English Devolution and Community Empowerment Act 2026

The English Devolution and Community Empowerment Act 2026 has established the legislative framework for strategic authorities in England, as well as introducing other significant changes affecting public authorities in England.

The Act has taken forward the proposals in the English Devolution White Paper, Power and partnership: Foundations for growth, which recognised the role of devolution in taking forward the Government’s mission to “relight the fire of our economy and ignite growth in every region”.

Devolution/Strategic Authorities

The Act provides for three types of strategic authorities: foundation, mayoral and established mayoral. A foundation strategic authority may take one of two forms: a single foundation strategic authority or a combined foundation strategic authority. A single foundation strategic authority is a unitary district council or county council designated by the Secretary of State under regulations made pursuant to section 3 of the Act. A combined foundation strategic authority is a non-mayoral combined authority or a non-mayoral combined county authority. The Secretary of State may not designate a council as a single foundation strategic authority unless the council consents.

This law defines a mayoral strategic authority as a mayoral combined authority, a mayoral combined county authority, or the Greater London Authority (“the GLA”). An established mayoral strategic authority may take one of three forms. First, it may be a mayoral combined authority designated by the Secretary of State as an established mayoral combined authority by order under section 106B of the Local Democracy, Economic Development and Construction Act 2009. Second, it may be a mayoral combined authority designated by the Secretary of State as an established mayoral combined authority by regulations under section 25A of the Levelling-up and Regeneration Act 2023. Third, it may be the GLA.

The Secretary of State may not designate a mayoral combined authority, or a mayoral combined county authority, as an established mayoral strategic authority unless the authority submits a proposal to receive that designation.

The Act amends provisions in the Local Democracy, Economic Development and Construction Act 2009, and the Levelling-up and Regeneration Act 2023 relating to the establishment, powers, decision-making and scrutiny arrangements of combined authorities and combined county authorities.

Decisions of combined authorities and combined county authorities must be made by a simple majority and in a mayoral combined authority or combined county authority, the majority must include the mayor – or the deputy mayor acting in place of the mayor.

Strategic authorities will have areas of competence covering:

• Transport and local infrastructure;
• Skills and employment support;
• Housing and strategic planning;
• Economic development and regeneration;
• The environment and climate change;
• Health;
• Well-being and public service reform;
• Public safety;
• Culture and;
• Rural affairs and coastal communities.

Mayors of strategic authorities have power to appoint up to 10 commissioners to assist the mayors in the exercise of functions relating to the areas of competence of the authorities. A strategic authority and a mayor have power to delegate relevant functions to those commissioners.

The Act expands provision for mayoral combined authorities and combined county authorities to issue precepts, to borrow money and to issue levies.

The Act amends the Localism Act 2011, to provide that the general power of competence applies to combined authorities, combined county authorities and their mayors. English national park authorities and the Broads Authority hold this extended power as well. Mayors also have a power to convene meetings with local partners and a duty to collaborate with other mayors.

Section 144 of the Local Government Act 1972 gives local authorities power to encourage visitors and provide facilities for conferences, trade fairs, and exhibitions, and this extension gives the same powers to combined authorities and combined county authorities. Similarly, combined authorities and combined county authorities apply the powers under section 142 to provide information about services available in the authority’s area and the powers under section 222 to prosecute and defend legal proceedings.

The Act makes provisions for mayors of combined authorities to have increased responsibilities relating to public safety. We achieve this by setting eligibility and transfer conditions and by allowing mayors of combined authorities that meet those conditions to exercise the functions of police and crime commissioners. The provision also gives the Secretary of State the power to designate a mayoral combined authority, or a mayoral combined county authority, as the fire and rescue authority for its area.

The Act imposes duties on particular strategic authorities. The Act amends the Local Democracy, Economic Development and Construction Act 2009 and the Levelling-up and Regeneration Act 2023. The amendments require combined authorities and combined county authorities to have regard to the need to improve health and reduce health inequalities in their areas when deciding whether and how to exercise their functions. 

