The Albany Gazette - Worcestershire leaders back renewed two-unitary council reorganisation

THE LOCAL Government Reorganisation (LGR) exercise, which would see the seven councils of Worcestershire scrapped for two unitary authorities, is set to be back on. The government made the announcement earlier today (Thursday) with Worcestershire one of five areas where the plans will proceed. Ministers confirmed the programme was continuing and remained aligned with wider plans to shift power from Westminster to communities, including those announced in this week’s budget.

The government said, while it was minded to go ahead with the reorganisation in the five named areas, there will be at least three weeks for further representations about the plan before final decisions are taken. The LGR was paused in September with the government saying it was reviewing the process in multiple regions “after taking legal advice”. That led to frustration from politicians and from those tasked with implementing the plans but was welcomed by supporters of a ‘One Worcestershire’ unitary authority for the whole county.

During the original LGR consultation period, five Worcestershire local authorities – Redditch Borough; Bromsgrove, Malvern Hills and Wychavon districts; and Worcester City – voted for a two unitary authority system with just Worcestershire County Council and Wyre Forest District Council wanting one. The voting results for people and organisations across the county, who took part in the ‘Shape Worcestershire’ consultation, showed 48% backed creating two unitary councils, 29% supported one unitary council for the county and 19% did not support any reorganisation of local councils in Worcestershire. In a joint statement, the seven leaders of Worcestershire’s councils – said: “The meeting with the Minister today, following Government’s review of Local Government Reorganisation, has given us some clarity around the decision taken in July, for a two unitary authority for Worcestershire, which is effectively unchanged.

“Government is minded to implement a North and a South Worcestershire by April 2029 however we won’t get confirmation of this until before Christmas. “While this does not provide full certainty immediately, the Government reaffirming their original decision in July, along with our preparatory work, puts us in a strong position to respond to the Government’s decision. “We now look forward to moving forward and remain committed to continuing to provide services to our residents while focussing on delivering the best possible outcomes for our communities across Worcestershire.” Among the seven leaders are Coun Karen May (Bromsgrove District), Coun John Gallagher (Malvern Hills District), Coun Matt Dormer (Redditch Borough), Coun Lynn Denham (Worcester City), Coun Matt Jenkins (Worcestershire County), Coun Richard Morris (Wychavon District) and Coun Marcus Hart (Wyre Forest District).

(K.Jones--TAG)