Purpose

Proposed decision – Cabinet to
approve KCC’s Strategic Business Case for Local Government
Reorganisation in Kent and Medway for submission to Government.
 
Reason for the decision
 
Kent
County Council (KCC) is required to submit a Strategic Business
Case setting out its preferred option for Local Government
Reorganisation in Kent and Medway following a statutory invite from
Government on 5 February 2025.
 
Background
 
Councils in Kent and
Medway received a statutory invitation to submit proposals for
Local Government Reorganisation (LGR) in a letter from the Minister
of State on 5 February 2025. A schedule attached to the letter set
out criteria against which Government will judge proposals and some
requirements for the process. The LGR process and timeline is set
by the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government
(MHCLG) and is not subject to change by councils. Each council can
submit one business case setting out their preferred option for LGR
for the Kent and Medway area by the deadline of 28 November.
Following the submission of business cases and a statutory
consultation process which will be led by MHCLG, Ministers will
decide, subject to Parliamentary approval, which, if any, proposal
is to be implemented, with or without modification.
 
KCC has been
undertaking preparation work since the February invitation, both
through a joint options appraisal (completed by KMPG on behalf of
Kent Council Leaders) and through an internal options appraisal
conducted by KCC. Having considered the findings of both the
internal and joint options appraisals, it is KCC’s position
that it will submit an independent Strategic Business Case to
Government for the single-unitary option covering Kent and Medway,
supported by three Area Assemblies.
 
One of
the primary reasons KCC is proposing to support a single unitary
for Kent and Medway is because it is considered to be the most
financially viable option, in both the short and the long term.
Modelling predicts that financial benefits will be delivered in
less than a year which will continue to accrue, providing scope for
reinvestment into services for residents. Given the significant and
unique challenges that Kent faces due to the county’s
disparities and its nationally important position as the gateway to
Europe, it has also been determined that a single unitary is the
only viable option for LGR in Kent and Medway as it maintains
countywide scale and avoids the service delivery risks that could
come with the disaggregation of key services. The model aligns well
with Government’s criteria for LGR and will allow the
benefits of developing a single tier of local government in Kent
and Medway to be realised.
 
As part of KCC’s
proposed model, three Area Assemblies in the North, East and West
of Kent would sit underneath the single unitary, providing
responsiveness to local needs on some place-based services. The
Area Assemblies have been purposefully configured so that they
bring together districts in geographic groupings which reflect
local identity and residents’ travel to live patterns (i.e.
they mirror travel to work, education and healthcare flows). The
geographic boundaries of the Area Assemblies also mirror existing
service delivery footprints, with most local authority services (as
well as services delivered by key partners such as the NHS and the
Police) currently delivered across East, North and West Kent,
allowing Area Assemblies to work with partners to design and
deliver local transformation projects alongside wider public
service reform.
 
Options (other options considered but discarded)

 
An
internal options appraisal was conducted earlier this year to
assess the relative opportunities and challenges of each option
against the Government’s criteria, helping Members to make an
informed decision on Local Government Reorganisation in Kent and
Medway. The findings of the options appraisal were presented to the
Cabinet Committee for Devolution and Local Government
Reorganisation on 28 July 2025 and can be accessed

here.
 
Having
considered the findings of the initial options appraisal and taken
part in discussions about all of the options identified by Kent
Council Leaders, it is KCC’s position that it will submit a
Strategic Business Case to government for a single Kent unitary
council covering the Kent and Medway area, with three Area
Assemblies for North, East and West Kent. The administration
considers that the financial dis-benefits of the other options
presented do not represent good value for money for Kent’s
taxpayers.
 
How the proposed
decision supports KCC’s
Strategic Statement:
 
KCC is proposing to
support a single unitary model for Kent and Medway as it is the
only viable financial and strategic option in the circumstances
Kent and Medway is facing. A large unitary authority of this size
and scale would have the necessary financial capacity to deliver
key statutory services, including sustainable adult and
children’s social care. Having just a single tier of local
government across Kent and Medway would also provide opportunities
to generate efficiencies, ensuring value for money is secured in
all spending decisions. The proposed decision to support a single
unitary model is therefore consistent with the objectives set out
in the Strategic Statement and the Council’s Best Value
obligations.
 

Financial Implications

 
Each
proposed option includes one-off implementation/transition costs,
as well as ongoing costs and ongoing net benefits/dis-benefits.
These high-level costs were set out in the
financial
assessment section of the
options appraisal paperwork that was presented to the Devolution
and Local Government Reorganisation Cabinet Committee in July.
Please note that these figures are indicative and will be updated
as the Strategic Business Case is developed, with a standard
methodology used across all Kent and Medway councils to ensure
consistency and accuracy. Updated financial information will be
provided accordingly as part of the Key Decision
paperwork.

 
It is important to note that the approval of this
Strategic Business Case does not require KCC to commit any
financial resource. The decision is only
asking for Cabinet to approve the Strategic Business Case ahead of
submission to Government; no financial commitments are attached.
Government will then decide which business case will be progressed
for implementation following a statutory consultation. Further key
decisions will then be taken as necessary during the implementation
phase for any specific policy proposals and service restructures,
as well as for any significant savings or expenditure
programmes.
 
Legal
Implications
 
Kent County Council,
together with Medway Council and the 12 District and Borough
Councils, were invited by the Minister of State in February to
submit a request for local government reorganisation by November
28, 2025. The legislative basis for this was set out by the
Government in this invitation, which can be accessed here:

Letter from
MHCLG.
 
It is important to
note that Local Government Reorganisation is a government-led
process initiated by the Secretary of State. Councils are therefore
unable to stop or delay LGR. The Secretary of
State can decide to take forward proposals that are submitted by
areas with or without modificationand will ultimately make the final decision on which business case is
implemented following the statutory consultation. KCC is therefore
not the decision-maker.
 
Equalities implications
 
A draft Equality
Impact Assessment (EqIA) has been undertaken on the proposed decision to submit a Strategic Business Case to
government to establish a single unitary authority
for Kent and Medway. The EqIA identifies potential impacts for a
number of protected characteristics under the Equality Act 2010.
Key issues include potential risks to service continuity,
communication challenges, and visibility of local needs within a
larger strategic framework. The assessment also acknowledges
potential workforce impacts.
 
The draft EqIA will be
updated as necessary following public engagement to reflect the
feedback received. The final EqIA will then be published as part of
the Key Decision paperwork and will be included as a separate
appendix within the Strategic Business Case.
 
Further EqIAs will be
undertaken as necessary for specific policy proposals, service
restructures, or operational changes that emerge from the
reorganisation process, ensuring that equality considerations are
embedded at every stage of implementation.
 
Data
Protection implications
 
Internal advice has
been sought from the Council’s Data Protection team, who have
confirmed that a Data Protection Impact Assessment does not need to
be conducted at this stage as no personal data has been processed
as part of developing the Strategic Business Case. Data Protection
Impact Assessments will however be undertaken as necessary during
the next stages of the LGR process. This will be particularly
important during the transition phase, where it is highly likely
that large volumes of client data will need to be migrated from KCC
to the new successor authority/authorities.
 

Decision

Cabinet agree to:
 

(a) 
APPROVE the KCC Strategic Business Case for Local Government
Reorganisation in Kent and Medway;
 
(b) 
DELEGATE authority to the Chief Executive, in consultation with the
Leader of the Council, to take the required actions to submit the
finalised Strategic Business Case Submission to Government by the
28 November deadline.
 
(c) 
DELEGATE authority to the Chief Executive to take other necessary
actions, including but not limited to negotiating and entering into
contracts or other legal agreements, as required to implement the
decision.