Unitary authorities of England

The unitary authority system replaces the previous two-tier system of local government which was used near-universally across England from 1974 to 1986, in which local government responsibilities are shared between county councils and district councils. The two-tier system of local government has been replaced with the unitary system gradually over time, with the remaining two-tier areas proposed to be replaced by unitary authorities as part of the upcoming changes to local government.

The districts which are under the jurisdiction of a unitary authority are also referred to as "unitary authority areas" or "unitary areas". The terms "unitary district" and, for those which are coterminous with a former two-tier county council area, "unitary county" are also sometimes used. The term unitary authority is also sometimes used to refer to the area governed, such as in the ISO 3166-2:GB standard defining a taxonomy for subdivisions of the UK, and in colloquial usage.

Types

All unitary authorities carry out all local government functions in the district in question, but they have different legal definitions depending on the law by which they were created.

London boroughs and metropolitan boroughs

The London boroughs, created in 1965, and metropolitan districts, created in 1974, originally had two-tier local government, and became unitary authorities in 1986 following the abolition of the Greater London Council and metropolitan county councils.

City of London and Isles of Scilly

The City of London and the Isles of Scilly, each having a unique form of local governance, have always been single-tier. The Council of the Isles of Scilly is a sui generis authority created in 1890, and since 1930 has held the "powers, duties and liabilities" of a county council. The City of London Corporation is also a sui generis local authority with similar functions to a London borough council.

Non-metropolitan districts

In the rest of England outside of the London boroughs, metropolitan boroughs, City of London, and Isles of Scilly, unitary authorities are constituted under the Local Government Act 1992. This act amended the Local Government Act 1972 to allow the existence of non-metropolitan counties that consist of a single non-metropolitan district, thereby giving a unitary form of government. Most of the unitary non-metropolitan districts were established during the 1990s, with more created in 2009 and 2019–23.

These are usually constituted as a coterminous non-metropolitan district and non-metropolitan county. In Berkshire, they are constituted as non-metropolitan districts in the Royal county of Berkshire, with Berkshire retaining its status as a non-metropolitan county despite having no role in government after the abolition of Berkshire County Council.

The size of the areas governed by the unitary non-metropolitan districts varies greatly. The authorities created in the 1990s are generally coterminous with one former two-tier district area and cover a single large town or city, while those created since 2009 generally cover larger areas, with some coterminous with an entire former two-tier county council area.

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History

Background

The term "unitary authority" was first used in the Redcliffe-Maud Report in 1969 in its current sense of a local government authority which combines the functions of a county council and a district council. Strictly speaking, the term does not necessarily mean a single level of local government within an area, because in some cases there are also parish councils in the same area.

Although the term was not applied to them, county boroughs between 1889 and 1974 were effectively unitary authority areas, that is, single-tier administrative units. Before 1889, local government authorities had different powers and functions, but from medieval times some cities and towns had a high degree of autonomy as counties corporate. Some smaller settlements also enjoyed some degree of autonomy from regular administration as boroughs or liberties.

The Local Government Act 1972 created areas for local government where large towns and their rural hinterlands were administered together. The concept of unitary units was abandoned with a two-tier arrangement of county and district councils enacted in all areas of England from 1974, except the Isles of Scilly where the small size and distance from the mainland made it impractical.

1986 reform

The Local Government Act 1985 brought about the abolition the six metropolitan counties and Greater London in 1986, with their functions being split between central government, the borough councils and joint boards. The London boroughs and metropolitan boroughs thereby became unitary authorities, marking the first step away from the two-tier system introduced across England in 1974.

1990s reform

A review in the 1990s was initiated to select non-metropolitan areas where new unitary authorities could be created. The resulting structural changes were implemented between 1995 and 1998. Bristol, Herefordshire, the Isle of Wight and Rutland were established as counties of a single district; the county administration of Berkshire was dissolved, though the county legally preserved to retain for its territory its royal designation, and each of its district councils became unitary; the counties of Avon, Humberside and Cleveland were broken up to create several unitary authorities; and a number of districts were split off from their associated counties. The changes caused the ceremonial counties to be defined separately, as they had been before 1974. The review caused 46 unitary authorities to be created.

2009 changes

A further review was initiated in 2007 and was enacted in 2009. The review established Cornwall and Northumberland as counties of a single district; established unitary authorities in County Durham, Shropshire and Wiltshire covering the part of the county that was not already split off in the 1990s review; and divided the remainder of Bedfordshire and Cheshire into two unitary authority areas. The review caused nine unitary authorities to be created.

