Rutland and South Lincolnshire will not merge to former a single unitary authority under local government reform.  

South Kesteven, North Kesteven and South Holland district councils are expected to unite, leaving Rutland to join councils in Leicestershire. 

Papers put forward for meetings of both Rutland County Council and South Kesteven District Council on Thursday 20 November suggest the Rutland/South Lincolnshire bid has been dropped.  

In a 234-page submission to Government, the South Lincolnshire councils say if they chose to merge with Rutland there is "a very significant risk of non-compliance" with the rules of the local government reform, because it would mean blending authorities across county borders. 

It adds that "compliance would be a matter of Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government discretion" which it sees as an "unacceptable risk". 

The section of the document on the Rutland/South Lincolnshire bid concludes: "Therefore the Rutland option is not taken forward. North Kesteven and South Kesteven District Councils remain willing to include Rutland in a unitary council should Rutland County Council and the Government agree that it is the optimal solution and should be taken forward." 

This summary will come as a blow to many Rutlanders.  



North, City, South proposal for Leicestershire and Rutland (Photo: LDRS)

Surveys by Rutland County Council and by the local MP had found the Lincolnshire proposal popular. 

As well as considering South Lincolnshire, Rutland has been working with councils in Melton, Charnwood and North West Leicestershire to draw up a proposal for a new unitary council covering North Leicestershire and Rutland. 

All councils involved in the reorganisation have to tell the Government their preference by Friday 28 November. Government ministers will then decide the geographical make-up of the new, larger councils. 

Reorganisation has been a headache for councils. In the summer, Conservative councillors staged a vote of no confidence in Rutland's Liberal Democrat leader, Gale Waller.  

MP Alicia Kearns (Con – Rutland and Stamford) criticised Rutland County Council's Liberal Democrat administration, and leaked emails revealed Cllr Waller felt pressured into supporting the South Lincolnshire option by South Kesteven District Council leader Ashley Baxter (Ind).  

He said in response that it had become "increasingly clear" that Rutland County Council has been "actively supporting a merger with Leicestershire districts". 

Despite this, if the Government decides Rutland and South Lincolnshire should merge, South Kesteven District Council says it would be willing to work with Rutland. 

On Thursday, Rutland County Council will take an informal vote on proposals, and the council's cabinet will make a final decision the following day. 

Cllr Lucy Stephenson, Conservative group leader at Rutland County Council, said: "The shame of it is that so many of our residents showed they would preferred the Lincolnshire model. The opportunity to explore that has now gone."