Borough council proposes to protect local services if reorganisation forced through by Government

Council Leader Simon Tagg said that if the current successful two-tier system of local authorities is scrapped by central Government, then a single council on the current borough boundary would be the best way of continuing high standard, locally accountable services for residents.

As required by the government the Council has engaged respected consultants, Ignite, to work with officers and members on developing a final submission and business case, including modelling of five options for investigation and reviewing data for models being suggested by other councils in Staffordshire.

The preferred option of a Newcastle Unitary, based on the current Borough boundaries, would minimise the impact of reorganisation to local residents and businesses and takes into account the projected growing population, continuity of governance arrangements and public support.

The proposal comes as six-in-10 people backed the ‘Newcastle-only’ option in a public survey. The same survey of 1,380 people, bodies and organisations said only six per cent were ‘very confident’ that public services would not decline under much larger unitary councils.

A large majority in the consultation did not favour a merger with Stoke-on-Trent.

Simon Tagg said:

If the Government presses ahead with this, residents in Newcastle and Kidsgrove are unconvinced that forced change will improve services and make things better for them.
 

The survey results are clear: residents want value-for-money services based on local need, with local councillors accountable for what happens.
 

Under the two-tier system this council has delivered good quality front-line services while our annual efficiency reviews have resulted in more than £10 million of budget savings since 2018.
 

We think that system works well for residents, but if change is forced upon us then we believe the best way to carry on serving our communities, save money and preserve the very things that make our area special is for a unitary council covering the existing borough boundary.”

The report also notes that any reorganisation will bring ‘significant but, as yet, not fully quantifiable costs’ as staff and services are transferred, IT systems are aligned and places of work reorganised.

Simon Tagg added:

Funding of local services should not be affected, nor council tax increased because the Government is forcing through unwanted change.
 

The Government can’t expect residents to suffer the financial consequences of something they haven’t asked for; we will be asking that Government fully fund the cost of any change.”

The proposal will be discussed by the Council’s Cabinet before going before a vote of all members at Full Council on 19th November.

Despite its continued opposition to forced reorganisation, the Borough Council supports the creation of a Strategic Authority covering the whole of Staffordshire and Stoke-on-Trent for the devolution of powers and funding from London and which would look at issues including transport, investment and infrastructure for the whole region.

Simon Tagg added:

There are two separate issues here. We think the creation of a Strategic Authority looking at those bigger issues for the whole region has merit, because it has potential to bring powers and funding from London.
 

However, Strategic Authorities will not be responsible for delivering day-to-day services such as collecting the bins or cleaning the streets and at a local level there is no demand - and no convincing argument - to rip up the existing system of local government in favour of giving residents something less than they already have.”