How will local services benefit

A single unitary council for the whole of Devon, excluding Plymouth and Torbay, would be big enough to support all the current County Council and District Council services.

A unitary Council would have the capacity to raise the performance of current District Council services to the level of the best in the county so that there will no longer be the lottery situation where, for example, some people get a very good recycling service or a very poor one depending on where they live.

Merging the County and District Councils into one new unitary council would generate enough savings to provide more money to spend on improving local communities – over and above what the new unitary council will spend in those communities on all the important public services such as schools, care for the elderly, roads, public transport, refuse collection, libraries and street lighting.

What would happen to current Housing services?

Housing is currently a service provided by District and City Councils.  With a single unitary Council for Devon, Housing would become the responsibility of that new Council.

Devon housing authorities are already working closely together to deliver housing choices in Devon. Housing authorities have jointly and successfully made a bid to put a scheme in place across the whole of Devon that will provide people applying for housing more choice to meet their needs.

How is a Devon-wide unitary authority going to be responsive to local Housing needs?

The needs and circumstances of individual households will always be a factor in determining the allocation of housing.  In any single unitary authority there will need to be account taken of local geography – local housing market areas for example – and a need to re-examine the way that people are allocated housing.

The District, City and County Councils will need to work closely to ensure the best outcomes for individual households and local communities.

How will planning be dealt with?

This has been an issue raised at most of the consultation meetings organised by the County Council, reflecting its importance to local communities.

People want a fast and efficient service when it comes to dealing with their planning applications or lodging an objection. We must seize the opportunity to provide the public with good local access to the planning service and there are a variety ways in which that could be done.

People have expressed an interest in the development of a local one stop shop centre in their nearest town which would serve as the local office of the Unitary Council and could be combined with or indeed managed by the Town Council, and include access to other services such as the local library as in the new Watermark Centre in Ivybridge.

This type of centre could include facilities for lodging planning applications or objections and getting advice. Such facilities could include a video-link to the main planning office of the unitary council or a surgery for visiting planning officers.

In consultation with their Community Forums, we think Community Boards could play an important role with Town and Parish Councils in shaping and agreeing the Local Development Framework for their areas so that local residents feel that they have had a real say in influencing the future development of their communities.

Looking beyond the Community Board areas, we have listened to the views of many people who feel that decisions on major issues such as housing provision, economic development, roads, transport and waste management need to be planned across a much wider area to ensure the development is well thought through and coherently planned.

In developing our ideas we have been mindful of the influence of the travel to work areas in Devon. This is why our recommendation to the Boundary Committee suggests area boards for Devon, taking a view on spatial and economic issues for each of the three main travel to work areas in the county.

Working to them, the concept also sees the creation of sub-committees dealing with the more detailed aspects of planning, and licensing and regulation.

How would Devon’s proposals affect my local school?

Governors and headteachers would continue to be responsible for the local management of their schools and dedicated budgets. Our 365 schools, supported by a Devon education authority and specialist services, are a good example of how vital countywide services can be managed at a local level within an overall umbrella of support, and perform well.

How would this affect my council services?

The County Council proposal would strengthen existing countywide services and raise the performance of existing District Council services to the level of the best currently delivered in Devon.

When will any new unitary council or councils begin providing services in Devon?

The Boundary Committee has been asked to provide advice to the Government by December 31, 2008. The Government has to allow four weeks for comments on the Committee’s recommendations and, if Ministers decide to proceed, put an implementation order for any new unitary council before Parliament in the new year of 2009. It is understood that the Government would want to see any new unitary councils in operation by April, 2010.

More information on the Boundary Committee Review

How would a single unitary council for Devon affect the integration of services?

Devon County Council provides 85% of your local government services already, and many, specifically those for children and young people and adults, are integrated or are integrating with other authorities, such as Health.

A unitary Devon would ensure this continued integration of adults’ health and social care, and integration of services for children and young people.  

Breaking up the county into more than a single unitary council would hinder the ongoing integration of services, if more authorities are created.

What difference will we see?

Instead of there being one County Council and eight District Councils, each with their different ways of contacting them, residents would have one point of contact for all their council services.  There would no longer be any confusion about ‘who provides which services’.

The quality of services should also improve.  A unitary Council would have the capacity to raise the performance of current District Council services to the level of the best in the county so that no longer will we have the lottery situation where, for example, some people get a very good recycling service or a very poor one depending on where they live.

Merging the County and District Councils into one new unitary council would generate enough savings to provide more money to spend on improving local communities – over and above what the new unitary council will spend in those communities on all the important public services such as schools, care for the elderly, roads, public transport, refuse collection, libraries and street lighting.

What will happen to District Council assets? e.g. car parks, industrial estates, housing etc?

All assets and liabilities of authorities which cease to exist will transfer to the successor authority.

One unitary council for the whole of Devon means that it will designate the whole of Devon as the Housing Authority under legislation.  How will this affect the allocation of council-owned properties to residents?

Under the Boundary Committee Proposals thenew Devon unitary authority, as the housing authority, will develop and operate housing policy in line with legislation; taking into account the need for people where possible to remain in their existing local communities, or to move to anotherlocality should their requirements change or should they choose. The priority of the new council will be to ensure the best use of existing housing stock to ensure that local people have local choice.