Surrey’s New Unitary Councils

What is happening?

From 1 April 2027 the Surrey region will be transitioning from its current 11 District and Borough Councils into a new model of two unitary authorities. This will comprise East Surrey and West Surrey, with elections taking place in May 2026.

The two newly formed authorities will take over all government functions including highways issues, planning, adult social care.

The Division

• East Surrey will comprise Elmbridge, Epsom and Ewell, Mole Valley, Reigate and Banstead and Tandridge
• West Surrey will comprise Guildford, Runnymede, Spelthorne, Surrey Heath, Waverley and Woking.

Why the change and what are some of the key advantages?

1. Financial – A larger resourced authority is in a stronger position to invest in infrastructure and services and better manage their finances, creating cost savings and greater financial efficiency.
2. Efficiency and Accountability – Consolidation of the authorities is intended to simplify and speed up decision making, reduce bureaucracy and increase accountability to residents. Consolidation of Council buildings and maintenance costs will also lead to further cost efficiencies.
3. Housing Delivery and Infrastructure – the Government’s pledge to deliver £1.5 million homes by 2029 has placed pressure on all local authorities to increase their housing delivery. The structure is intended to allow greater capacity for housing delivery and infrastructure development.

What are some of the transitional issues and main resident concerns

1. Challenges in merging the authorities in terms of staff, systems, culture and service delivery.
2. A potential for more local issues and the voice of residents in those regions to be lost or weakened by creating two larger authorities.
3. Issues with continuity of service delivery during the transition, requiring careful management.
4. Consideration of the level of resident engagement under the new system, and how this will operate and be approached.
5. Financial management will be at the forefront of resident concerns in terms of how the new system will impact taxes and service funding.
6. Potential inequalities between the regions may materialise with residents feeling the priorities they consider paramount in their communities do not collaborate with the priorities of the new larger authority.

Summary comments

The new two-tier model will create a major reshaping of the system of governance within the County.

Whilst the intention is to offer better efficiencies in service delivery, more simplified governance and clearer accountability, the size and scale of changes require substantial and considered management in order to minimise any disruption to services, align systems and address financial inequalities between the transitioning authorities.

Residents may be concerned with areas such as transitional management, maintenance of ‘local voice’ in having a platform for concerns at a local level to be communicated and ultimately seeing a noticeable change in the delivery of services in terms of quality and cost. In April 2027 the new landscape will be clearer, and steps are now being taken to determine how smooth that transition will be.

Greig Richards, Solicitor at Dutton Gregory said

“We are expecting enquiries from clients as to how this transition will be managed and what it will mean for delivery of local services.”
“Developers might be tempted to pursue planning applications under the existing and emerging local plans before they are impacted by policy or administrative changes, rather than wait and see what changes might be brought forward in the future.”

Individuals and businesses who might be concerned about what these changes will mean for them should reach out to their professional advisors for expert advice on their individual circumstances or specific transactions. Dutton Gregory is at the heart of our local communities and will be ideally placed to assist and advise.

Please contact [email protected] or call 01483746366