An eight-week consultation on whether North Somerset Council should join the West of England Mayoral Combined Authority has found that people and businesses across the West back the proposal.
The headline results show 56.7% of those who responded are in favour of the expansion, with 37.6% opposed, and 5.7% not sure. Detailed analysis of the 1,273 responses received will take place over the coming weeks before being published.
Theconsultation, which closed on Monday (13 April), followed the Mayor and council leaders approving proposals at their meeting in January to launch the consultation, and negotiations with national government securing an additional £15 millionin the short term for projects in the region – should North Somerset join.
An extra £1 million has also been allocated by the government to assist with the process of the local authority joining Bath & North East Somerset, Bristol, and South Gloucestershire councils as a full member of the regional authority, led by the Mayor of theWest of England. This funding adds to unprecedented investment announced for the area since May, bringing the total to almost £1 billion, while the English Devolution and Community Empowerment Bill makes its way through Parliament and as regional mayors andauthorities continue to gain new powers and funding.
The government has also committed that, should the expansion proceed, future funding will “take account of an expanded WECA geography and population”: likely increasing future allocations of funding transport improvements and a major new national housing fund. North Somerset joining would add 23% to the combined authority’s population, toa total of 1.225 million, bringing the benefits of devolution to another almost quarter of a million more people and further strengthening the voice of our part of the world. Altogether, the West has the strongest recent economic growth of any region in thecountry and has grown at four times the national average since 2019.
The consultation also followed the Government’s English Devolution White Paper, which requires every local authority area to be part of a strategic authority. The Government has confirmed that the West of England is the best fit for North Somerset and askedthe region to seek views before any decision is taken.
In September 2025, North Somerset Council voted to approve progressing plans for a consultation, followed by the Mayor and council leaders doing the same in October. Ministers will consider the consultation findings, with North Somerset Council’s meeting nextmonth set to do the same. Subject to approval from the Secretary of State, legislation is anticipated to be drafted to be considered at the Mayor and council leaders’ meeting in October. Subject to the parliamentary calendar, the legislative process wouldbe expected to take around eight weeks, with North Somerset able to become a full member of the West of England Mayoral Combined Authority from late 2026 or early 2027. The next election of the Mayor of the West of England will take place in May 2029.
Helen Godwin, Mayor of the West of England, said:
“North Somerset has felt like the missing piece of our devolution jigsaw over the last nine years, not only for all local council leaders but for businesses and residents around the region. We will carefully consider the detailed consultation results, aswe work together to continue the momentum we have built up.
“It’s clear that the West’s future will be one of real collaboration and partnership, and we can see that people support that. Since May, we have secured around £1 billion of investment from national government – a figure that, like our regional economy- will keep growing as we make the West Country’s voice heard in this new chapter.”
Councillor Mike Bell, Leader of North Somerset Council, said:
“We welcome the results of this consultation, which show a preference among respondents for joining the West of England Combined Authority. The clear message coming through from those that took part is that people believe we are stronger together – ableto make faster progress in reducing inequality and unlocking access to more impactful funding that can deliver real benefits for North Somerset.
“While we look forward to receiving the additional detail and data from the consultation in the coming weeks, we are encouraged by the headline statistics so far.”
Councillor Kevin Guy, Deputy Mayor of the West of England and Leader of Bath & North East Somerset Council, said:
“Working in collaboration is already bringing huge benefits for us all and this is a very positive step towards us securing as much investment as we can for our region for the benefit of our economy and all our communities.”
Councillor Tony Dyer, Leader of Bristol City Council, said:
“This consultation is an important part of the planning required to ensure any expansion of the Mayoral Combined Authority is one that benefits residents across our region. I welcome the opportunity to deepen our already strong working relationships acrossorganisations and to fully realise the potential of the West of England to deliver investment, create jobs, build homes and secure a sustainable environment for future generations.”
Councillor Maggie Tyrrell, Leader of South Gloucestershire Council, and Councillor Ian Boulton, Co-Leader of South Gloucestershire Council, said:
“Since forming the South Gloucestershire Council administration in 2023 we have consciously and actively worked to develop a collaborative and positive relationship with the Mayoral Combined Authority and our neighbouring authorities. With North Somersetbecoming a member of WECA our efforts and voice would be amplified to Government and more funding can be brought to the area. We look forward to continuing to our work with our neighbouring authorities whilst maintaining and celebrating our own individuality.”
Since May, Helen Godwin and council leaders have workedmore closely together. The Growth Strategy, which sets out anambitious plan for 72,000 new jobs for the region, highlights that the economic outlook for the area is stronger if the combined authority includes North Somerset, to reflect the economic reality of how theregion works by including places like Weston-super-Mare, Clevedon, and Portishead – where major work will soon start to reopen the Portishead to Bristol railway line – as well as the Royal Portbury Dock and Bristol Airport. North Somerset has also partneredwith the regional authority and local councils in work towards a new Spatial Development Strategy; signed up to the West’s Strategic Place Partnership with Homes England, as part of efforts to tackle the housing crisis; and been part of developing theregion’s first Child Poverty Action Plan, published in December, and the thenew Transport Vision announced in February.
An expansion of the combined authority would also support its efforts to become an Established Mayoral Strategic Authority (EMSA), like West Yorkshire, Greater Manchester, and others, with an integrated settlement that sees budgets fully devolved from Westminsterfor housing, regeneration, local growth, local transport, skills, retrofit, and employment support. In a letter to the Mayor and Leader of North Somerset Council in December, the Devolution Minister confirmed that the government would work with the West ofEngland on our “application to be granted EMSA status to the fastest possible timeline”. Mayor Godwin has spoken repeatedly about the need to catch up with other regions.
Taking these steps forward, with North Somerset as a full member and with established strategic authority status, the West of England would gain the right to request rail devolution and priority for support with delivering multi-modal ticketing. On skills,Jobcentre Plus would come into alignment with the region, and delivering and commissioning additional employment support to get more people into work would be delegated to the area. Our part of the world would also then be able to set the strategic directionof any future programmes, including to support affordable homes being built and secure retrofit funding, for more decisions to be made in the West of England rather than in Westminster.
