New three-council plan for devolution in Leicestershire and Rutland

The leaders of the seven Leicestershire district councils and Rutland County Council favour a new three-council set-up in response to the government wanting to abolish the current two-tier structure.

They want to see new councils formed to govern North Leicestershire and Rutland; South Leicestershire; and the city of Leicester (based on its existing boundaries).

If approved, this would result in Melton borough residents linking up with those in Charnwood, North West Leicestershire and Rutland in the new North Leicestershire and Rutland Council.

And the areas currently served by Blaby, Harborough, Hinckley & Bosworth and Oadby & Wigston district and borough councils would be part of another unitary authority called South Leicestershire.

The district councils and Rutland County Council say their structure would enable areas to retain a strong sense of place identity, would ensure the new councils remain connected to their communities and would facilitate opportunities to work with partners across neighbourhoods, while making significant savings and enabling more effective service delivery.

The three authorities would have broadly similar populations of 400,000 residents and be part of a strategic authority across Leicester, Leicestershire and Rutland with an elected Mayor which the districts insist would secure the full benefits of a new Devolution Agreement.

The districts and Rutland council leaders remain clear that Leicestershire County Council’s proposal for a single unitary authority for the whole of Leicestershire would be too cumbersome, too remote and inaccessible for local communities, and will fail to unlock the benefits of devolution.

The leaders said in a joint statement: “We don’t believe the current system is broken, but if it has to change it is absolutely vital we get this right for our communities, as what we do will affect how public services are delivered for many years to come.

“That’s why we are taking a very balanced and measured approach and have put collaboration, evidence and communities at the heart of our considerations.

“We have attempted multiple times to engage with the county council to seek the best outcomes for our communities, but they have consistently refused to work with us and they are now pushing forward with a unilateral, unbalanced and outdated proposal from six years ago which failed to find support then.

“A single county unitary for 800,000 people covering hundreds of square miles is far too large.

“To be clear, nothing has been finalised, and today we are sharing our initial ideas.

"We will be engaging with our stakeholders and communities and want to hear their views so that collectively we build the best possible future for local government across Leicester, Leicestershire and Rutland.”

The district councils and Rutland County Council will launch some initial public engagement next week and they wish to stress there will be ample opportunities for residents to get involved, both now and throughout the process over the coming year.

This first phase of engagement will inform the councils’ interim plans for reorganisation which must be submitted to government by March 21.

As the process continues, there will be a much wider and more comprehensive package of public engagement ahead of the final proposals, which must be submitted in November.