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FAQs

What is local government reorganisation?

It means changing how local councils are set up and what they are in charge of. The government wants to stop having the current two-tier system of district and county councils in one place and instead make fewer, bigger councils that look after everything. These new councils would usually be for places with 500,000 or more people but this may change if other options make sense in some areas.

District, County and Unitary Councils – what’s the difference?

You can find out more about what the different types of council do on the gov.uk website but in summary:

  • County councils are responsible for services across the whole of a county, like:
    • Education
    • Transport
    • Fire and public safety
    • Social care
    • Libraries
    • Trading standards
  • District and borough councils cover a smaller area than county councils. They’re usually responsible for services like:
    • Household recycling and rubbish collection
    • Housing needs and allocation
    • Planning
    • Food safety
    • Licensing
    • Environmental protection
    • Building control
    • Benefits
    • Leisure
  • Unitary authorities: In some parts of the country, one tier of local government provides all the local services listed above.

What if all the councils don’t agree on one plan?

The government wants all councils to work together to agree on one plan. The six councils in East Sussex are working together and have already developed our interim plan together. The government has said that it thinks there may be different plans suggested but it has not said how it will manage this yet. Ultimately if the councils don’t all agree it will be the government that decides what happens.

What is your interim plan and where can I read it?

All six of the councils in East Sussex submitted an interim plan for what they suggest will happen with the councils in East Sussex to the government on 21 March.

What was the response from government to your interim plan and where can I read it?

A letter from government providing feedback on this interim plan was issued on 7 May 2025

Will council tax go up or down following reorganisation?

The answer is we don’t know for sure yet. The new council(s) will decide how much council tax to charge after they are fully set up and have planned their budgets.

How many councillors would there be under your interim plan?

Again, we don’t know exact numbers yet, but any new council(s) will still have councillors to represent each area.

Will people lose their jobs?

There is likely to be a reduction in some of the top management positions but most people who work for the council now will still have a job in the new council(s).

Will it cost money to create a new council(s)?

Yes. The estimated cost of creating the new council is between £30-35 million. This estimate is based on other councils that have already had to reorganise councils in their areas. This money will need to pay for things like community engagement, IT systems, cybersecurity, moving staff, legal and governance restructuring, and redesigning services. The existing councils do not have the money for this in existing budgets so will need help from the government.

Will any of the current council buildings have to close?

Whatever new council(s) are formed they will still need offices to work from. In our interim plan we said that we are committed to making sure that the new council(s) have a strong and visible presence in our communities. Some buildings might be used in new ways or shared but this still requires much further consideration.

Where would the new council(s) main office or Town Hall be?

We don’t know yet. The new council(s) would make decisions like these once these are decided upon in early 2026. They will ask people what they think before making final plans.

When will all of this happen?

Please see our timeline page. We expect the new council(s) might exist from April 2027 ready to take over fully from the existing councils in April 2028.

How can I have my say on what I think should happen?

We ran a public survey between Monday 12 May and Monday 23 June 2025. This survey was the first chance for you to tell us what you think but there will be more opportunities as the process continues.