Ministers decide future shape of Kent and Medway’s councils

News Release

15 July 2026

Ministers decide future shape of Kent and Medway’s councils

In the biggest shake up of local authority arrangements in 50 years, the Government announced today (16 July 2026) it is replacing Sevenoaks District Council, Kent County Council, Medway Council and the 11 district, borough and city councils, with four unitary councils from April 2028. 

The new unitary councils will deliver all the services in their areas, much like Medway Council does today, including education, social services, highways, libraries, emptying bins, leisure centres and housing services.

The new Council for West Kent includes Sevenoaks, Tonbridge & Malling, Tunbridge Wells and Maidstone.

Map showing the four new unitary council areas for Kent.

The move comes following a Government consultation which attracted around 3,000 responses. 

Cllr Kevin Maskell, Leader of Sevenoaks District Council, said: “This decision marks a new beginning for the Sevenoaks District and West Kent.

“Bringing together four district and borough areas to create a new West Kent Unitary Council is the model we have consistently supported for striking the right balance between strong, resilient services and maintaining a clear local focus.

“I am committed to continuing our strong partnership working with colleagues across West Kent and with partners across the county, building on what we have already achieved together to deliver the best possible outcomes for our communities.”

In a joint statement, Kent and Medways’ council leaders, added: “We want to reassure our residents that not one of our services will change overnight – you will still be dealing with the same council staff tomorrow and the day after that.  

“The new councils will not come into being until 1 April 2028.  

“All of the councils in Kent and Medway have a long history of working closely together to do the very best for the people that we serve and that will not change.  

“This is the start of the process of bringing our different teams together with the aim of designing then delivering the best possible services for our residents.  

“This change also affects the thousands of council staff across the county who work incredibly hard day in and day out.  

“Our focus will be supporting them through this change while helping them to carry on delivering our business-as-usual services seamlessly.  

“There is a lot of work to do, but we will make sure we take every opportunity to make our services the very best they can be.”

For more information about Local Government Reorganisation, visit www.sevenoaks.gov.uk/lgr.