Leaders unite in bid

Hertfordshire’s councils have pledged to work even more closely together to provide better services through partnership in a ground-breaking initiative.

All ten district councils and the county council have told the Government that the county should lead the way in working together.

The move follows the Government's call for local authorities across the country to bid to become pathfinder councils. Successful pathfinder bids will result in what has been called 'super two-tier' working between councils at county and district level, with local people having more say in the way things are run.

Their aim is to provide better, more cost-effective services, accessible to every Hertfordshire resident.

In their bid for Pathfinder status the council leaders said: “We are building on a strong track record of joined-up government in Hertfordshire, which can be supported by a long list of successful partnership arrangements.

“To us, working together has become the norm, where the differing roles played by the councils are recognised and respected. We have consciously decided not to make bids for unitary status as we do not believe that a bid will be anything except divisive, resource-intensive, probably unsuccessful and, above all, wrong for Hertfordshire.

“We have come to the conclusion that we should explore ways of working that will deliver further benefits to the people we serve.”

Cllr John Graham, Leader of Hertsmere Borough Council, said: "I am supportive of this move and the opportunities it will give us. We already work in partnership with each other and this is just another step in helping us to deliver consistent and high quality services to our residents."

County Councillor David Beatty, Leader of Hertfordshire County Council, said: “Local people are interested in good services, not who provides them. We’ve already gone a long way to providing a seamless service and this bid will give us an opportunity to further improve public service in Hertfordshire. “