evidence-based, and the best one for our people.
“It is accepted that some councils may still wish to continue to explore alternative proposals beyond the three core options being tabled, but we are committed to continuing our work together to achieve an interim submission that will meet the Government’s deadline – to consider the art of the possible, and make the best of this opportunity.”
The Government has given all councils a deadline of November 28 to submit final, much more detailed, proposals.
The nine councils involved are:
- Ashfield District Council
- Bassetlaw District Council
- Broxtowe Borough Council
- Gedling Borough Council
- Mansfield District Council
- Newark and Sherwood District Council
- Nottingham City Council
- Nottinghamshire County Council
- Rushcliffe Borough Council
