Royal Commission on Local Government in Greater London facts for kids

The Royal Commission on Local Government in Greater London, also known as the Herbert Commission, was a special group set up in 1957. Their job was to study how London was managed and suggest ways to make it better. They published their ideas in a report in 1960. Many of their suggestions were later put into law by the London Government Act 1963, which changed how London was governed.

Who Was in the Commission?

The leader of the Commission was Sir Edwin Herbert. Other important members included:

• Paul Cadbury, who ran Cadbury Brothers.
• Alice Johnston, a member of the National Assistance Board.
• William Lawson, a top accountant.
• William Mackenzie, a professor of government.
• Sir Charles Morris, a university leader.
• Sir John Wrigley, a former government official.

It was interesting that none of the members had worked directly in London's local government before. They were all experts from other fields.

What Areas Did They Look At?

The Commission looked at a large area around London. This included:

• The main area of London itself.
• The county of Middlesex.
• Big towns like Croydon, East Ham, and West Ham.
• Many towns and districts in nearby counties like Surrey, Kent, Hertford, and Essex.

The way these areas were run was very different. Some large areas had millions of people, while others had only a few thousand. The rules for sharing jobs between county councils and smaller local areas were also confusing. This often caused problems and arguments.

How Did the Commission Work?

The Commission held 114 meetings and listened to people speak 70 times. They asked almost 16,000 questions! They also used a lot of research from the Greater London Group at the London School of Economics.

People had very different ideas about London's government. Some thought the system was failing, while local councils strongly believed things were fine.

Since there was no clear agreement, the Commission decided to use two main ideas to guide their suggestions:

• Efficiency and economy: Making sure money and people were used in the best way.
• Healthy local democracy: Making sure local people had a good say in how their areas were run.

They imagined a system with two levels. A larger, regional group would handle big "technical" services like planning. Smaller local groups would handle "personal" services like local schools. They tried to figure out the best size for these smaller local groups. Many experts thought these groups should have at least 250,000 people, with some suggesting up to 1.5 million. They felt larger groups could attract better staff.

However, the Commission preferred smaller local groups. They believed very large groups would feel too far away from the people they served. They also hoped smaller groups would encourage more people to vote in local elections. They didn't like how "massive" and "inhuman" the old London County Council felt.

The Commission also had rules for deciding which areas on the edge of London should be included. They looked at how independent an area was, how closely it was linked to London, and if its people looked towards or away from London.

What Did the Report Suggest?

The Commission's report was published on October 19, 1960. Everyone on the Commission agreed with the suggestions. Here are the main ideas:

• A new Regional Council for Greater London: This council would be elected by the people.
• Big jobs for the Regional Council: It would manage important services like city planning, traffic, education, fire, and ambulance services.
• New "Greater London Boroughs": These would be smaller local areas, created by joining existing towns and districts.
• Size of the new boroughs: Each Greater London Borough would have between 100,000 and 250,000 people.
• Shared services: Some services, like education, would be shared. The regional council would set the budget and standards, while the local boroughs would handle the daily running of schools.

The Commission did not include every area they first looked at in their new Greater London region. Some towns like Watford and Dartford were left out.

The report suggested creating 52 new Greater London Boroughs from the areas that existed then.

What Happened Next?

By May 1961, the government decided to leave out some areas on the very edge of London from the new plan. In November 1961, they published a white paper (a government report) that agreed with most of the Commission's ideas. However, they thought education should mostly be handled by the local boroughs, with just one authority for central London. They also wanted fewer, but larger, boroughs than the Commission suggested.

By the time a new law was introduced in 1962, the number of boroughs was set at 32. The area of Greater London was also made a bit smaller again, with some more towns being left out.

Finally, the London Government Act 1963 became law on April 1, 1965. This law created the Greater London Council and the 32 London borough councils, which still exist today.