The deadline has passed for Lancashire Councils to submit proposals to the Government for new council geographies in the County.
To recap, there are currently fifteen councils in Lancashire. This includes twelve districts, one county council and two unitary authorities. The two unitaries, Blackpool and Blackburn with Darwen, provide all services in their areas, while service provision is split between district and county councils in the rest of Lancashire.
Confused?
If you’re reading this, you’re likely familiar with all this so probably not. Though the split still confuses many residents, frustrates many businesses and arguably gives rise to duplication of back-office functions and other inefficiencies. This is why the government wants to simplify governance in the county by scrapping all fifteen councils and replacing them with a smaller number of unitary authorities.
The fifteen Councils were asked to consider the arrangements they’d most prefer and submit their proposals to the Government. Many did so reluctantly and there was not one common view among the Council submissions which ranged from two new authorities (a north/south split) to five new authorities.
Why does this matter to developers?
Well firstly, because the new unitary authorities will serve as the Local Planning Authorities on the new geographies. A planning application that may today be determined by Wyre Council will, under the new arrangements, be determined by an authority that could also cover Lancaster, Blackpool and maybe Ribble Valley. That could mean a committee comprising Councillors from some considerable distance away from the site of the application they are determining. In some circumstances this could be positive, but it could also mean a lack of local knowledge and familiarity with an area that is required to make an informed choice.
The second, related, point is that where this process has been undertaken before applications submitted, but not determined, prior to the change over have been known to fall through the cracks and suffer major delays. Cavendish has supported clients with applications in both Cumbria and North Yorkshire where the Council receiving the application was abolished. Whilst they were handed over, many suffered lengthy delays in determination.
So when will all this happen?
Elections to new “shadow” authorities in Lancashire are scheduled for 2027. While not confirmed yet, this will likely mean that the scheduled elections to the existing districts that year will be cancelled, with sitting Councillors getting an extra year in office. The new authorities will then come into effect from the beginning of April 2028.
The chosen arrangements for the new authorities is expected to be announced in Summer 2026. However, the departure of key ministers from the Department of Housing, Communities and Local Government, and the resultant delaying of Mayoral elections in the South of England, places a question mark over this timeline.
written by Sean Fielding, Associate Director in the North
Cavendish will be keeping a watching brief over developments in Westminster which impact Lancashire’s governance and the timeline for any changes.
If you would like more information, please get in touch with Sean at sean.fielding@cavendishconsulting.com