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Introducing...

Oxford & Shires Council and Ridgeway Council

A map of Oxford & Shires Council area and the Ridgeway Council area, both described in the website text, and

Local councils are changing. We currently have two tiers of local government in Oxfordshire: district and county councils - these will be replaced by new unitary councils that will provide all local government services.

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The government invited us to send in proposals for new unitary councils for the Oxfordshire area. Five of the seven councils in the area have submitted a proposal for two new unitary councils that cover the following areas:

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Oxford & Shires created from the existing district councils of Cherwell, Oxford City and West Oxfordshire.

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Ridgeway Council created from the existing district councils of South Oxfordshire and Vale of White Horse and the unitary council of West Berkshire.

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You can read more on this website or you can download the full proposal and a shorter, easier-to-digest version using the buttons below.

Why is this happening?

​The government aims to reorganise and simplify the structures of councils in England by replacing county and district councils with unitary authorities – this is known as local government reorganisation (LGR). Many areas of the country are already served by unitary councils.  

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Existing councils were invited by the government to submit proposals. Three were submitted in November 2025 and were consulted on in February 2026.

The government consultation

​The government is now assessing the consultation responses and reviewing the three proposals, and will be making a decision this summer. 

The three proposals

You can read more about the three proposals being considered using the links below. 

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A unitary council covering the whole of Oxfordshire

This proposal is being supported by Oxfordshire County Council - click the button below to find out more.

OUR PREFERRED OPTION
Two Unitary Councils

You can read more about our proposal for two unitary councils on this website.  This proposal is being supported by Cherwell District Council, South Oxfordshire District Council, West Berkshire Council, West Oxfordshire District Council and the Vale of White Horse District Council.

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Scroll down to find out more.

Three unitary councils

Three unitary councils based around an expanded Greater Oxford Council. This proposal is being supported by Oxford City Council - click the button below to find out more. 

The Two Councils proposal

Please use the links below to learn more about our proposal for two unitary councils: Oxford & Shires Council and Ridgeway Council

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Read our proposal

Our full-length proposal document goes into significant detail about how our two new unitary councils would make a real difference to our communities.

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Improving services

During our public engagement, you were very clear that there are council services in need of improvement - find out how our proposal has service improvement at its heart. 

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Public finances

Independent financial analysis shows our proposal could save more than £59m a year, every year. It would also make the most expensive services more cost-effecive.

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Local community

The government has been clear that it wants to bring decision-making closer to communities. That's why our proposal puts community and local knowledge and understanding at the heart of the two new councils. 

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Growth and Prosperity

Our area is home to a vibrant, thriving economy, and our proposal builds on those foundations, links directly to existing growth plans - and sets a platform for greater economic growth and prosperity. 

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How you helped

Our proposal was built upon thousands of comments we received from residents, community organisations and groups, businesses and much more.  

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The two councils

Find out more about Oxford & Shires and Ridgeway - the two councils that make up our proposal.​

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Why two?

Find out why we believe that two councils offers the right balance between being big enough to be financially resilient and local enough to be close to our communities.

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What's next?

Find out about the government's consultation and the decision making process - and when the new councils could be up and running.

What would happen to the existing councils and the services they provide?

If this proposal got the go-ahead, in Oxfordshire and West Berkshire, all the same services would still be provided, but by two newly formed unitary authorities.

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By bringing services together under one new council, we could reduce duplication, cut overheads, and free up more money for the services you rely on every day. This would mean: 

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  • Fewer separate systems to navigate 

  • One point of contact when you need help 

  • Better coordination behind the scenes

  • An opportunity to improve and simplify how we do things

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