Local Government Reorganisation

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Three Unitary proposal
Two Unitary proposal

What is LGR?

In December 2024, central government published a paper to set out its approach on devolution – transferring more powers from government to local or regional authorities. They proposed that each area should elect regional Mayors where they don’t currently have them. This approach means that additional power is given to the Mayor, giving them more control over strategic decision making for their area.

To unlock the devolution of further local powers and elect a Mayor, some areas need to reorganise first. This means creating unitary authorities to simplify and streamline local government. Unitary councils are responsible for the services currently delivered by both the county council and local councils. In Surrey, there are eleven district or borough councils, responsible for waste collection, planning, cemeteries, parks and recreation grounds, and Surrey County Council responsible for Children’s Services, Adult Social Care and highways. LGR would mean dissolving all of the existing councils and combining services into unitary authorities. Having fewer councils creates efficiency, clarifies service delivery and saves money. It is, though, debatable whether this is ‘devolution’, which surely entails giving responsibility for democratic decision-making to the most appropriate local level.

The effect of being in the first wave

The Tory-led SCC administration volunteered to be in the first wave of devolution knowing that this would mean the cancellation of the county elections due to be held in May 2025 and extending the term of office of current councillors by two years without a further election. It has also meant that there has been very little time to thoroughly explore all the options for the configuration of the new unitaries, how the debt of councils will be managed and the complexities and costs of organising new teams to handle the key areas of Children’s and Adult Social Services.

Final plans submitted to government

A six week public consultation finished on the 5th August. Congratulations if you waded through the dense, opaque language in the numerous questions better suited to officers working in local government rather than members of the public.

Three unitary proposals

Nine of the eleven local councils are promoting a grouping of current councils into three new unitary authorities. They argue:

Our proposal offers local government that is built around Surrey’s distinct and recognised functional human and economic geographies. By aligning local government with well-defined and understood places, we can create a system that is more responsive, effective and attuned to the diverse needs of the people, communities and businesses that call Surrey home.

Put simply, we believe that local authorities with administrative boundaries that reflect functional and locally recognised areas are better equipped to meet the needs of these areas. They will also improve the potential for partnership working across the system and with community partners.

Two unitary proposals

Surrey County Council, Elmbridge and Mole Valley have promoted a final plan to government splitting Surrey into two councils, East and West. They say:

We’ve analysed a wide range of data on how the two councils would operate and our approach is supported by many of Surrey’s key public sector organisations including health, police, fire, business and community leaders. Existing county council services across Surrey are proven by independent inspectors to be strong, with successful outcomes for residents, and Surrey County Council and many of the district and borough councils have stable finances. This puts us in a good position to see Surrey through reorganisation smoothly.

What next?

The government is now considering the proposals and will make their decision know by the end of September or October. It is rather worrying that in the rush to provide lengthy proposals, key aspects such as how many councillors will represent each ‘division’ (‘wards’ will disappear) have not yet been put forward.

EBC’s Transformation of Community Services

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Weybridge: Building on working together

In Weybridge, the Community Centre has traditionally provided services mainly for older residents and, for the last year, has also been used by the Library during the refurbishment work of the Library building.

When the Weybridge Library re-opens in September, the centre services for the elderly will transfer into what will be know as The Library Hub, with the council continuing to provide these services. Building on the experience already gained by the SCC Library Services working with the EBC Community Services team, it is expected that new activities will be developed to target more residents of all ages who require support.

After the move, the Weybridge Community Centre will still be available for bookings by different groups with the aim of the voluntary and charity sector eventually taking over as part of a wider programme for all Elmbridge Centres. The Centres will become Community Hubs (probably an over-used term!) run by the community for the community. The council will invest £70,000 in each of these hubs and provide an additional £200,000 in funding to strengthen the voluntary sector. Financial support will also be given during the bidding process and the handover of the centres to ensure a successful launch for the new organisations. The council will hold information and advice events for interested parties in the coming months.

Connected Communities

Currently, community services in Elmbridge reach fewer than 1% of residents but costs around 20% of the council’s annual budget (around £4m), while nearly 12% of residents face serious challenges to living well. The Connected Communities transformation will enable the council to reach more unpaid carers, families facing financial hardship, isolated individuals, and older residents, ensuring that no one is left behind. 

Over the next 18 months, the programme will: 

  • strengthen partnerships with Elmbridge’s outstanding voluntary and charity sector to deliver more joined-up support 
  • transform day centres into welcoming, inclusive Community Hubs that reflect the needs of many more of our residents 
  • introduce Local Area Coordinators to provide tailored preventative support close to home 
  • secure long-term resilience by delivering £1 million in annual savings and reinvesting in frontline services 

A good example of a successful transformation that has already taken place is the Centre in Thames Ditton. This was taken on last year by a local resident who set up a not-for-profit organisation called Vital Village. It is now a busy, vibrant, multi-generational community centre used by many more people:  www.vitalvillage.co.uk

Weybridge Health Centre update

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We have continually reported how disappointingly slow it has been for NHS Property Services to progress with the long-awaited rebuild of the Weybridge Health Centre which burnt down eight years ago. There have been numerous self-inflicted delays – see our last article here from December 2024: http://weybridgelibdems.org.uk/2024/12/health-campus/

There was concern when the first planning application was made public that it included a path for cyclists and pedestrians into Portmore Way past St Charles Borromeo School and into Portmore Park Road. This was revised to reinstate access from Minorca Road. At last the application came before the Council’s Planning Committee on the 15th July 2025 and was approved.