The Act gives mayors of established mayoral strategic authorities the power to make proposals to the Secretary of State. These proposals may relate to changes in the law, funding, or other matters concerning strategic authorities. The mayor must believe that the proposed changes would secure, or contribute to securing, the effective exercise of functions in relation to any aspect of an area of competence. The Secretary of State must respond within six months of notification of such a proposal.

Elections of mayors will use the supplementary vote system. The Act prohibits the mayor of a strategic authority from serving as an elected member of a legislature in the United Kingdom.

The Cities and Local Government Devolution Act 2016 amends the Secretary of State’s obligation to make an annual report to Parliament on devolution, and now requires the report to include information on strategic authorities.

Local Government

Alongside setting a framework for devolution, the Act has made provision for local government reorganisation. The Act expands the Secretary of State’s powers under the Local Government and Public Involvement in Health Act 2007. In addition to inviting or directing principal authorities to make proposals for a single tier of local government, the Secretary of State may now invite or direct them to make proposals for the merger of existing single tiers of local government.

There are also changes to the system of governance in local government. Local authorities will not be able to adopt a committee system form of governance in the future. However, local authorities who currently operate a committee system may continue operating that form of governance for specified periods of time, with the periods differing according to whether the system is within the definition of “protected”.

A committee system is “protected” when it meets either of two conditions. The first is where the committee system became, or remained, the local authority’s governance arrangements following a referendum, and the 10-year referendum protection period has not expired when section 61 of the Act comes into force. The second is where the committee system became the local authority’s governance arrangements through a resolution made without a referendum, and the five-year resolution protection period has not expired when section 61 comes into force.

A local authority with a protected committee system will be able to continue with that form of governance, but must conduct a review of whether it should move to a leader and cabinet arrangement within a year of the end of the relevant protection period. Local authorities who do not have a protected committee system must change their system of governance to the leader and cabinet model within a year of section 61 of the Act coming into force. Furthermore, local authorities cannot introduce new mayor and cabinet arrangements.

The Act introduces an obligation on local authorities to make appropriate arrangements to establish effective neighbourhood governance arrangements. The Secretary of State has power to make regulations to specify what is meant by “appropriate arrangements” and this may include requiring the establishment and maintenance of specified organisational structures, the number, membership, funding and review of such structures and about the functions that may or must be carried out by them.

The Act amends the regime in the Localism Act 2011 relating to assets of community value. Community groups whose nominations led to inclusion of land on a local authority’s list of assets of community value are given the status of “preferred community buyer” and have a right of refusal when the owner of an asset of community value proposes to dispose of it.

In respect of land transactions by local authorities, the Act amends the Local Government Act 1972 to make provision for applications to be made to the Secretary of State for statutory discharge orders to free relevant land from statutory trusts that have arisen by virtue of land being held in trust for enjoyment by the public. This is subject to applications satisfying qualifying conditions, including a requirement for applicants to publish notice of the application in a local newspaper for four consecutive weeks and to display a notice of the application for a period of 28 days at the point of entry to the land.

Other provisions introduced by the Act include:

• Establishment of the Local Audit Office.
• Reforms to the law relating to business tenancies under the Landlord and Tenant Act 1954.
• Power to make regulations to establish national standards for taxis and private hire vehicles.
• Power for licensing authorities to publish gambling impact assessments, relating to the licensing of gambling premises.
• Prohibition of upwards only rent review clauses in commercial leases.
• Powers for local transport authorities to prohibit and take enforcement action against parking on footways and verges.
• Powers for strategic authorities, and local authorities where there is no strategic authority, to regulate the provision of micromobility vehicles.

Existing authorities will need to ensure that they comply with the requirements of the Act. Local authorities will need to take account of the requirements of the Act when proposing or giving consent to the establishment of new strategic authorities. The government made regulations (The English Devolution and Community Empowerment Act 2026 (Consequential Amendments and Revocations) (England) Regulations 2026) that amend orders relating to existing combined authorities when those orders conflict with provisions in the 2026 Act.

Contact us

If you wish to discuss The English Devolution and Community Empowerment Act 2026, please contact a member of our public sector team.