THREE PUBLIC ENGAGEMENT CONSULTATIONS on Local Government Re-organisation (LGR) for the Hampshire Solent area
You may have seen news of changes on the horizon for local councils in Hampshire with different statements and consultations from the different councils?
Parish and town councils have not been invited to be part of this process and will therefore not be affected but we are expecting some knock-on effects and potential opportunities which is why we are following news closely.
There are currently THREE live consultations. It has taken us some time to understand and we hope our own summary below helps to explain the background to each.
In Hampshire, local government services are provided through a two tier system of one county council and 11 district/borough councils plus three existing unitary councils covering the Solent area; Portsmouth, Southampton and Isle of Wight. For the Parish of Odiham, this is Hampshire County Council and Hart District Council with Odiham Parish Council working with Hart District Council.
Alongside Devolution (the creation of Mayor for the whole Hampshire Solent area), Government wants to replace the current two-tier system of counties and district councils with unitary councils across the country. Hampshire councils are currently working together to agree their preferred number of unitary councils and their associated unitary area. Each council is entitled to put forward their preferred option to Government by 26th September, then Government will review proposals and create a common plan for formal consultation, expected early 2026.
Each unitary council should have a population of around 500,000, but there are currently differing views on the number and compilation of each new unitary council:
Hampshire County Council is working with East Hants District Council and have published their preferred option for 4 unitary councils: https://www.hants.gov.uk/…/local-government-reorganisation . There is also a survey on this webpage which runs until 17th August.
12 councils, including Hart District Council, have grouped and propose 4 unitary councils on the mainland plus the Isle of Wight as their preferred option. Proposals can be found at https://ourplaceourfuture.commonplace.is/en-GB/ This consultation runs until 27th July.
There is a further sub-group of Basingstoke, Hart, Rushmoor who believe they will be together under all options and hence are working very collaboratively to establish a clear cluster: https://www.hart.gov.uk/…/proposals-hart-basingstoke…. See their consultation running until 17th August https://online1.snapsurveys.com/…/2db87dda-672c-4f39…
It is not yet known whether each group will each submit a combined proposal or whether each council will submit their own individual preferred option.
Local Government Re-organisation is expected to completely change the landscape of Hampshire’s local councils and promises to “simplify how councils are organised and run, creating large and financially resilient unitary councils that are more efficient, effective and deliver better value for money for taxpayers”. New Unitary Council arrangements are likely to take effect from 2027 to 2028, with several more years to settle-in.