We can only hope that NHS Property Services have the funding to get on with building the new centre as quickly as possible.

Weybridge Business Improvement District (BID) to go ahead

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On Friday 27 June, Weybridge businesses voted to back a business improvement district (BID). We are very much in favour of this and Elmbridge Borough Council has facilitated the production of the Business Case, the engagement with businesses and the vote. See previous information here: http://weybridgelibdems.org.uk/2024/11/wey-bid/

The Weybridge BID will deliver a five-year plan backed by over £800,000 in investment. The BID will cover 13 streets and represent more than 220 businesses, all working together to enhance the local trading environment and secure a thriving future for Weybridge.

The business plan was supported by a majority of those voting by number and rateable value with:

  • 87% voting YES by number 
  • 90% voting YES by rateable value

Weybridge HGV ban

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Surrey County Council confirmed on the 23rd June that the experimental prohibition of Heavy Goods Vehicles in Weybridge will be made permanent.
In the long consultation that ran from 25 October 2024 to 1 May 2025 86% of respondents supported the ban.

Enforcement of the ban will be with the installation of an Automatic Number Plate Recognition camera on Brooklands Road so that penalty charge notices can be issued to drivers. We hope that this will herald an end to HGVs forcing other vehicles onto the pavement at the Balfour Road roundabout junction and to their frequent damaging of the railings.

Weybridge splash pad opens

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Your local councillors were pleased to attend the opening of the new water-play area at Churchfields recreation ground on Thursday 22 May with the ribbon being cut by the new Elmbridge Mayor, Cllr Steve Bax.

A splash pad was promoted in the Cabinet several years ago by Cllr Ashley Tilling as the portfolio holder for Environmental Services and Climate Change as we reported last year: http://weybridgelibdems.org.uk/2024/11/splash-pad/

Sustainability was a top priority when selecting the design and equipment; it therefore has a filtering and recirculating water system to reduce water consumption as well as solar panels to make it more energy-efficient than most similar facilities. The splash pad is packed with exciting and innovative water features that promise hours of enjoyment for toddlers and young school-aged children.

Opening times

The Weybridge splash pad is open from 24 May to 2 September. Opening hours are 10am to 6pm, Monday to Saturday, and 10am to 5pm on Sundays.

Weybridge Health Campus

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The process of replacing the Weybridge ‘Hospital’ which was burnt down in 2017 is still grinding on. Even though the design team had submitted plans to the Local Planning Authority (EBC) in March 2023, delays meant that it wasn’t until the 4th February this year that the Stakeholder Reference Group (SRG) were told that plans were about to be submitted to EBC ready for building to start in the summer of this year: http://weybridgelibdems.org.uk/2024/02/weybridge-hospital-site/

Astonishingly, just over a month later, on the 20th March, we learned that this timescale was put back yet again: NHS Property Services had decided that the Project Leader and his team, who had been working on the proposals for several years, were to be replaced. A new lead company, Wilmott Dixon, was appointed and they insisted on using their own architect to draw up a new design.

It has now taken a further eight months for the SRG to be informed last week that plans were at last ready for a formal planning application to be made. At least there now seems to be money available and the previous problem of a funding gap seems to have been closed. Let’s hope that after seven years of delays, the replacement project will now proceed to some spades in the ground!

HGV weight limit

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A year ago we posted our support for the petition started by our St George’s councillor colleagues to introduce a weight limit on HGVs coming through the town via Heath Road and Brooklands Road: http://weybridgelibdems.org.uk/2023/11/hgv-petition/.

After a lengthy consultation period, this has now come into effect. Apparently it won’t be possible to issue fines on drivers contravening the restrictions for the first six months as it is a trial ban. Anyone seeing vehicles flouting the order should report the incident, preferably with photos, via:

https://customer.surreycc.gov.uk/hgv-watch

Weybridge Hall latest

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History

The former cinema, which opened in 1920 and was acquired by Elmbridge Borough Council in 1956, operated as a public hall until its closure in 2014. Since then, the building’s condition has worsened. Swift Entertainment Venues (SEV) had an 18-month option to buy the building, but this expired in April 2024. The building has been actively marketed for sale since then.

Sale

Several offers were received for the building, with most proposals including residential upper parts and various ground floor uses like gyms, restaurants and churches. The offers were evaluated based on conditionality, such as a requirement to convert and sell upper floor flats, proposed use, ability to transact and price.

At the Elmbridge Cabinet meeting on Wednesday 20 November, councillors agreed to sell the Hall to Equippers Church. This is seen as the best option for community and leisure use. It is the least risky choice and ensures the building’s future use better than the other offers received. 

Equippers Church

Equippers Church plans to refurbish the building, featuring a two-tiered auditorium seating 300 to 400 people. The upper parts will be converted into studios for midweek meetings and workshops on mental health, wellbeing, counselling and youth gatherings. The building will also host weddings, birthday parties, exercise classes, art exhibitions and will be available to schools and other community groups for concerts, plays, speech days and other events. Additionally, the church is expected to bring significant added value to local businesses in Weybridge.

The transfer will be subject to a restrictive covenant that the ground floor of the building can only be used for leisure/community use that provides an active frontage onto Church Street. Equippers Church have agreed to this term and are keen to purchase the building. Completion of the sale is subject to contract. 

St Charles Borromeo church, Heath Road

It is understood that Equippers Church will be using the old Catholic Church and Rectory as their College for training in leadership roles. The church has already undergone long-needed refurbishment and restoration to bring it back into use after many years of decay and neglect.