Revealed Survey Shows SCC’s Preferred Two-unitary Option Has Least Public Support

Published on: 8 Jun, 2025
Updated on: 8 Jun, 2025

SCC Devolution Proposal Map

By Martin Giles

The two-unitary option for Surrey’s local government reorganisation, as preferred by Surrey County Council, is the least favoured by residents according to a previously unpublished residents’ survey conducted by the county council. Only 25 per cent of residents invited to take part in an online survey supported it.

The three-unitary proposal preferred by 33 percent of survey respondents and nine of Surrey’s eleven districts and boroughs (image RBC)

A third of the respondents supported the three-unitary option, proposed by nine Borough and
District Councils including Guildford, Waverley and Woking, and another third supported a single-unitary option, although this is thought unlikely to still be under consideration by the Government.

Cllr Steven McCormick

The information was revealed following a question at last week’s SCC Audit and Governance Committee by Residents’ Association county councillor Steven McCormick (Epsom Town & Downs). He said: “We knew that a survey had been conducted and were surprised that it had not been published alongside all the other data that has been issued to support the two-unitary options.”

In its response, SCC stated that the survey was conducted with an online panel of around 1,400 residents, who are broadly representative of Surrey’s population, and all results had been weighted to be representative of the population.

A SCC spokesperson said: “The online panel told us their thoughts and preferred outcomes on LGR… This was a response rate of 34 per cent and compares favourably with other panels we run.”

Cllr Catherine Powell

Cllr Catherine Powell, Leader of the Residents’ Association and Independent Group (RA&IG) at SCC, commented: “On one hand we are told that the response rate is favourable, and yet on the other the only detail on responses that has been released is the detail that supports the Final Plan.

“Why was the information that showed higher support for the three-unitary option, supported by nine of the District and Boroughs, not included? All of the surveys that have been conducted show more support for three unitary authorities in Surrey, including the one done by SCC, and this should have been shared, in line with the Nolan Principals.”

The Nolan Principles, which include Openness and Honesty, are supposed to be followed by those in public life, including politicians and civil servants at all levels.

The SCC response to the question also stated that: “Careful consideration was undertaken of the results, alongside other data to influence the proposal [sent to the Government].”

Cllr Eber Kington

Another RA&IG member, Eber Kington, said: “This reluctance to publish the data is another example of how the public are being excluded from the whole LGR debate. Having been denied the right to vote in the cancelled May local elections, this small but significant survey would have been hidden from sight if we had not called for its publication.”

But the chair of Guildford Conservatives, Thom Van Every, thought it unlikely the survey results would make any difference to the Government’s decision. He said: “I’m afraid I haven’t seen the survey so I can only comment based on what others report as per the [RA&IG] press release.

Thom Van Every

“In general though, as per its LGR Final Plan May 2025, Surrey County Council will have made its recommendation based on meeting the criteria set out by the government and to the government’s timelines, which seem tight. In this context, we are pleased that there has been at least some resident consultation.

“Transparency is always good in terms of data. In this case it seems unlikely the survey results, based on a small sample from which it is hard to draw concrete conclusions and which appears to suggest no majority support for either two or three unitary authorities, would have made a material difference to the recommendation.”