A Rutland town council is going to bring the plight of the county to the attention of the monarch, in a bid to save its name. 

King Charles will be receiving a letter from Uppingham Town Council about local government reorganisation, which will almost certainly see the replacement of the current county council with a larger authority, likely to include parts of Leicestershire. 

At last night's meeting of Uppingham Town Council members decided to take action after hearing a presentation from Cllr Ron Simpson. He, along with other parish councillors, had attended a meeting with chief executive of the county council Mark Edwards, who had given a briefing on how things stand. 

Cllr Ron Simpson said: "It is the first time I have heard him say Rutland is dead. Rutland County Council will not be there." 



Uppingham Council met to discuss the potential that Rutland could lose its status as a ceremonial county (Photo: LRDS)

There is some uncertainty about what could happen to the Rutland name and county status if the county council is abolished. Rutland became a district of Leicestershire under the Local Government Act 1972, which took effect in 1974, and only re-established independence with the formation of the current unitary authority in 1997. 

There is some hope Rutland could remain a ceremonial county and retain its Lord Lieutenant, but Rutland and Stamford MP Alicia Kearns (Con) believes there would need to be new legislation enacted by parliament for this to happen. 

Uppingham Town Council decided a letter would be written to the king to 'seek support for the preservation of the ceremonial county'. 

Councillor Simpson said the reorganisation could present opportunities for Uppingham Town Council and lead to it taking on more services, but there would be discussion with neighbouring councils to gauge possibilities. 

As well as writing to the king, the council will also write to nearby district councils to ask their views on the proposed changes, and how they see town and parish councils fitting in. 

It was announced yesterday that Leicestershire and Rutland will not be part of the first wave of local government reorganisation and that Leicestershire local elections will go ahead on May 1. 

Devolution will be discussed at a meeting of Rutland County Council's full council on Tuesday (Feb 11). The decision will come down to the leader Gale Waller.