North Devon council plan to cost £150k

NORTH Devon Council is going it alone to build a case for a super council in the north of the county under local government reorganisation - but warns it could cost £150,000.

- ALISON STEPHENSON

Councillors want Barnstaple to be a hub for services in the future as the government looks to get rid of the two tier system of district and county councils which currently exists in Devon.

Members fear the district could be sucked up by Exeter and lose its identity when the county is divided up into fewer but larger unitary councils responsible for all local services from waste to children's and adult social care.

At a special North Devon Council meeting on Wednesday, councillors agreed to look at two options which focus on a greater northern Devon area alongside the 1:4:5 model. This is favoured by the other districts and puts North Devon and its neighbour Torridge in a unitary authority with Exeter.

However, they were told it could cost £150,000 or more to finance the work to build a north-focused proposal to put before Government in November.