Initial findings from a county-wide public engagement survey into the shake-up of local government show 70% of people are concerned that some areas might be overlooked if councils are reorganised.
Over 2,000 people have already completed the online survey, which asks the public for their views on national Government plans to move towards a new system of local government, removing the current two-tier structure of district and city councils and county councils. Existing unitary councils including Peterborough are also included.
Businesses and other organisations are also being invited to have their say.
Councillor Dennis Jones, Leader of Peterborough City Council, said: “We know that Local Government Reorganisation may not sound that exciting to many of our residents, but it is the biggest shake-up of local government in a generation and will mean a new council serving our residents from 2027.
“It is for this reason why I encourage everyone in the city to take part in the engagement exercise so that we can factor their thoughts and feelings into the proposals we submit to government later in the year.
“The responses so far show that it is important to residents that the ‘local’ remains in local government. This is important to me too, so that residents continue to be served by councils and councillors with the local knowledge to be able to ensure residents’ needs are met and that the nuances of local areas are not overlooked.
“Change is coming, and we have a fantastic opportunity to secure Peterborough’s future prosperity whilst continuing to provide high quality public services, whilst maintaining a strong connection with the residents that we serve. I also wish to maintain our administration’s strong track record of being truly consultative with and for the people we serve.
“Please take our short survey – it only takes around 10 minutes to complete and at the end you have the option to say in your own words what you value about local council services and crucially what you think needs to be improved.”
More information and a link to the surveys is available on our website here.