Conclusion

This document has outlined our proposal for the future of local government in Surrey.

In reorganising local government, we believe that local authorities with administrative boundaries that reflect functional and locally recognised areas are better equipped to meet the needs of these areas. They will also improve the potential for partnership working across the system and with community partners, transforming public sector service delivery.

We have therefore proposed the establishment of three new unitary authorities to replace the current two-tier system of local government in Surrey.

Our proposed new unitary authorities are:

Based on our robust analysis of all the available evidence, together with our engagement with stakeholders and residents, we have clearly shown that three unitary authorities:

1. Aligns the new local authority boundaries with Surrey’s distinct economic geographies, facilitating strategic planning and investment. Three unitary authorities maximises economic growth, housing development and infrastructure improvements, with each authority able so support local and regional prosperity.
2. Are best placed to take advantage of new powers and responsibilities from devolution. The three-unitary model will enable strong local leadership and strategic coordination, with a good balance of unitary authorities represented at the future Mayoral Strategic Authority.
3. Reflects Surrey’s diverse local identities and economic clusters. Three unitary authorities maintains strong local connections and accountability, creating a system of local government that is responsive to the unique needs and characteristics of each area.
4. Prioritises genuine and meaningful resident engagement and empowerment, ensuring that local communities have a strong voice in decision making.
5. Are efficient, resilient and able to withstand financial shocks. Although the three-unitary model falls just short of meeting the government’s suggested 500,000 population threshold due to the size of Surrey’s three distinct communities, it achieves substantial savings through reducing duplication and maximises economies of scale. However, local authority debt is a significant issue in Surrey. To achieve the benefits of reorganisation, the stranded debt of Woking Borough Council must be written off as part of the government’s considerations within the forthcoming Spending Review.
6. By bringing lower and upper-tier services together, three unitary authorities enables more holistic, locally tailored and needs-based service delivery. This will improve outcomes by providing high-quality, innovative and sustainable public services that respond to local need and support the government’s agenda for wider public service reform.

In summary, our vision for local government reorganisation is to create a system that empowers communities, improves economic growth, and sets a new standard for public service delivery. By establishing new unitary authorities with administrative boundaries that reflect well-defined and understood places, we can improve outcomes and enhance the potential for partnership working across the system and with community partners.

Our perspective is informed by extensive analysis and local engagement, alongside a review of local government reorganisation experiences elsewhere in England. We have collaborated closely with local authorities across Surrey and engaged with residents and key stakeholders.

The results of our engagement with residents and key stakeholders underscores the importance of this. In our recently carried out resident engagement, 63% of respondents expressed a clear preference for the creation of three unitary authorities. Residents emphasised that their top priorities for local government were overwhelmingly local, highlighting the need to maintain a close connection to decision-making and, when creating new councils, ensuring that they recognise and reflect place-based priorities.

We have also engaged with key stakeholders and partners across Surrey. They acknowledged the significant opportunity that local government reorganisation offers to reduce duplication, streamline processes, and enhance collaboration across the public, voluntary and community sectors. However, they also expressed concerns that the formation of larger unitary authorities might lead to a loss of local knowledge and community connections. This could result in decision-makers being distanced from the specific needs and priorities of local communities, leading to less-informed and less-effective decisions.

This feedback highlights the importance of local knowledge and meaningful community connection in effective decision-making.

We have also considered the viability of creating two new unitary authorities.

The decision between two or three unitary authorities is more than one of administrative convenience or one driven by purely financial considerations. It represents a choice between a system of local government that genuinely fosters neighbourhood and community empowerment, local decision-making and strong place leadership, and one that lacks the institutional and strategic clarity necessary to drive growth and embrace truly local decision making.

Our proposed model of three unitary authorities demonstrates our commitment to decentralising institutional power and empowering communities. This structure will enable the adoption and acceleration of innovative participative methods, enhancing local decision-making and community engagement at the neighbourhood level. Our proposal includes examples of successful initiatives already undertaken in Surrey, as well as those from other regions, which illustrate the potential for meaningful community empowerment.

A two unitary authority model, lacking alignment with Surrey’s functional economic areas, places and identities, will embed economic incoherence and conflicting growth incentives, and cannot meaningfully empower local people due to its democratic distance and disconnection of residents from the levers of power. We have considered whether systems like community boards would mitigate this, and conclude that, as demonstrated by the experience of Wiltshire, that these will not resolve the fundamental issues.

We recognise that local government reorganisation is inherently complex and carries risk, during both the initial implementation and subsequent transformation phases to realise the full range of benefits. In recognition of this risk, have created a detailed implementation and transformation plan. Our plan prioritises the delivery of essential services while consolidating systems, assets and contracts to maximise benefits, minimise risks and support the transformation process.

Our proposal is a summary of the considerable work carried out to date. In moving forward, we would welcome further discussions with ministers and civil servants. As we all recognise, this is a once-in-a-generation opportunity to shape Surrey’s future for the better and establish a successful model for reorganisation and devolution.