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The Government has confirmed their decision on the new model for councils in Staffordshire and Stoke-on-Trent.

From April 2028 there will be only two unitary councils delivering all council services across the area. This will include an area covering:

• Stafford Borough, Cannock Chase, East Staffs, Lichfield, South Staffs and Tamworth

And another unitary of the north serving:

• Stoke-on-Trent, Staffordshire Moorlands and Newcastle-Under-Lyme

Local Government Reorganisation

It will see an end to ‘two-tier’ authorities. At the moment Stafford Borough Council and Staffordshire County Council deliver different services and functions to our communities.

For example, the borough council is responsible for the household waste collection service, planning, and parks. Whereas Staffordshire County Council deals with education, roads and social care.

The new unitary council would be responsible for all local government services within their area.

This is part of wider plans for Devolution. You can see more about this from the English Devolution White Paper (gov.uk). 

What this means for you

There will be no immediate changes to council services, and all councils will continue to provide services as usual.

You should continue to use services in the same way as you do now and contact the same council teams for help and support.

Councils across the area will now work together to understand the full details of the government’s decision and plan the next steps to make sure that the changes work well for residents, businesses and our communities.

Next Steps

There will be ‘shadow elections’ in May 2027. A shadow council is elected before the new council formally comes into effect. Shadow councillors make key decisions needed to prepare the new council. 

For Staffordshire and Stoke-on-Trent, the new councils are expected to be established in April 2028. This is called ‘vesting day’.

Further information can be found from the dedicated LGR website (staffordshirestokelgr.org.uk).

What ‘Devolution’ is

It would see a shift of powers from central to local and regional government. And this will involve reorganising the way your local council works.

A Foundation Strategic Authority is the first phase of the government's new devolution model. It provides powers and funding that are not currently available to individual local authorities. 

All 10 councils in Staffordshire and Stoke-on-Trent have sent an expression of interest to the Government confirming they are interested in becoming a Foundation Strategic Authority for the area. You can read the full expression of interest (pdf 348kb).

We are awaiting a government decision on this.

If you would like to receive updates on future changes to your council, please let us know by emailing lgrsbc@staffordbc.gov.uk.

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