Local government has debated digital transformation for more than two decades. Progress has often been uneven, constrained by legacy systems, organisational silos and the competing pressures of delivering services while modernising them.
Yet around the table at a recent Oracle and The MJ round table, one message emerged with remarkable clarity: local government reorganisation (LGR) represents far more than a structural exercise. It is a rare opportunity to fundamentally redesign how councils operate, collaborate and deliver services for residents.
Bringing together senior digital leaders from across local government under the Chatham House Rule, the discussion was notable not for disagreement, but for the strength of consensus. Participants recognised that the pressures facing councils – financial constraints, rising demand, ageing technology and increasing expectations of digital services – mean that simply recreating existing organisations at a greater scale would be a missed opportunity.
Instead, there was a clear appetite to use reorganisation as the catalyst for genuine transformation.
Rather than lifting and shifting existing organisations into larger structures, delegates argued that LGR offers the opportunity to simplify technology estates, reduce technical debt, strengthen data foundations and design services around residents rather than organisational boundaries. One participant described the current moment as ‘shaking things up – not doing the same again'.
Many delegates reflected on the pace of innovation during the Covid pandemic, when councils rapidly adopted new ways of working and collaborated across organisational boundaries to maintain essential services.
‘There was a shared purpose,' observed one participant. Several felt that momentum inevitably slowed as the immediate crisis passed, with organisations reverting to traditional structures and behaviours.
The challenge – and opportunity – with LGR is ensuring that history does not repeat itself.
Rather than lifting and shifting existing organisations into larger structures, delegates argued that LGR offers the opportunity to simplify technology estates, reduce technical debt, strengthen data foundations and design services around residents rather than organisational boundaries. One participant described the current moment as ‘shaking things up – not doing the same again'.
As one delegate put it: ‘The opportunity here is to do it collectively across the sector. We shouldn't lose this traction.' Another added: ‘There are conversations happening now that simply wouldn't have happened before.'
Throughout the discussion, collaboration emerged as the defining theme. Participants recognised that while collaboration has often proved difficult between authorities, reorganisation is creating both the necessity and the willingness to work differently.
Several suggested that regional approaches, shared platforms and common operating models could finally become realistic ambitions rather than longstanding aspirations. The conversation repeatedly returned to a fundamental question: if councils were being designed today, what digital capabilities would be considered non-negotiable?
Rather than lifting and shifting existing organisations into larger structures, delegates argued that LGR offers the opportunity to simplify technology estates, reduce technical debt, strengthen data foundations and design services around residents rather than organisational boundaries. One participant described the current moment as ‘shaking things up – not doing the same again'.
Another reflected: ‘We are setting the foundations that could support councils for the next 20 years. We need to get this right.' There was equally strong recognition that technology itself is rarely the greatest barrier.
Culture, leadership and governance were consistently identified as the critical factors that determine success. ‘Our biggest challenge is culture,' said one delegate. ‘People cling to legacy systems.'
Another suggested that digital transformation is ‘90% about people and 10% about technology'.
Several contributors argued that successful transformation depends less on creating digital specialists in every leadership role and more on ensuring that senior leaders understand how digital enables organisational change. Ambition, clear governance and visible executive sponsorship were all seen as essential if organisations are to avoid reverting to familiar ways of working.
The discussion also explored whether local government has become overly cautious. Delegates questioned procurement approaches that prioritise detailed feature lists over organisational outcomes and challenged the tendency to design for today's structures rather than tomorrow's operating models.
There was broad agreement that councils need to become more confident in adopting common platforms and standardised approaches where they add value, while still allowing flexibility to reflect local needs.
Artificial intelligence also featured prominently. While participants acknowledged its enormous potential, there was little appetite for pursuing AI simply because it is fashionable. Instead, delegates consistently returned to a more fundamental question: what problem are we trying to solve?
The consensus was that better data, simpler platforms and stronger digital foundations remain the prerequisites for realising AI's benefits at scale.
Perhaps the strongest conclusion from the discussion was that local government has reached a genuine tipping point. Unlike previous waves of transformation, reorganisation creates both the imperative and the opportunity to rethink how councils operate from the ground up. The challenge now is ensuring that authorities do not simply recreate existing structures within larger organisations.
