In two months' time, councils in Hertfordshire will have submitted their proposals for local government reorganisation (LGR) in the county – but which one will eventually be chosen by the Government?

The aim of the process is to simplify Hertfordshire's current upper two-tier system of the county council and 10 district or borough councils into a single tier of a smaller number of unitary councils in what represents the biggest change in local government in half a century.

The county council is responsible for services such as education, social care, highways, waste disposal, public health, trading standards, libraries and the fire and rescue service.

The district or borough councils – from Dacorum in the west to East Herts Council in the east and from North Herts in the north to Three Rivers in the south – cover housing, local planning, waste collection and licensing.

The deadline for submitting the full LGR proposal is November 28. After consulting with the councils, the Government will decide next summer on which approach to take. Elections will take place in April or May 2027 for the new shadow unitary authorities and they will officially take over responsibilities in April 2028.

Councils have come up with a short-list of three options that would lead to the creation of two, three or four new unitary authorities. They are currently subject to public consultation.

Here, the leaders of three district and borough councils in the county tell the Local Democracy Reporting Service why they are at least leaning towards – if not yet fully backing – their preferred short-listed options.

TWO UNITARIES

St Albans City and District Council leader Cllr Paul de Kort stresses that he has yet to commit formally to one of the three options but says he is "leaning towards" the belief that two unitaries could be the best option for Hertfordshire.

Under this proposal, the county would be split into West – the districts currently covered by Dacorum, Hertsmere, St Albans, Three Rivers and Watford councils – and East: Broxbourne, East Herts, North Herts, Stevenage and Welwyn Hatfield.

Cllr de Kort says he is focused on financial modelling, the way population flows around the county and provision of services.

In particular he points to the delivery, funding and staffing of services that include adult social care, children's services and highways, looking for an option that will ensure high-quality services and lower risks.

With increased financial pressures on local government, Cllr De Kort says he will focus on financial modelling in making his own decision – acknowledging that they have yet to be presented with final financial data – and the need to be able to recruit people to top jobs in each of the new authorities.

For example, whereas now there is just one county-wide director of children's services and one director of adult care services, each new unitary authority would require one of their own.

Cllr de Kort says that raises questions not only about paying for them, but about being able to recruit enough candidates with the right experience and quality.

"Lots of other local authorities are going through the same so there's going to be competition for those crucial jobs," he said. "And if we go down the four unitary model that's four of each that we need – that's an important element."

Cllr de Kort says he is also focusing on the 'flow' of areas within each option, where residents live, work, travel to and have connections with.

He says the east-west option reflects the big differences there are between Watford and Ware, between Stevenage and St Albans, in terms of identity and economic functionality.

Each council under the two unitary option would have populations in excess of 600,000. He says the number of councillors would have to be high enough to facilitiate effective representation.

THREE UNITARIES.

Cllr Stephen Giles-Medhurst, leader of Three Rivers District Council and the executive member for highways and transport on Hertfordshire County Council, says the current two-tier system is working, but acknowledges that the Government is driving the reorganisation.

He backs the three unitary authorities option. Under this proposal, the county would be split into: East – Broxbourne, East Herts, North Herts and Stevenage; West – Dacorum, Three Rivers, Watford and part of Welwyn Hatfield (the county council electoral divisions of Bushey North and Bushey South); Central – Hertsmere, St Albans and most of Welwyn Hatfield (excluding Bushey North and Bushey South).

Cllr Giles-Medhurst accepts the two unitary option would give economies of scale, but, in terms of local engagement, these 'mega' councils would cover too big a population, leading to under-representation for residents.

Under the three unitary option, the new councils – with 80 to 90 councillors on each – would still cover a population of 400,000 residents, he says, but that represents better local engagement.

Focusing on the west of the county, he believes putting Dacorum, Watford and Three Rivers together is the 'best fit' for the area. He cites the similarities between the three, the joint services that already exist between Watford and Three Rivers, the transport links to London and the geography. And it would bring Kings Langley – whose train station is in Three Rivers but whose shopping centre is in Dacorum – within the same area.

There are concerns about the splitting of some county-wide services, such as social care and children's services. But Cllr Giles-Medhurst says that whether splitting into two, three or four, they will have to make sure that it works. And he says reorganisation cannot just be about saving money, but about making sure the right services are provided.

In recent weeks, he has attended six public sessions in Three Rivers as part of the county-wide consultation and says the views from residents have been mixed. They see that bigger councils could make savings, he says, while at the same time being quite remote – pointing to the possibility of residents in Rickmansworth having their council HQ in St Albans.

FOUR UNITARIES

In backing the option for four unitaries, Stevenage Borough Council leader Cllr Richard Henry highlights growing population sizes and geographical connections, as well as the ability to provide flexible services.

Under this option the county would be split into: West – Dacorum and St Albans; South West – Hertsmere, Three Rivers and Watford; Central – Stevenage and the bulk of both North Herts and Welwyn Hatfield; East – Broxbourne and East Herts with parts of North Herts (the wards of Royston Heath, Royston Palace, Royston Meridian, Ermine, Weston & Sandon and Arbury) and Welwyn Hatfield (Northaw & Cuffley ward).

Cllr Henry says that with a population of around 300,000 each, they would be bigger than most existing unitary authorities accross the country but would still give a "sense of localism".

He says it is important to consider not just the populations on 'day one' of the new councils but also in 10-20 years' time. Expected housing growth could see those populations swell to between 330,000 and 340,000.

Cllr Henry said that the geography of the four unitaries option reflects where residents live, work, shop and spend their leisure time; for example, the A1(M) corridor links North Herts, Stevenage and Welwyn Hatfieldt.

He says the same connections exist in the East, with towns connected by the A10, as well as strong 'natural linkages' between towns in West and South West.

Most residents are less interested in who runs councils or the size of the populations they serve than in ensuring services are run efficiently, he says.

Stressing the need for efficiency and getting services right, he suggests the four unitary proposal would still result in "quite big" councils that would be able to offer a flexibility over services.

Reducing the number of councils from 11 to four would create efficiencies and savings, he says – and just as some district and boroughs share services now, there may be opportunities for the new unitaries to follow suit.

• In recent weeks, councils have been running public engagement events to outline the various options. An online public survey, which runs until September 30, can be found at hertfordshire-lgr.co.uk.