About Leicestershire
In Leicestershire, the county council runs services like social care, highways, waste disposal, public health, trading standards and country parks. District councils run housing, street cleaning, council tax collection, benefits, planning, leisure centres and local parks. In some areas parish and town councils also run some services.
What the Government has asked for
The Government asked all councils to propose a single tier of local government which should be the right size to save money and withstand financial shocks. It should deliver high quality and sustainable services and enable stronger communities.
Devolution
The greater prize is devolution which can bring more power and funding to Leicestershire - for economic growth, transport, housing and skills.
Timeline
The deadline for the final submission to Government is 28 November 2025. Then, the Government will consider plans, consult on changes and develop new councils by 2028.
The financial case
A single council for Leicestershire and Rutland would save around £40 million each year.
Other options
A bigger Leicester city
The government has invited proposals from cities like Leicester, Derby and Nottingham to extend their boundary, so that they’re more sustainable.
A bigger city council would save a similar amount overall, but the implementation costs and risks are higher.
Three separate unitary councils
The districts are preparing a bid for three unitary councils. Splitting the county areas delivers lower savings, as two sets of management and overhead are required.
| Scenarios which have been modelled | Single unitary including Rutland City unchanged |
Three unitaries (North, City, South) | Single county unitary including Rutland City boundary expanded |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ongoing net savings | c. £40m | Half the saving | Similar to single county |
| Share the savings | 100% to Leicestershire and Rutland as city not impacted | 100% to Leicestershire and Rutland as city not impacted | Shared – city take some reorganisation benefit + some counties' economies of scale |
| One off transition cost | £15-£20m | Higher due to splitting of county services | Highest due to splitting of county and district services |
| Service risk | Low – primarily back-office impact | High | High – increase if district boundaries split |
Better services
A single council for Leicestershire and Rutland would:
- Provide consistent services, no matter where residents live
- Simple access – one phone number and website
- Universal services (leisure centres, libraries, waste sites) available across the area
- Maximum spending power
- Money saved ploughed back into frontline services
The risks of fragmentation
- A ‘postcode lottery’ for services
- Outstanding Children’s Services would be split
- Confusion over services which cross artificial borders
- Risk of increased council tax to plug the budget gap
- Can’t attract specialist staff or negotiate big contracts
- Delays to devolution as a highly complex project is delivered
- Risk to service delivery from changing all services in a short period of time
- Costs to transfer services between organisations without a strong savings case
Stronger communities and empowered neighbourhoods
- Household planning decisions would continue to be made locally
- Negotiation on larger schemes would ensure the right infrastructure is delivered
- Area committees would allow people to get involved in decisions
- Parish and town councils would be empowered to run services if they want to
Preserving local identity and heritage
Splitting Leicestershire into two or allowing the city to grow would create artificial areas and impact Leicestershire’s traditional identity.
A single council for Leicestershire and Rutland would preserve established identities and connection, unique character and heritage, and Rutland’s ceremonial status.
Conclusion
- Based on the evidence gathered so far, the administration for Leicestershire County Council is proposing a single county unitary for Leicestershire and Rutland as its preferred option.
- Given the Government’s invitation to extend city boundaries, the final proposal will identify the consequences for the county of an extended Leicester boundary.
To provide your views, ahead of the final submission to Government, please complete this feedback form by 27 October 2025:
Frequently asked questions
What is Local Government reorganisation?
In December 2024, the Government published the English Devolution White Paper. This made it clear that the Government wants to move away from ‘two tier’ local government, like Leicestershire, and expects all county councils, district councils and neighbouring unitary councils (in this case, Leicester City and Rutland) to work up proposals for change.
Reorganisation needs to be agreed before there can be agreed devolution of powers and responsibilities to Leicestershire, (Leicester and Rutland) from the Government.
What benefits could it bring?
This is an opportunity to improve services for our residents, save money, simplify a confusing system and protect front-line services - and has been a goal for a number of years.
This is the right time for change. It could unlock devolved powers and funding - giving us more money to fix roads and other services our residents value, plus new powers to coordinate planning and join-up transport.
Has this been tried before?
Reorganisation has been talked about in the past. In 2019 a business case was developed to show how much money could be saved from having one unitary council for Leicestershire.
It is well known that Leicestershire has been frustrated in trying to achieve any devolution of powers and responsibilities.
Is it a takeover of the district councils?
It’s not a takeover by the County Council of district councils – it’s about establishing a new unitary structure and is what the Government is asking us to do.
How does having one council save money?
By reducing senior management, support staff, councillors and elections. You also save money by having single services. For example, at the moment, in the county we have seven different waste collection systems with a different council then having to dispose of the waste.
I live miles from County Hall – wouldn’t one council be more remote?
No – we already provide services in local areas 24/7, including social care in people’s homes, and you can’t get more local than that. Having one council doesn’t change where services are delivered from. More decisions would be delegated to local areas.
When will this happen?
We will submit final proposals in November 2025. The government wants new councils to be in place by 2028.
How can I keep in touch with updates?
You can register for regular updates from the council.
Glossary of terms
English Devolution White Paper
White papers are policy documents produced by the Government that set out their proposals for future laws.
'Two tier’ local government
In some areas, there are two levels of councils: county and district. This is known as ‘two-tier local government’. There are 21 such areas left in England.
In these areas, the county is responsible for things like ensuring there are enough schools, adult social care, disposal of waste, and looking after roads. But there is a different council, serving a smaller geographical area, responsible for things like collecting rubbish, cleaning streets, local parks, housing, and benefits.
Unitary council
In a unitary area there is just one council responsible for all services. Usually, cities are unitary, but recently several counties have become unitary, eg. Cornwall, North Yorkshire, Durham and Buckinghamshire.
Devolution / devolved powers
Devolution means taking powers away from central government and giving it to more local areas.
The Scottish Parliament, the National Assembly for Wales, the Northern Ireland Assembly are examples of devolved powers.
Powers have also been given to more local areas like Greater London, Greater Manchester, and the West Midlands. This gives that area a bigger say in what happens and more spending power.