DCN survey reveals local opposition to mega councils with populations exceeding half a million
District councils overwhelmingly believe that power should be retained closer to communities than the mega councils endorsed by the Government.
A District Councils’ Network (DCN) survey showed that a clear majority of member councils are prepared to engage with local government reorganisation. But they believe any new unitary councils should retain a clear local ethos.
The English Devolution White Paper, published in December, proposed a minimum population size of 500,000 for new unitary councils. In many places, this would effectively rule out anything other than a mega council covering the boundaries of an existing county area, regardless of communities’ local identities.
It could also limit the ability of regional and regional economic powerhouse towns and cities to drive growth if they were subsumed into a whole county footprint.
DCN’s survey received responses from 102 of DCN’s 164 district members. It reveals that 79% of councils are not opposed to some sort of reorganisation. However, just 15% believe a unitary council with a population of 500k plus would be suitable for their area.
When asked about the appropriate size of any new unitary council in their area, DCN members said:
▪ Less than 300k: 23%
▪ 300k to 350k: 20%
▪ 350k to 400k: 18%
▪ 400k to 450k: 13%
▪ 450k to 500k: 5%
▪ Don’t know: 19%
The top factors they consider important in developing credible local government reorganisation proposals that genuinely reflect local circumstances and needs are functional economic area (93% of councils), geographical area (91%), travel to work area (61%), sharing boundaries with other bodies (50%), and the councillor-resident ratio (48%).
These survey findings align with comments made in Parliament by Local Government Minister Jim McMahon on 15 January. He said that, in assessing reorganisation proposals, the Government will “try to strike a balance that takes into consideration identity, efficiency and having an anchor to the area that makes sense.”
District councils also feel cut out of the process, with 70% saying they had had no engagement at all from central government prior to the White Paper’s publication and 29% saying they had limited engagement.
Just 12% of districts said they had full and active engagement with upper-tier councils in their area on reorganisation prior to the white paper’s publication. 48% had limited engagement and 41% had no engagement at all.
Meanwhile, significant concerns emerged about the impact on the recruitment and retention of staff over the next six months. Sixty per cent said it would make recruitment and retention much harder, and 27% said it would make it a lot harder. 3% said there would be no impact, and 9% didn’t know.
In response, Cllr Sam Chapman-Allen, Chairman of the District Councils’ Network, said:
“District councils strive to do what is right for their local communities. In many cases their judgement is that this means they should engage with proposals for local government reorganisation.
“However, district councils overwhelmingly believe that new unitary councils should remain close to communities and be smaller than the mega councils proposed in the English Devolution White Paper.
“Being close to communities ensures councils can truly understand the challenges faced by local people and businesses and can deliver localised solutions to support them. It’s essential that these attributes are retained by new councils if we are not to diminish local government and essential public services.
“Rigidly insisting on a minimum population of half a million is counter-productive. The danger is it will stymie the ability of towns and cities to act as regional powerhouses, driving growth.
“The Local Government Minister has recently indicated that reorganisation proposals should blend size and efficiency with other factors, such as local identity and preserving economic anchors. It is vital that the Government follows through on this logic and only accepts proposals that reflect the full range of local circumstances. We believe that in many cases this means councils should be smaller than 350k population.
“Our survey demonstrates district councils are open to change. Districts want to work on an equal footing with our county and unitary council partners, and with the Government, to devise new systems which transform all local public services, making them all accountable and responsive to localised communities. This is all about our people.”
On the issue of workforce recruitment and retention, Cllr Chapman-Allen added:
“District councils, like our colleagues in other parts of local government, already face formidable challenges recruiting and retaining staff.
“The danger is that the disruption of local government reorganisation will make these challenges worse and hit vital public services at a critical time.
“We want to work with the Government to minimise the disruption, support our staff and demonstrate that local government careers in our areas are rewarding, stable and have the potential to transform our places.”