Suffolk County Council: Building a business case for reorganisation

In December 2024, the UK Government published its white paper on devolution. This marked a transformative step in the governance of England, with far-reaching implications for local authorities.

Central to the proposals was the ambition to streamline and enhance local governance through universal coverage of strategic authorities—partnerships that bring councils and mayors together to deliver on regional priorities. To help achieve this, the Government outlined a dual approach: fostering collaboration within coherent and functional geographies while undertaking significant local government reorganisations in areas where current structures hinder effective delivery.

The challenge

Suffolk County Council was selected – alongside Norfolk County Council – by the Government, as one of six areas that would form part of its devolution priority programme. A selection that placed it on an ambitious and far-reaching programme of change. In order to meet the accelerated timescales the council required a strategic partner to support them in driving forward the development of their business case for local government reorganisation.

The solution

We took responsibility for the management and delivery of the overarching programme, undertaking detailed and robust technical and financial analysis of the range of different options; and drafting the interim plan and business case for reorganisation.

While there's been a focus on the development of the business case, the work has looked beyond it and examined how the council can best prepare for change and transformation – ensuring that lessons from previous rounds of unification are being learnt and that Suffolk County Council are in the best possible position.

We were initially responsible for preparing the interim plan – an outline case requested by the Government via a response to core questions. Through this process, we engaged extensively with key officers and members. At this stage the work focused on two core elements.

The first task was to create robust analytical foundations that delivered socio-economic and financial analysis at pace. This enabled the analysis of multiple different configurations and the completion of an outline options appraisal against key elements of the Government’s criteria, including financial sustainability.

Secondly, we established the strategic case for change. This outline narrative explored a range of different qualitative and quantitative factors to help decide which option would be best for people and businesses in Suffolk, while also offering the most financial resilience and ensuring that critical services would be protected and enhanced.

The result

As the business case has developed, these areas have expanded significantly. At the heart of the case remains a detailed, ‘bottom-up’ financial analysis of the costs and savings of the different potential options. These are being supplemented by a broad range of workshops, and task and finish groups, technical analysis, and extensive stakeholder engagement.

Our priority is ensuring that the business case is robust and aligned to each of the Government’s key decision-making criteria.

Throughout this process we've sought to ensure that the assumptions are clearly laid out and that they reflect the critical lessons – both positive and negative – learnt from authorities that have previously been through the unification process.

For more insight and guidance, get in touch with Rob Turner.