The latest updates on Local Government Reorganisation and Devolution across the south west.

Although Devolution and Local Government Reorganisation processes are connected, they are separate. Local government reorganisation is about how councils and local services are organised. Devolution is about transferring powers and funding from central government to wider regional partnerships. Following recent announcements. here's how the picture looks in the south west.

The leaders of Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole Council, Dorset Council, Somerset Council and Wiltshire Council have welcomed the Prime Minister’s confirmation that the Government supports the establishment of a Mayoral Strategic Authority for Wessex. The announcement marks a major milestone in the region’s long-standing campaign to secure devolution and unlock greater powers, investment and decision-making closer to local communities.

The four councils will now work with the Government to agree the next steps and put Wessex in the strongest possible position to secure devolved powers and investment.

Following an initial review of the local government reorganisation decisions it made earlier this year, the Government has announced it is ‘minded to’ confirm a single unitary authority for Gloucestershire. 

The Government announced in July that one new unitary council will replace county and district councils in Gloucestershire. However, it subsequently decided to pause and review all local government reorganisation decisions taken across the country in July. However, in an update shared with council leaders and chief executives, the Minister for Local Government, Devolution and Regional Growth, said that he was working to confirm the decision for the single unitary authority for Gloucestershire. He said that in the event the decision is confirmed, elections to the new unitary authority would take place in May 2028, ahead of vesting in April 2029. Elections to Cotswold District Council, Forest of Dean District Council, and Tewkesbury Borough Council will go ahead on existing boundaries in May 2027. 

Gloucestershire should not become the forgotten county of the South West when it comes to devolution, Cllr Lisa Spivey, Leader of Gloucestershire County Council, has warned as leaders have called for a clear route to join the West of England Combined Authority.

Gloucestershire was also omitted from announcements made on devolution plans during the budget.

In a letter to Jim McMahon OBE MP, Minister for Local Government, Devolution and Regional Growth, prior to the budget, leaders at six of the seven councils in Gloucestershire Council urged the Government to provide a clear route to join an enlarged West of England Combined Authority, saying it would reflect Gloucestershire’s strong links with Bristol and the wider South West – unlocking economic growth, strengthening public services and positioning the region as one of the UK’s most significant for innovation, national security and investment.

North Somerset Council is currently waiting for the Government to introduce Parliamentary instruments to enable the council to join the West of England Combined Authority. Membership of the combined authority would allow the people and places of North Somerset to benefit from this regional funding.

Cornwall Council has welcomed the Chancellor’s announcement that it will, by exception, become a single strategic authority.

The announcement secures further devolution for Cornwall on a Cornwall only footprint and without the need to introduce a mayor, which the Council, MPs and Peers representing Cornwall have long campaigned for. Confirmation that the Council will also receive a share of the £150m capacity funding to support strategic authorities, plus an allocation from £285m new Good Growth Fund to invest in our economy is good news for Cornwall taxpayers.

The Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government (MHCLG) has confirmed that its decision in July 2026 to create four unitary authorities for the county has been withdrawn.

In its statement, it confirmed that it was still committed to Local Government Reorganisation (LGR) in the county, with all options and proposals remaining under consideration as part of a review. Further details are set to be announced in early 2027. This move has been criticised with leaders saying the delay will mean “more chaos, cost and confusion” for councils and communities. The department will now review all the original options and proposals submitted by Devon’s councils, with a fresh decision expected in January 2027 and new unitary councils formed in 2029

In terms of Devolution, county leaders have welcomed the prospect of Devon’s first mayor. Chancellor John Healey confirmed in his Budget that the Government was ‘minded to’ approve a bid for a Mayoral Strategic Authority for Devon, Torbay and Plymouth. The new authority would represent a population of 1.25 million people with an economy worth over £33.1 billion. It would give the region more powers, more investment and a stronger voice nationally, alongside England’s other mayoral areas.