Options for council reorganisation submitted

Councils across Hertfordshire have submitted proposals for the reorganisation of local government across the county.

As part of its plans to reshape local government, the Government has invited councils in all two-tier areas to submit an interim plan for moving to a single-tier of unitarity councils providing all services.

All of the county's 11 councils and the Office of the Police Crime Commissioner have worked together to produce an interim submission which has been shared with elected members at each individual organisation and Hertfordshire's MPs.

The submission sets out a number of options for consideration, ranging from one to four unitary councils providing all services.

It also includes early thinking on how each option could support devolution, improve services, deliver value for money and maintain strong links to communities.

The options include:

• East Herts merges with North Herts, Broxbourne, Welwyn Hatfield and Stevenage, to serve a population of 600,924
• East Herts merges with North Herts, Broxbourne and Stevenage to serve a population of 479,175
• East Herts to merge with North Herts and Stevenage to serve a population of 379,133
• East Herts to merge with Broxborne to serve a population of 253,433
• Hertfordshire County Council to assume powers and responsibilities of all district councils to serve population of 1.2m

While a joint submission has been agreed, councils have differing views on the options set out and no decisions are being made at this stage.

The Government will provide feedback on the interim submission which will feed in to final proposals to be submitted to the Government by 28th November 2025. A final decision will be made by Ministers.

The views of residents, businesses, local government partners, colleagues, and other stakeholders across the public and private sectors will also be sought as proposals develop beyond the interim. All councils and the OPCC are committed to providing updates throughout the process.

Councillor Ben Crystall, Leader of East Herts Council, said:

I'm pleased that, as a county, we’ve worked together to produce a joint submission for government consideration.

However, my stance remains unchanged - I believe a single authority would be too large to truly serve the people of our district and Hertfordshire as a whole. Our priority must be delivering quality local services and ensuring residents feel connected to the people and organisation that serve them. That’s why I welcome the inclusion of a range of options in the submission, allowing for a more balanced approach.

Over the coming months, we will engage with our communities to understand their views, which will be integral to shaping the final submission in November.

Whilst the County Council has set out the case for a single county unitary authority for Hertfordshire, nine out of the ten District and Borough Councils do not support this proposal.

Local Government Reorganisation in Hertfordshire: Interim Submission (PDF)