By Joe Locker, Local Democracy Reporter
Nottingham’s council boundaries could be reorganised as early as 2028 to potentially merge the city with Rushcliffe, Gedling and Broxtowe boroughs in a bid to improve local government efficiency.
In a wide-ranging interview about the plans, Nottingham City Council’s deputy leader, Cllr Ethan Radford (Lab), told the Local Democracy Reporting Service the Government’s plans to merge local councils present a “key opportunity” to ensure local government is financially sustainable.
Nottingham city’s boundaries have long been criticised by numerous city council leaders, because they exclude large, prosperous urban areas close by in West Bridgford, Arnold and Beeston – limiting how much council tax can be raised by the city authority.
Under the previous Conservative Government’s funding model and austerity measures, less grant money was given to councils to encourage them to find other means of raising funding, including investments, commercialisation of services, and through raising council tax.
However, around 80 per cent of all properties in the city sit in the lower tax category bands A and B, meaning they bring in less revenue for the council to use to run vital services.
The Labour Government’s English Devolution White Paper, published in December, outlines a plan to create new, bigger, combined councils, instead of ‘two-tier’ structures like that in Nottinghamshire.
This means district and borough councils could therefore be merged into bigger unitary authorities, similar to how Nottingham City Council operates within its own current boundaries.
It could lead to a merger of Gedling, Broxtowe and Rushcliffe with Nottingham to create a Greater Nottingham unitary authority, while the remaining districts could then fall under a new Nottinghamshire unitary authority.
Reflecting on the challenges faced by the City Council and its future, Cllr Radford said the White Paper has “real potential to reorganise the foundations”.
“It wants to be concluded by 2028,” he told the Local Democracy Reporting Service (LDRS).
“That will have implications to local authorities across the country. It’s a massive piece of legislation.
“Cities like Nottingham are tightly bound. It means we struggle to generate the kind of revenue we would need for the services we need to provide.
“This is an opportunity for everyone in the region, and in Nottinghamshire, to look at how best we can shape the places we are in so that we can actually deliver for local people.
“If a merger were to happen, the boroughs would not become ‘part of the City Council’, because if there were reorganisation in the city it would not be ‘Nottingham City Council’ any more.
“It would be an entirely new authority that would take into account the areas it is incorporating.”
Cllr Radford said it is important the right balance is struck, with local representation and autonomy of decisions maintained, while also “reorganising the boundaries to create sustainable councils”.
He said the plans could lead to entirely new corporate and political leadership teams, new structures, and a new authority across the Greater Nottingham conurbation.
“It is a huge unknown, but this is a key opportunity,” he said.
Cllr Kevin Clarke, the leader of the Nottingham Independents and Independent opposition group, agreed such plans would raise more revenue for services.
However, he added: “Whether it is a good thing for democracy I do not know. You are taking away local authorities, so there could be less local representation, so it has downsides, too.”
Similarly, concerns were raised by the leader of Broxtowe Borough Council, Milan Radulovic, who recently defected from the Labour Party to form a new independent group.
“Putting decisions in the hands of fewer people puts you nearer to a dictatorship,” he said of the plans.
In Nottinghamshire one tier of council services including roads, schools and social care is provided by Nottinghamshire County Council.
But a second tier of seven smaller, separate district and borough councils provides other services like parks and bin collections.
Meanwhile Nottingham City Council is a ‘unitary authority’, meaning it is responsible for all services in its boundaries, including bin collections, parks and adults and children’s social care. The city council declared effective bankruptcy last year, and while some district and borough councils have had to make savings, none locally are currently believed to be close to mirroring the city council’s struggles.
“New unitary councils must be the right size to achieve efficiencies, improve capacity and withstand financial shocks,” the White Paper says.
“For most areas this will mean creating councils with a population of 500,000 or more.
“Unitary councils can lead to better outcomes for residents, save significant money which can be reinvested in public services, and improve accountability with fewer politicians who are more able to focus on delivering for residents.”
