Local Government Reorganisation for Dorking & Horley
At present Surrey has a two-tier organisation of local government. The county is divided into 11 districts, each of which is divided into a number of divisions. Surrey County Council (SCC) comprises one representative from each division (81 across the whole county). Each division is further divided into two or three wards, each of which elects one or two representatives for the relevant district council.
England is currently undergoing a reorganisation of local government, started by the previous Conservative government and being continued by the current Labour government (as outlined in their General Election manifesto). Counties will no longer be divided into local districts, but instead into a smaller number of unitary authorities (UAs), which will take on the local responsibilities of both county councils and district councils.
In addition, several of these UAs will be grouped together to form a Mayoral Strategic Area (MSA). Each MSA will be controlled by an elected mayor, supported by a small Mayoral Assembly that comprises the leaders of each Unitary Authority.. Terms of reference for MSAs are not yet fully defined, but it is likely that they will take on the strategic responsibilities currently held by County Councils.
Unitary Authorities within Surrey
It has not yet been decided how Surrey will be divided up into UAs. One possibility is a division into two: East Surrey and West Surrey. Another is a division into three, whereby some districts are removed from these two areas to form a third UA, North Surrey. In either case most of the D&H constituency (currently mainly within Mole Valley) will be within East Surrey, with the smaller remainder (currently within Waverley) being within West Surrey.
SCC have performed a detailed financial analysis of the various options and have concluded that splitting Surrey into two UAs would provide the most benefit. In practice, most of Surrey’s district authorities prefer a split into three UAs and both proposals have therefore been submitted to the government’s devolution authority. It seems likely that SCC’s preference for two unitary authorities will prevail, but the decision is ultimately up to central government.
Mayoral Strategic Area for Surrey
Some MSAs in England encompass several continuous counties that contain several million inhabitants. Others are smaller, but most still satisfy the government’s guideline for at least 1.5M inhabitants.
Surrey’s population is currently approximately 1.2M, which could suggest joining up with a neighbouring county to form a larger MSA. In practice both Surrey and Hampshire have been authorised to form their own separate MSAs, while Kent (with its 1.6M inhabitants) has expressed a preference to do the same. It seems likely, therefore, that Surrey will form its own MSA.
UA elections within the reorganisation period
The next planned elections within Surrey are for the new UAs, which are planned for May 2026. These will initially be elections for “shadow” UAs, which will organise LGR alongside the existing SCC and district councils. There is likely to be a significant overlap between these sets of people.
These shadow UAs are planned to go live in May 2027 (vesting day), at which time all SCC and district councillors will stand down.
The number of councillors within each UA is not yet decided, but preliminary estimates suggest that there could be 2 UA councillors per existing division (i.e. 16 within the D&H constituency).
If any more existing SCC or district councillors decide to stand down there could be further by-elections, but these seem unlikely to happen after 2025. It is more likely that this position would remain vacant, with (perhaps) the new UA councillor for the area taking a wider role prior to vesting day.
Mayoral Elections
Assuming that Surrey forms its own MSA, elections for the post of Mayor are planned for May 2027. The supporting members of the Mayoral Assembly will be determined by the councillors for that UA. It is expected Surrey’s MSA this will come live soon afterwards.
Other elements relating to the Surrey political reorganisation
Town Councils and Parish Councils will not be affected by Surrey’s LGR.
SCC are planning to set up some “Community Boards”, whose purpose is to facilitate communication between local communities and UAs (which could be more remote than existing local authorities). These will bring together UAs and their service providers (e.g. police, fire service) with local organisations such as residents associations and business groups. Local residents will be able attend meetings and express their views and concerns.
Further details of Surrey’s reorganisation may be found within Devolution and Local Government Reorganisation (LGR) – Surrey County Council.