The upcoming Mid Sussex District Council meeting will address local government reorganisation in West Sussex, consider a review of the council's constitution, and discuss the admission of a new member to the Greater Brighton Economic Board¹. Councillors will also have the opportunity to ask questions of the Leader of the Council, Councillor Robert Eggleston, and other cabinet members.

Local Government Reorganisation in West Sussex

A primary focus of the meeting will be a discussion of the business case for Local Government Reorganisation (LGR) in West Sussex. The aim is to decide which of the options for unitary local government the council will propose to the government.

Kathryn Hall, Chief Executive, in her report included in the Public reports pack, summarises the three viable options outlined in the business case:

• Option A: A single, county wide unitary council
• Option B: Two unitary councils (west/east), with two variants:
  • B1: Adur Council is placed in the eastern unitary council (with Mid Sussex, Crawley and Horsham).
  • B2: Adur Council is in the western unitary alongside Arun, Chichester and Worthing councils.

The report pack includes a letter from Jim McMahon, Minister of State for Local Government, inviting West Sussex councils to submit proposals for LGR, with implementation planned for April 2028. The government will use six core evaluation criteria to judge proposals, including whether they:

• achieve a single tier for local government covering the whole area
• are the right size to achieve efficiencies and improve capacity
• prioritise delivery of high quality and sustainable services
• show how councils have worked together and engaged with the public
• support devolution arrangements
• enable stronger community empowerment

The report pack also includes the West Sussex LGR Business Case, which evaluates the options against the government's criteria. According to the business case, Option A and Options B1 & B2 are financially viable, but Option A performs better, with annual net benefits of £48.8m compared to £18.8m for Options B1 & B2. The payback period for Option A is also shorter, at 2.3 years compared to 6.4 years for Options B1 & B2.

The report pack includes draft supplementary statements for Option A and Option B to assist councillors in developing their thinking.

Constitution Review

The council is scheduled to discuss a review of its constitution. The report pack includes a Constitution Review document and a tracked version of the Appendix A - Constitution September 2025 - Tracked Version, outlining proposed changes.

The report pack also includes the Appendix B - LGA Model Parental Leave Policy, a model parental leave policy from the Local Government Association².

Greater Brighton Economic Board

The council is scheduled to discuss the admission of a new member to the Greater Brighton Economic Board. The report pack includes a Greater Brighton Economic Board Membership document and Appendix 1 Heads of Terms for Greater Brighton Economic Board October 2025.

Recommendations from Cabinet

The council is scheduled to consider recommendations from the Cabinet meeting held on 15 September 2025. The Recommendations from Cabinet - 15 September 2025 report pack outlines these recommendations.