The councils will cover the north and south of Derbyshire and will replace the current council and seven other district and borough councils across Derbyshire and Derby City Council The council agreed unanimously at an extraordinary meeting on March 19 at their Buxton headquarters despite Derbyshire County Council’s desire for a single super-council unitary authority.  Local authorities in two-tier areas like Derbyshire that operate both county and district and borough councils face an uncertain future with the Labour Government’s Local Government Reorganisation White Paper proposing setting up single by merging or scrapping councils in two-tier authority areas.  “We weren’t expecting to have to reorganise ourselves before the White Paper landed and so we have a duty to engage with the process and help shape what comes next – or risk having reorganisation imposed on us to the potential detriment of our residents.  “Disappointingly and without any consultation with the other Derbyshire councils Derbyshire County Council sought to delay its elections and went public with a plan for a Derbyshire-wide unitary that would absorb all the districts and boroughs and leave Derby on its current boundary and wholly surrounded missing some of the requirements of any future proposals.        “We don’t believe Derbyshire County Council’s plans for a single unitary council covering the whole of Derbyshire and serving a population of over 800,000 residents is the right approach The organisation would be too large and too far removed from the diverse communities that we serve.      “I am therefore delighted that High Peak councillors have given the green light to submit the interim plan and continue to work with our district borough and city partners towards a final proposal in November.”      A consultation process is now due to seek the views of residents community representations and public sector partners with Cllr McKeown reassuring High Peak residents that their voice and input will be heard by neighbouring areas to help shape services that are provided to best meet local needs The Local Government reorganisation is expected to take place by April 2028 with Derbyshire’s eight district and borough councils affected being: Amber Valley, Bolsover North East Derbyshire and South Derbyshire.  Please subscribe or upgrade your membership To continue reading this article please sign in below or subscribe to our site High Peak Borough Council has announced that it will set up a wholly-owned company to manage its leisure centres following the launch of a Company registration number: 6650714VAT number: 938406505 We use cookies to enhance your browsing experience We use cookies to help you navigate efficiently and perform certain functions You will find detailed information about all cookies under each consent category below The cookies that are categorised as "Necessary" are stored on your browser as they are essential for enabling the basic functionalities of the site 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Advertisement cookies are used to provide visitors with customised advertisements based on the pages you visited previously and to analyse the effectiveness of the ad campaigns The Labour-controlled authority’s Executive considered a Budget plan report for the 2025-26 financial year at an Executive meeting on February 13 to be presented to the council at a forthcoming meeting with its proposed Medium-Term Financial Plan for 2025-26 to 2028-29 after considering the Government’s financial funding settlement for the authority A council spokesperson stated: “The financial settlement allows for up to a three per cent increase in council tax It should be noted that the Treasury’s published figures do assume all authorities maximise the increase if the maximum increase is not taken then that opportunity is lost forever Having completed the annual budget exercise a balanced budget for 2025-26 has been achieved “The final General Fund budget proposal for 2025-26 provides for a net budget of £15,169,200 and a council tax increase of £6.51 on a Band D equivalent property (2.99per cent).” Government has introduced a Funding Floor grant at £721,280 and Revenue Support Grant at £152,760 for 2025-26 and its settlement for the council also indicated there will be Employer National Insurance contributions funding but the amount has not yet been confirmed The council’s Chief Finance Officer has also stated that the level of reserves are adequate for the council based on this budget and the circumstances at the time the volatility of the national economic situation remains challenging and unpredictable and the potential impact of interest rates and inflation will continue to be monitored.   The Labour Government’s Local Government Reorganisation plans which include potentially creating unitary authorities in two-tier local authority areas in England like Derbyshire by introducing mayors and merging district and borough councils under a devolution White Paper are also having to be assessed by High Peak Borough Council.   A council spokesperson added: “The Paper sets out profound and far reaching changes to Local Government in England whilst the proposed changes are significant they are set out as intentions and there is much work to be done to establish the specific impact and associated timing on the council’s finances and so we assess this as a risk and continue to work with our colleagues across our region to develop plans in response.”    The spokesperson added: “This MTFP does not include any projections or estimation to reflect the potential financial implications of Local Government Reorganisation under English Devolution as there is not yet sufficient detail or certainty as to the impact This therefore represents a significant risk to the four-year balanced MTFP.”     High Peak Borough Council is also wary that any changes by Government to local authority core funding and the Business Rates Retention Scheme may have significant impacts on the council’s finances.    The council expects to incur costs higher than anticipated originally after setting the MTFP last year with an increase of three per cent anticipated with pay awards during the second half of the MTFP and although inflation has reduced from the high levels of recent years the council feels inflation remains volatile and unpredictable.   the council says it has established a balanced 2025-26 budget for the authority – overseen by Cllr Alan Barrow Executive Councillor for Corporate Services and Finance – on both the revenue and capital side but greater uncertainty and risk is expected in the MTFP for future years.   The council states the forecast predicts a balanced budget position by 2028-29 with a reduced use of reserves and the final Housing Revenue Account budget proposal for 2025-26 provides for a net budget of £17,611,580 based on a council dwelling rent increase of 2.7per cent which is the level at which the Government restricted the 2025-26 rent increase for existing tenants.    High Peak Borough Council’s Capital Strategy and Capital Programme have also been updated and the council states these will allow for additional investment in priority areas.    includes an updated General Fund Capital Programme of £37,271,110 over the period 2024-25 to 2028-29 and an HRA Capital Programme of £39,421,100 over the same period.    The budget setting and MTFP process provides the council with the opportunity to plan its delivery of public services and the report also establishes an overarching Capital Strategy setting out the fees and charges that are proposed for 2025-26 with details of its Procurement Forward Plan for 2025-26 involving expected contracts.   High Peak Borough Council’s Executive agreed to recommend at its meeting at The Pavilion Gardens that when the council next meets it approves a Band D Council Tax of £224.19 for 2025-26 with an increase of £6.51 or 2.99per cent and that all dwellings rents should increase by 2.7per cent increasing the average rent from £82.84 to £86.91 per week.   It has also recommended that the council approves the General Fund Budget for 2025/26 the revised MTFP for 2025-26 to 2028-29 the proposed Procurement Forward Plan for 2025-26 for contracts and that it notes the Chief Finance Officer’s view that the level of reserves are adequate.    The full council will consider the Executive’s budget and MTFP recommendations at a meeting on February 27 also attended to show her support for to the range of industries offering a chance for development.  was designed to connect residents with a wide range of industries From utility companies such as Severn Trent and United Utilities to engineering companies like Street Crane and Röchling Jon Pearce MP said “We had an amazing day at the jobs fair I would like to thank all the 50 exhibitors and attendees If we manage to get one a person a job or an apprenticeship that would be a huge success “From the feedback I have had that I know it was an enjoyable and meaningful experience for both job seekers and businesses It was brilliant to see young people trying to get their first job as well as those well into their career looking to upskill or retrain Everyone came together on an amazing day to build a stronger “We will be having another soon as this has been a massive success.”  a cement and concrete company with a quarry in High Peak attended the event as an exhibitor and said “Cemex were delighted to attend Jon Pearce MP’s High Peak careers The event was a brilliantly organised and supported event and was a great success The opportunity to bring together local employers and young people exploring pathways for their future was invaluable We were glad to see so much enthusiasm and look forward to supporting Jon further in the future with his vital plans to support skills and employment across High Peak and beyond.”