Postponement of elections in 2026 could help support local government reorganisation in Worthing
Released: Thursday, 15 January 2026
The leader of Worthing Borough Council has confirmed to the government that postponing elections in 2026 could help deliver local government reorganisation (LGR) more effectively.
In December Alison McGovern, the Minister of State for Local Government and Homelessness, wrote to all local authority leaders in England that are currently involved in the biggest change to local government in 50 years, which will see councils changing across the country in a bid to improve services and increase efficiency.
The minister invited the leaders of those councils to set out their views on the potential postponement of local elections in their areas, which has happened at other councils in the past during reorganisation, and if they believed it would enable local government reorganisation to progress more effectively, with a deadline of midnight on Thursday 15th January 2026.
Worthing Borough Council held an extraordinary meeting of the full council on Tuesday 13th January where all members of the local authority had the chance to give their views on the government's request. After receiving a report from the council's chief executive on what the impact of elections could be on essential capacity, members then voted in favour of writing to the minister to say that postponing elections could release essential capacity to deliver LGR.
Councillor Sophie Cox, the leader of the council, has today written to the minister to express that view.
In her letter, Cllr Cox highlights that local government reorganisation is complex and with a new footprint expected for new unitary councils in March, it would leave Worthing in the position of heading into a pre-election period that restricted decision making at exactly the wrong time.
As county council and borough council elections are funded jointly, she also highlights that if elections to West Sussex County Council are postponed for 2025 but Worthing's are not, the borough council will face an extra financial burden when it is already struggling financially.
Adur District Council, Crawley Borough Council, Hastings Borough Council and West Sussex County Council have taken similar positions, meaning that Worthing could have been the only area where elections were taking place in Sussex in May.
Cllr Cox said:
“Since receiving your letter on 18 December, this matter has been considered in detail, reflecting both the strength of feeling locally and the scale of the change being undertaken and what would be in the best interests of all residents in Worthing.
“We remain deeply committed to local democracy. However, if elections proceed in May 2026, those elected would likely serve a truncated term of less than two years, with Shadow Authority elections for the new Unitary in May 2027. There is a risk that such a short electoral cycle could create uncertainty for residents during a period of structural change. Aligning the next election with the establishment of the Shadow Authority would provide greater clarity and a full-term mandate for those elected to shape the new arrangements.
“There are also financial considerations, particularly for a council such as Worthing that is in receipt of Exceptional Funding Support. The likely postponement of West Sussex County Council and Adur District Council elections creates the possibility that any election held in 2026 would be a standalone poll for Worthing, with the full cost falling on local taxpayers and this extra funding required would be unbudgeted.”
The government has said it will listen to the views of council leaders who have said they have capacity concerns about running local elections this year.
Steve Reed, the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, will now consider whether orders should be made that would allow the postponement of council elections for one year in certain areas, on a case-by-case basis.
To read the full text of Cllr Cox's letter to the minister, which includes the views of all members who took part in the debate on 13th January 2026, see:
(PR26-004)
Page last updated: 15 January 2026