East Sussex councils begin to set out reorganisation plans

On Tuesday (March 11), East Sussex County Council leader Keith Glazier chaired a meeting, which saw discussion connected to government plans for devolution and local government reorganisation.

The government’s proposals involve the creation of new mayoral authorities and the replacement of two-tier systems of district/borough and county councils with new unitary authorities.

The government has asked local authorities to produce “interim plans” by March 21, which set out the initial and high-level proposals for reorganisation.

These interim plans are required to: set out the likely shapes the new unitary authorities could take; identify any barriers to change; and explain what arrangements have been made to further formulate the proposals, among other things.

Reports from Cllr Glazier’s meeting included the first publication of a draft version of the interim plan for East Sussex, which is due for discussion by all six of the county’s councils.

The authorities — Eastbourne Borough Council, East Sussex County Council, Hastings Borough Council, Lewes District Council, Rother District Council, and Wealden District Council — are each due to vote on whether to endorse and jointly submit the document next week.

While none of these endorsement votes have yet taken place, the draft version of the document sets out some details of what reorganisation could look like in East Sussex.

The draft interim plan sets out how the councils are initially pursuing the creation of “a single unitary [authority] based on existing county boundaries”. However, it also says this route could be subject to change as a result of further evidence coming forward, government guidance being updated and views being shared through the ongoing public consultation process.

Some alternative routes have already been suggested, with Hastings borough councillors having previously agreed to advocate for a “federal model”, while others have mooted the prospect of a coastal unitary authority made up of the county’s seaside towns.

Council papers also note how Brighton and Hove City Council (BHCC) has undertaken its own initial consultation on whether its unitary boundaries should be extended to parts of Lewes District Council or other councils in West Sussex. The papers note that it is not currently known what the BHCC interim plan will propose.

But the draft interim plan also argues in favour of a single unitary for East Sussex. The document reads: “We are working on an assumption that the population of East Sussex is 555,500, above the 500,000 threshold is considered large enough to achieve efficiencies, improve capacity and withstand normal financial shocks according to the government’s criteria.

“By using our existing boundaries as the building blocks for a new unitary we will be able to respect and preserve local identities while realising the operational benefits of a larger authority.

“The county of East Sussex is a historic administrative unit, which means that there is a strong identity with the county amongst residents. The six councils have established working relationships, using our local partnerships to deliver improved outcomes for our communities. This provides an ideal foundation for the formation of a new unitary council.”

The document does not specify how many councillors would make up this new authority, although it says a ratio of between 4,000 to 5,000 electors per councillor is “being carefully reviewed.”

With an estimated population of around 550,720 in East Sussex (according to the Office for National Statistics in 2022), these ratios would roughly result in an authority consisting of between 110 to 138 councillors. This would broadly align with existing unitary authorities of a similar size, such as Buckinghamshire Council — made up 147 councillors representing an estimated population of 560,409 — and Durham County Council, which has 126 councillors representing an estimated 528,127 people.

The document includes a warning about how much the transition will cost, setting out “an early indicative estimation” of between £30 million to £35 million.

The document reads: “There is not the ability to fund this from existing council budgets, funding from [the] government will be required.”