2019−2023 changes

In 2017, it was proposed that two unitary authority areas be formed to cover the ceremonial county of Dorset. One of the authorities would consist of the existing unitary authorities of Bournemouth, Poole and the two-tier district of Christchurch, the other would be composed of the remainder of the county. In November 2017, Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, Sajid Javid stated that he was "minded to approve the proposals" and a final decision to implement the two unitary authority model was confirmed in February 2018. Statutory instruments for the creation of two unitary authorities, to be named Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole Council and Dorset Council, have been made and shadow authorities for the new council areas were formed ahead of their creation on 1 April 2019.

Buckinghamshire County Council and the two-tier districts of Aylesbury Vale, Chiltern, South Bucks, and Wycombe in Buckinghamshire were replaced by a single unitary authority known as Buckinghamshire Council on 1 April 2020. The existing unitary authority of Milton Keynes was not affected; from 1 April 2020, therefore, the ceremonial county of Buckinghamshire has been composed of two unitary authority areas.

Following the declaration of insolvency by Northamptonshire County Council in early 2018, government-appointed commissioners took over control of the council's affairs. A March 2018 independent report commissioned by the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government proposed to abolish the existing county council and district councils and to create two new unitary authorities in their place. One authority, West Northamptonshire, would consist of the existing districts of Daventry, Northampton and South Northamptonshire and the other authority, North Northamptonshire would consist of Corby, East Northamptonshire, Kettering and Wellingborough districts. This was confirmed in May 2019, with the new councils being created in April 2021.

In July 2021 the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government announced that in April 2023, the non-metropolitan counties of Cumbria, North Yorkshire and Somerset would be reorganised into unitary authority areas. The new authorities, Cumberland, Westmorland and Furness, North Yorkshire Council and Somerset Council were first elected in May 2022 and formally assumed their powers on 1 April 2023.

English Devolution Bill

The Labour Party returned to power following the 2024 general election, and in her Autumn budget statement, Chancellor of the Exchequer Rachel Reeves outlined that a forthcoming English Devolution Bill would include plans for "working with councils to move to simpler structures that make sense for their local areas", suggesting that a new round of local government reorganisation could be likely.

In February 2025 Jim McMahon, the Minister for Local Government and English Devolution, wrote to all two-tier and unitary councils in England stating that all local government will move to a unitary system with new council areas having a target population of at least 500,000. Councils were invited to work together and submit an interim plan by 21 March 2025 and a final proposal for reorganisation by 28 November 2025. Local elections in East Sussex, West Sussex, Essex, Thurrock, Hampshire, the Isle of Wight, Norfolk, Suffolk and Surrey were delayed in May 2025, to accommodate local reorganisation.

Restructuring

The process of changing from a two-tier local government to a structure based on unitary authorities is called 'restructuring'. The Secretary of State responsible for local government invites proposals from local areas to restructure into unitary authorities, and the Secretary decides whether or not the change should be implemented. The restructuring is carried out by an Order. There are no examples in the UK of councils restructuring back into a two-tier system.

Criticism

Unitary government has been criticised for damaging local democracy. Opponents to unitary authority criticise the 'bigger is better' assumption and highlight that larger councils breed mistrust of councillors and reduction in public engagement and voter turnout. Outside the UK, multi-level local government is the prevailing system, with major towns normally having a local authority. The average size of a local authority in England is 170,000, three times that of Europe.

Comparison

Unitary authorities combine the powers and functions that are delivered separately by the councils with two-tier governance. These functions are housing, waste management, waste collection, council tax collection, education, libraries, social services, transport, planning, consumer protection, licensing, cemeteries and crematoria. The breakdown of these services is as follows:

Electoral arrangements

Electoral arrangements for unitary authorities are set-out within the act of Parliament or statutory instrument establishing the authority. Most unitary authorities in England are divided into a number of wards from which councillors are elected.

Eight unitary authorities are instead divided into electoral divisions: Cornwall, County Durham, Isle of Wight, North Yorkshire, Northumberland, Shropshire, Somerset, and Wiltshire – legally, these are continuing county councils gaining district council functions. Buckinghamshire and Dorset unitary authorities were, however, established as new councils and divided into wards.

List of unitary authorities

Unitary authorities are usually named after a town, city, geographical area or county (historic and or ceremonial). With no effect on powers or functions, districts can be granted the status of royal borough, borough or city. A district having a charter is dependent on the charter's wording: as a charter trustee to a place in the district; having joint charter to the place and district or to the district itself.

As of June 2026, there are 132 unitary authorities in England.

Upcoming unitary authorities

The Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government has decided to approve the creation of the following upcoming unitary authorities.