The Bromsgrove District Council convened an extraordinary meeting to discuss the next steps regarding local government reorganisation in Worcestershire. The councillors were scheduled to review the findings of an options appraisal, and consider which model of local government reorganisation should be progressed into final proposals for submission to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government. A supplementary budget for further work on the council's proposal was also up for consideration.

Local Government Reorganisation Options

The council was scheduled to consider a report on the outcome of an options appraisal regarding local government reorganisation in Worcestershire, ahead of a submission to the Ministry of Housing Communities and Local Government ¹ by 28 November 2025. The report included the findings of an options appraisal conducted by Mutual Ventures, which considered two options:

• Option A: A single unitary authority for the whole of Worcestershire.
• Option B: Two unitary authorities, one for North Worcestershire (Bromsgrove, Redditch, and Wyre Forest) and one for South Worcestershire (Malvern Hills, Worcester City, and Wychavon). This option had two variants, B1 and B2.

The report noted that the Minister of State for Local Government and English Devolution had invited the council leaders in Worcestershire to develop a proposal for single-tier reorganisation. The invitation was made under Part 1 of the Local Government and Public Involvement in Health Act 2007.

The report stated that there was not unanimous agreement across the county to investigate both options further. Bromsgrove District Council agreed to work with the other District Councils in Worcestershire (excluding Wyre Forest District Council) to jointly commission a piece of work, and following a procurement exercise, Mutual Ventures were selected to produce an Options Appraisal.

The report noted feedback received from the MHCLG on 3 June 2025, and stated that this feedback would need to be used to develop any final proposals for submission in November 2025.

The report also noted that County Council elections had taken place on 1 May 2025, resulting in a new administration taking over Worcestershire County Council.

The report summarised the options as follows:

• Option A: A new single unitary council for the whole county of Worcestershire, achieved by transferring all statutory and non-statutory services, functions, and operating models from Worcestershire County Council and the six district councils to the new unitary council.
• Option B1: Two new unitary councils: North Worcestershire and South Worcestershire. This would involve the disaggregation and transferring of all statutory and non-statutory services, functions, and operating models from Worcestershire County Council to the new unitary councils, as well as the aggregation and transferring of all statutory and non-statutory services, functions, and operating models from district councils to their respective new unitary council.
• Option B2: Two new unitary councils: North Worcestershire and South Worcestershire, offering a shared service/hybrid model across both new unitary councils, with specific services (i.e., adult social care, children's services, education, adult education, and transport) jointly delivered and commissioned. All other services would be delivered and commissioned by each new unitary council, including prevention and early help.

The report included a summary of the Shape Worcestershire Survey, which was carried out from 1 June to 29 June 2025. The headline results were:

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