Published: Wednesday, 9th September 2026
Changes planned to the structure of council services, known as Local Government Reorganisation (LGR), have been paused in Norfolk and some other areas while the Government undertakes a review.
The Government initially decided in March this year that three unitary councils (Greater Norwich, East Norfolk and West Norfolk) was its chosen way forward for Norfolk at the time. Three councils is the Future Norfolk proposal put forward jointly by the Borough Council of King’s Lynn and West Norfolk, together with five other districts.
However, this week the Government has announced it was withdrawing the LGR decisions it had made in four areas, including Norfolk and Suffolk, in order to conduct a review of those decisions, alongside 14 other LGR areas.
The announcement states the review is following updated legal advice, to ensure the process is robust and aligns with new Government priorities, following a change in national political leadership under a new Prime Minister.
As a new administration, the Government says the review is a pause to reflect before implementing final decisions, but its commitment to reform and reorganisation hasn't changed. This is a pause for review, not a cancellation of LGR in Norfolk.
Owing to the review, local elections to every seat of the borough council will now take place in May 2027, alongside parish elections, instead of holding elections to elect councillors to new unitary authorities as previously timetabled for 2027.
Councillor Alistair Beales, the Council Leader, said: “With a new Prime Minister in office, who was not even an MP when the Local Government Reorganisation proposals were drafted, and with Angela Rayner now back as Secretary of State, having been out of office when the LGR decisions were taken, it is no surprise that they want to pause the LGR process and review the situation.
“The two-tier system of district councils like Kings & West Norfolk Borough Council in conjunction with Norfolk County Council have served Norfolk well since 1974 and any new unitary system needs to be as good as it can possibly be to replace that system.
“But any idea of replacing the existing eight councils in Norfolk with one or two super councils would not serve local communities well and would be too distant from those they should be serving to be the truly local government that Norfolk people deserve.
“If district and county councils are to be replaced, three sizable councils delivering all local services based around the historic centres of King’s Lynn, Norwich and Great Yarmouth is undoubtedly the way forward.”
You can also watch a video with further reflections from Cllr Beales here.
Once the Government has completed its review and made a final decision, the Borough Council remains committed to working closely with other councils across Norfolk to prepare to integrate services and reorganise, if necessary. In the meantime, the Borough Council continues to prioritise delivering excellent services for local communities, while Norfolk awaits further details from Government.