Cookies on Fareham Borough Council's website

We use some essential cookies to make this site work. We'd like to set analytics cookies to understand how you use this site.

For more detailed information, see our Cookies page

Accept non-essential cookies Reject non-essential cookies

Essential cookies

These cookies are necessary for core functionality, such as security and network management. They always need to be on.

We use Google Analyitics to measure how you use the Fareham Borough Council website. These cookies collect information about how you got to the site, the pages you visit and how long you spend on each page, and what you click on.

Some pages of Fareham Borough Council's website include videos hosted on Vimeo and YouTube. If you enable this setting, this may result in the video sharing platform collecting information about your viewing for analytics and advertising purposes. If you don’t enable this setting, the pages will include external links instead.

Save and Close
Residents Business What's On MyAccount

Local Government Reorganisation

In December 2024, the government published the English Devolution White Paper External Hyperlink - Opens in new tab, which sets out plans to reform how local government is structured in England. The programme includes two main initiatives: Devolution and Local Government Reorganisation (LGR).

LGR has been progressing at pace in Hampshire.

Please see the timeline and next steps below.

If you would like more information, such as why Hampshire councils are being reorganised, what a unitary authority is, or any other query, scroll down to our frequently asked questions below.

26 September 2025

Business case submitted

Eleven councils across Hampshire, including Fareham, have today submitted a joint business case to Government proposing the creation of four new unitary authorities for mainland Hampshire.  The submission, titled "Close enough to be local, big enough to stay strong", sets out a vision for modern, sustainable local government that delivers better services while staying rooted in local communities.  

The new structure would see four new councils formed, grouped around the major centres of Southampton, Portsmouth, Winchester and Basingstoke. The Isle of Wight would stay its own island unitary authority, as it currently is. All three proposed options meet the Government's criteria for reorganisation, with an average population size of 500,000, and financial analysis shows that all three options would deliver over £63 million in recurring annual savings, through streamlined services, reduced duplication, and more efficient governance.

Following yesterday's Council meetings, Fareham Borough Council preferred option is 1a.

See the links below to read the submission and supporting appendices.  Alternatively you can view the three options that have been proposed.

The Government will consult publicly on the LGR options submitted to them before making its final decision which is expected in the spring of 2026.

 

Close enough to be local, big enough to stay strong  PDF (11 MB)Appendices PDF (35 MB)

25 September 2025

Fareham Borough Council approves option 1a

held two meetings to debate the options for LGR.  At the first Council meeting all councillors voted to support the proposed option for Fareham:  Option 1A; this decision was subsequently confirmed at a meeting of the Council's Executive.

03 September 2025

Proposals for four new mainland Hampshire unitary councils to save millions

Creating four new unitary councils for mainland Hampshire to replace the existing 14 councils, with the Isle of Wight remaining an independent island unitary council, would save at least £63.9 million a year - that's the finding of joint work by most of the councils in the county.  Our business case 'Close enough to be local, big enough to stay strong' will be debated at Council meetings on 25 September 2025.  You can read the full business case and supporting appendices by clicking on the links below.

Close enough to be local, big enough to stay strong PDF (23 MB)Appendices PDF (51 MB)

 

 

11 July 2025

Consultation launched: Let's Keep Fareham Together?

All councils in England have been asked by the Government to reorganise. This means that Hampshire County Council and all the District and Borough councils, including Fareham Borough Council, will be replaced over the next few years.

As part of this work, it's been suggested by some that the wards of Locks Heath, Park Gate and Sarisbury could be split from Fareham to join a different Unitary Authority alongside Southampton and Eastleigh. 

Fareham Borough Council has launched a public consultation to gather feedback on this suggestion from those that live in the Borough. The consultation will be live until 8 August and residents can have their say here: https://lets-talk.fareham.gov.uk/consultation/LetsKeepFarehamTogether.

Find out more by reading my press release: Consultation launched: Let's Keep Fareham Together?.

 

30 June 2025

Survey launched - how you can get involved

Twelve of the 15 councils in Hampshire and the Isle of Wight, including Fareham Borough Council, are working together to develop proposals for the new councils that will provide all services to their residents in future.

On 30 June the councils launched a survey called 'Our Place Our Future' to gather views to help understand what matters most to people and shape how local councils work in future, so they reflect real places, local identity and culture, priorities, and people. The public consultation will run until midnight on 27 July.  

Have your say on the future of local councils in Hampshire and the Isle of Wight at www.fareham.gov.uk/ourplaceourfuture.

Find out more by reading our press release: Local councils to undertake research ahead of finalising proposals for Local Government Reorganisation.

 

9th May 2025

Interim submission and feedback

We have received a feedback letter from the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government (MHCLG) in response to the LGR interim submission jointly submitted by 15 councils across Hampshire and the Solent.

Links to both the letter and the interim joint submission are detailed below.

Interim joint submission March 2025
Interim Plan feedback from MHCLG PDF (197 KB)

 

Frequently asked questions

Local government reorganisation means changing how councils are structured by replacing the two-tier system and instead having new, unitary local authorities, which will cover populations of at least 500,000. Each change will be decided individually, including for devolution.
A unitary authority is a single council that handles all local services in an area. It can cover a whole county, part of a county, or a large town or city. Examples include Cornwall Council, Nottingham City Council, and Reading Borough Council. London boroughs are also unitary authorities.
At the moment, Fareham residents receive some services from Fareham Borough Council, such as waste collection and planning, while other services such as highways, education and social care are provided by Hampshire County Council. Under the reorganisation, residents would receive all of these services from one unitary authority.
A final proposal from Hampshire and The Solent area is to be submitted to the government in September this year. Mayoral elections are expected to take place in May 2026, and the government expects the new councils to be in place for April 2027 or April 2028.