The number of councillors across Nottingham and Nottinghamshire will be slashed by more than 200 members under the most significant shake-up in local government in 50 years.
In July, the Labour Government announced Nottinghamshire’s nine councils would be scrapped in favour of two new unitary authorities under its Local Government Reorganisation (LGR) plans.
Nottingham city’s boundaries will expand to absorb parts of Rushcliffe, Gedling and Broxtowe, while the remaining parts of these neighbouring boroughs will merge with Newark and Sherwood, Ashfield, Mansfield and Bassetlaw to form another, separate authority.
Existing councils had proposed three different options between them following often contentious debates, and it was Nottingham City Council’s plan that was chosen by the Government.
In a letter to councils on Thursday, July 30, Beatrice Andrews, the deputy director for LGR, revealed the two new authorities would be called the Greater Nottingham Council and the Nottinghamshire Council.
The letter says: “Your councils will remain responsible for services in your areas until they are abolished on April 1, 2028, and will be under a duty to co-operate with each other and with the new councils.
“The Order provides the transitional arrangements, with the core of that being elections to ‘shadow’ councils in 2027 and providing them with preparatory functions, including the preparation of budgets and plans, to enable the assumption of local government functions and powers on April 1, 2028.”
Under the plans, the number of councillors across the city, county and the existing boroughs and districts will be reduced from 408 to 198.
The new councils will have 99 councillors each.
Nottinghamshire Council will include Ashfield, Bassetlaw, Mansfield, Newark and Sherwood, plus five wards from Broxtowe, four wards from Gedling and seven wards from Rushcliffe.
The Greater Nottingham Council will feature Nottingham, plus 15 wards from Broxtowe, 15 wards from Gedling and 17 wards from Rushcliffe.
Elections to the new councils are planned for May 2027.
One Implementation Team will be set up, and officers from all predecessor councils will be included, with the leader of the team being the Head of Paid Service of Nottinghamshire County Council, Adrian Smith.
Mr Smith will be supported by two deputy team leaders, each from a council within each new area.
In the Nottinghamshire unitary, the deputy team leader will be agreed locally from a district in the new unitary area, and for the Greater Nottingham unitary the deputy team leader will be from Nottingham City Council.
Tony McArdle, who acted as one of the Government-appointed commissioners overseeing improvements at Nottingham City Council after it declared what was effectively bankruptcy in 2023, has been appointed as sector advisor, working as an “independent critical friend” during the transition.
Nottinghamshire will be receiving a total of £1.8 million from the Government for transition costs – £900,000 per new council.
This money will help fund early arrangements for children’s and adult social care, cyber security and IT equipment.
Councils have also been promised £150,000 extra per new council to help with social care arrangements in the set-up period, but the Government says the distribution of this has not yet been decided.
Some council leaders are looking at a possible legal review of the process, having raised concerns.
