Have your say on local government changes in Derby and Derbyshire

Fewer Councils. Better Value. Stronger Communities.

We want to hear from everyone who lives, works or does business in Derby or Derbyshire. The government has asked us to look at ways to simplify how councils work here, so services are clearer and offer better value for money.

Right now, Derbyshire has different councils handling different things: Derbyshire County Council looks after services including schools, roads, and social care, and 8 district and borough councils manage services like emptying bins, housing, and planning.

Derby City Council runs all council services for people living in the city. Town and parish councils look after local spaces like parks and community halls.

Derbyshire County Council provides around 69% of all council services, with a net revenue spend of £1.865 billion in 2023/24. Derby City Council looks after 24%, and the district and borough councils share the remaining 6%.

This two-tier system has been in place since 1974. Now, the government wants us to rethink things and create new councils by 2028, bringing all councils services for a particular area under one roof, except services provided by town and parish councils which would remain unchanged. This will make it easier for you to know who does what and save money too.

Your views are important to us and we want your opinion on how these changes could work. The government has set some ground rules, the new councils must do everything current councils do, be big enough to be efficient and stable, cover at least 500,000 people, and deliver great value and quality. We believe it's important to retain a strong local identity too. Your feedback will help make sure your voice is heard and local needs are taken into consideration.

You may have already commented on options being proposed by the city, district and borough councils for changing the way local councils are organised. But it's important to make your views known about the slightly different set of options we've put together too, as the largest provider of council services in Derby and Derbyshire, so that government can take forward the best option for a simpler system with less bureaucracy and confusion over which council is responsible for what.

Tell us what you think

We're exploring options to combine the 10 existing councils into 2 new councils which provide all services in a particular area.

We're looking at different ways of doing this, thinking carefully about how services could be managed and how towns and villages would fit into new council areas. Now we want to know what matters to you, so please tell us what you think of the following options.

Option A

Two councils—one for northern Derbyshire (including Amber Valley) with 583,555 people, and one for southern Derbyshire with 494,345 people.

Option B

Two councils—northern Derbyshire (without Amber Valley) with 455,846 people, and southern Derbyshire (Amber Valley included) with 622,063 people.

Option C

Two councils with a new boundary, splitting the area so both have a similar population (northern Derbyshire: 542,100 and southern Derbyshire: 535,800).

The following map gives an example of where the new boundary could be placed.

Your feedback will help us decide the best way forward.

Before answering the survey, please review the summary information in the document attached to this page for more details. Read more about the process of reorganising local government on the Local Government Association website.

Now is your chance to have your say about proposed changes to councils in Derby and Derbyshire and tell us what matters to you.