Shared services plan axed ahead of councils’ demise

Local government reorganisation scuppers three years of work

- Kerry Ashdown

WORK to increase the sharing of services between two Staffordshire councils is being halted - as both authorities face their own demise in the coming years.

Stafford Borough Council and Cannock Chase District Council have been working for almost three years towards sharing all but a small number of services under a single management team.

But the two councils are now facing the axe as part of local government reorganisation across England.

Staffordshire’s current two tier council system, which sees the county council responsible for some services and district and borough councils delivering others, is set to be replaced by single authorities.

Existing councils across Staffordshire and Stoke-on-Trent submitted plans this month ahead of yesterday's Government-set deadline.