The Government is planning some big changes to local government as part of its Local Government Reorganisation and Devolution plans.
Local Government Changes
Biddulph Town Council is the most local level of government. Above us is Staffordshire Moorlands District Council, and then Staffordshire County Council. Each of these councils handles different things.
Staffordshire County Council covers the whole of Staffordshire and is responsible, for example, for roads and transport, and social and health care.
Staffordshire Moorlands District Council is one of eight district and borough councils in Staffordshire. (The others being South Staffordshire District Council, Lichfield District Council, Cannock Chase District Council, Stafford Borough Council, Newcastle Under-Lyme Borough Council, East Staffordshire Borough Council and Tamworth Borough Council). The District Council, for example, handles waste and recycling and the collection of council tax.
Biddulph is one of 180 town and parish councils across Staffordshire, and looks after, for example, the burial grounds, public buildings, allotment sites and green spaces. We’re one of the biggest, some of the 180 town and parish councils are tiny parishes.
The Government has announced that in areas like ours, where there are three tiers of local government, (Biddulph Town Council, Staffordshire Moorlands District Council and Staffordshire County Council) these will merge into one or more ‘unitary authorities.’
Stoke on Trent City Council is a small unitary council, they are responsible for providing all council services in their area.
Devolution
In England, devolution is the transfer of power and funding from central to local government, to ensure decisions are made closer to the local people, communities and businesses they affect. This can sometimes mean the introduction of Mayors within combined authorities.
Local Government Reorganisation
Local government reorganisation is the process through which the structure and responsibilities of local authorities are reconfigured.
What Does This Mean For Biddulph?
We’re not sure yet, the Town Council is watching how this develops closely.
Biddulph Town Council took on the management of the Town Hall, Visitor Centre at the Country Park, the Bus Hub and Toilets from the District Council in 2020, and provides a range of community services. The changes are about saving money; we’ve always been ambitious for the town and reorganisation provides the opportunity for us to take on more responsibilities for assets and services.
However, we don’t know yet what each council will be responsible for.
We’ve set up a monthly Local Government and Devolution Working Group and we’re looking at the assets (like buildings) and services currently managed by the District or County Council. There is not an exhaustive list as to what could be considered, but includes things such as play areas, public conveniences, sports fields, etc. Any opportunities will be scoped in detail and a business case will be developed setting out how we could deliver those responsibilities and what resources would be required.
We’ll update this web page as we know more.
The new structure is expected in April 2028.
Here’s a link to the a section on the District Council’s website called ‘Devolution and Local Government Reorganisation’:
https://www.staffsmoorlands.gov.uk/Local-Government-Reorganisation
Here’s a link to Staffordshire County Council’s ‘Local Government Reorganisation and Devolution’ webpage: