The East and West Surrey Joint Committees met for the final time at Guildford Borough Council offices on Monday, 11 May.
Since January, the Joint Committees have met monthly, laying the foundations for a well-managed transition and providing stability during a period of change. After the shadow councils hold their inaugural meetings on 20 and 21 May, the Joint Committees will dissolve, and their transition responsibilities will sit with the shadow councils moving forward.
The final Joint Committee meetings included discussions on items for the new shadow authorities to consider at their first meetings:
Implementation Plan
The Joint Committees noted the final draft of a single Implementation Plan that will guide the transition to the new East and West Surrey unitary councils in April 2027.
The draft Plan sets out how existing Surrey councils will deliver the transition safely, legally and responsibly. It also provides a roadmap for the work required to move from the current system to two new unitary councils, while maintaining high-quality services.
Member allowances
Local authorities in England are responsible for setting their own schemes of pay for members. These are formal frameworks which compensate members for time, expenses, and duties, often including basic payment and special responsibility allowances. Amounts are recommended by an Independent Remuneration Panel (IRP).
Proposed recommendations will be put forward to the shadow councils with some amendments.
The proposed Constitutions for the new councils
The Joint Committees reviewed the updated draft Constitutions for East and West Surrey shadow councils. Amendments were based on feedback from the Joint Committees’ March meetings.
A Constitution is a council’s rule book, setting out how it works, who makes decisions, the powers of councillors and officers, and how the public can get involved – it is required by law for every council in England.
At their first meetings, each shadow council will be asked to agree its Constitution. The Joint Committees recommended that the shadow councils adopt the draft Constitutions, pending minor amendments.
Interim statutory officer designations
The Joint Committees agreed to recommend interim statutory officers to each of the shadow councils. The interim statutory roles are:
- Interim Head of Paid Service (HoPS)
- Interim Chief Finance Officer (section 151 officer)
- Interim Monitoring Officer
This process is set out in the Surrey (Structural Changes) Order (SCO) 2026. Interim statutory officers will support the new shadow councils, ensuring that decisions are made lawfully and that the new organisations have robust governance frameworks in place.
Appointed interim statutory officers will carry out these duties alongside their current jobs until permanent roles are recruited later this year.
The East Surrey and West Surrey shadow councils will consider these items at their first meetings on 20 and 21 May. The East Surrey shadow council will meet on 20 May in Reigate. West Surrey shadow council will meet on 21 May in Guildford. These meetings will be webcast.
You can view the meeting papers, the full list of councillors for each committee and the webcasts:
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