Local Government Reorganisation, or LGR, is about upcoming changes in the structure, responsibilities and boundaries of local councils in England.
A Government White Paper on English Devolution, published in December 2024, proposes significant changes to how local councils are structured.
The plan is for reorganisation in ‘two-tier’ areas such as Cambridgeshire - where there are district, county and city councils. All district county and city councils will be abolished and replaced with a single tier of government, known as a unitary authority.
This will significantly change the way local services are delivered.
Parish and town councils (including Ely City Council) are not affected by the proposals.
Why LGR is happening
The English Devolution White Paper set out national government's vision for simpler local government structures. Simpler structures can lead to better outcomes for residents, improved local accountability and savings which can then be reinvested in public services.
Current situation in Cambridgeshire
In Cambridgeshire, local government is a two-tier system with Cambridgeshire County Council responsible for county-wide services and five district and city councils - Fenland, East Cambridgeshire, Huntingdonshire and South Cambridgeshire district councils and Cambridge City Council - handling local services.
Peterborough City Council is already a unitary authority, meaning it is responsible for all local services, including those typically handled by both county and district councils.
All 7 councils in Cambridgeshire are members of the Cambridgeshire and Peterborough Combined Authority (CPCA) which is responsible for large-scale strategic projects that are important to the whole region, like transport, housing, regeneration and skills.
County councils provide services that cover the whole county such as education, roads maintenance and adult social care. District and city councils are smaller and provide local services including rubbish collection, planning, homelessness support and environmental health.
What this means for East Cambridgeshire
We don't know any of the detail yet, but it is likely we will be merged with other neighbouring councils to make a larger unitary authority that delivers both district and county services.
East Cambridgeshire District Council currently serves a population of 90,000. Under the proposals the new unitary authority has a guideline population size of 500,000, however it is recognised some will be larger and some will be smaller.
A unitary authority will:
- cover a larger geographical area
- cover a larger population
- offer all district, city and county services from one council - everything from social care, education and potholes to planning, housing and waste collection
- mean a possible change in Council Tax for East Cambs residents
- have less councillors covering bigger areas
Whilst we cannot influence the decision to abolish district, county and city councils, we can make sure we help to provide the best possible alternative for our residents, our communities and the new unitary authority.
What has happened so far
To help get the best outcome for our residents we are working in partnership with all the other councils.
Leaders and chief executives from councils across Cambridgeshire and Peterborough regularly meet to discuss how each local authority will work together to progress any final proposals for LGR.
Special Council meeting on Thursday 20 March 2025
We held a Special Full Council meeting on Thursday 20 March 2025 to update the council on Local Government Reorganisation (LGR) and discuss the next steps.
You can access the papers from this meeting on our website.
You can also watch the meeting via our YouTube channel.
Following this meeting a joint press release was issued by council leaders across Cambridgeshire and Peterborough detailing a letter that has been sent to the Minister of State for Local Government and English Devolution.
Announcement of preferred proposals
On 11 June council leaders announced they have identified three preferred options for creating new unitary authorities across Cambridgeshire and Peterborough.
Three options announced for council reorganisation plans
Option A
| Unitary 1 | Peterborough City Council, Huntingdonshire and Fenland District Councils along with County Council functions |
|---|---|
| Unitary 2 | Cambridge City Council, East Cambridgeshire and South Cambridgeshire District Councils along with County Council functions |
Option B
| Unitary 1 | Peterborough City Council, East Cambridgeshire, Fenland and Huntingdonshire District Councils along with County Council functions |
|---|---|
| Unitary 2 | Cambridge City Council and South Cambridgeshire District Councils along with County Council functions |
Option C
| Unitary 1 | Peterborough City Council, East Cambridgeshire and Fenland District Councils along with County Council functions |
|---|---|
| Unitary 2 | Cambridge City Council, Huntingdonshire and South Cambridgeshire District Councils along with County Council functions |
Option D has been put forward by 2 Peterborough MPs. It keeps Peterborough as a unitary authority operating on a slightly larger scale than it does now, with the rest of the county as a single large unitary.
Option E has been put forward by Huntingdonshire District Council. The proposal would see Huntingdonshire become a unitary authority in its own right, while Peterborough, Fenland and East Cambridgeshire would form a second council, and Cambridge City and South Cambridgeshire a third.
All county council services would be transferred to these new authorities.
For further information on the options available and details of business plans as they become available, please see our options for Local Government Reorganisation page.
Resident and stakeholder engagement
Since LGR was announced in December we have undertaken regular resident and stakeholder engagement.
You can find out more about this and read the results of our engagement on our information for residents webpage.
The findings from this engagement will be used to inform the Business Plan which is being submitted to central government in November 2025.
Option B
In September, following a meeting of its Full Council, East Cambridgeshire District Council officially confirmed it would be supporting the development of the business case for Option B.
You can read the press release about this on our website, Council leader expresses "significant concerns" for Proposal A.
Further information about Option B and the #OptionBforMe campaign is available on our website.
The council will still continue to contribute to the other four business cases which are being developed and will consider all of these at its Full Council meeting on 20 November.
What is happening now
Further work is taking place, at pace, to reach a shared understanding of how best to progress our proposals.
Chief executives from all the councils have commissioned finance and data analysis from each authority to develop a financial model to evaluate different unitary options.
This will allow us to review the financial implications of various options, including the potential for savings and efficiencies.
The scenarios we are considering take account of historic community identities, the interests of residents, economic geographies and local demographic representation.
A second Full Council Meeting will take place on 20 November, at which councillors will officially discuss all business plans and formally make a decision on which one is to be submitted to government.
The councils will then submit their final proposals to national government on 28 November 2025.
Early in 2026 national government will consult the public on its preferred proposal(s), before deciding which one to take forward in July 2026.
In the meantime, we will continue to work together to achieve the best outcome possible for our residents and every community.
Examples of reorganisation at other councils
In 2023, new unitary authorities were established in North Yorkshire, Somerset, and Cumberland. Other reorganisations have occurred in Dorset (2019), Buckinghamshire (2020) and North Northamptonshire (2021).
However, the difference now is that the government expects, as a minimum, all council areas across England where there is currently a two-tier system in place to be reorganised.