The round table concluded with a clear call for collective action. Participants agreed that now is the time to establish shared principles for digital, identify opportunities for joint working and develop common approaches that reduce duplication while improving outcomes for residents.
There was widespread recognition that many of the challenges facing councils are shared – and increasingly, so too are the solutions.
If local government can sustain the collaborative spirit evident throughout the discussion, this period of reform has the potential to become much more than organisational restructuring. It could mark the beginning of a new, more collaborative model of digital local government – one that delivers better services, stronger resilience and greater value for every public pound invested.
The opportunity is here. The willingness to collaborate is growing. The next step is to turn that shared ambition into collective action before this unique window for change closes.
Round table participants
Samantha Harvey – Head of Oracle support, Royal Borough Kensington & Chelsea
Lisa Trickey – Lead adviser change & digital, Local Government Association
Leatham Green – Executive director transformation, Oracle
Guillaume Slee – Chief executive, Brovanture
Andy Hayes – Head of myOracle, Norfolk CC
Graeme McDonald – Chief executive, Solace
Jane West – Interim finance improvement lead, Lambeth LBC
Glen Ocsko – Adviser, LocalGovDigital, Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government
Sean Cloake – Head of ERP and financial systems, OneSource
John Stebbing – Interim director property, Kirklees MBC
Nathan Pierce – Director of digital services, Essex CC
Mike Burton – Editorial director, The MJ (chair)
Emma Toublic – Assistant director operations and platform, Essex CC
Martin Ford – Deputy commissioning editor, The MJ (reporting)
COMMENT
Reorganisation is the catalyst: Collaboration is the opportunity
By Leatham Green – Transformation Director, Oracle
Local government reorganisation (LGR) is undoubtedly one of the biggest changes the sector has faced in a generation. New organisations will emerge, governance will evolve and services will transition to new operating models.
But if our ambition is simply to create larger councils, we will have missed the real opportunity.
Reorganisation is the catalyst. Collaboration is the opportunity.
Throughout my career working alongside local government, I have seen councils achieve remarkable things despite increasing financial pressure, growing demand and ageing technology. I've also seen how too much energy is consumed by fragmentation – multiple systems solving the same problems, inconsistent processes, duplicated effort and procurement that often reinforces difference rather than enables collaboration.
These are not technology problems. They are system problems.
LGR gives us a unique opportunity to remove much of that friction and ask how we can create a modern digital foundation that allows councils to work together differently. The prize is not simply organisational efficiency. It is creating better services, stronger resilience and greater value for every public pound invested.
This requires a shift in mindset.
For too long, transformation has been viewed through the lens of individual programmes, individual procurements and individual councils. Yet the challenges facing local government – financial sustainability, workforce capacity, data quality, productivity and rising resident expectations – are largely shared.
Increasingly, the response should be shared too.
That does not mean every council becoming the same. Local democracy rightly demands flexibility. Communities are different and services must continue to reflect local priorities.
However, there is enormous scope to collaborate on the capabilities that every council depends upon.
Finance, HR, procurement, core business processes, data standards and digital platforms are not sources of uniqueness. They are the foundations upon which great local services are built.
Getting those foundations right enables councils to focus their energy where it matters most – improving outcomes for residents.
The principle is straightforward: common where it creates value, local where it creates impact.
Modern cloud platforms make this increasingly achievable. They allow councils to standardise the core, continuously adopt innovation and benefit from shared investment, while retaining the flexibility needed to respond to local priorities.
Technology alone, however, will not determine success.
The greatest challenge has never been software. It has always been leadership, culture and the willingness to work differently.
The coming years will require councils, suppliers and government to think less about individual council boundaries and more about the system as a whole. Collaboration should no longer be seen as an optional extra; it should become a design principle.
The opportunity extends beyond delivering a successful transition. It is about creating a new model for local government – one that is simpler, more connected and better equipped to respond to future challenges.
The decisions taken now will shape local government for decades.
We can recreate today's complexity inside new organisational structures, or we can use this moment to remove friction, embrace collaboration and build common digital foundations that maximise organisational benefits across the sector.
Reorganisation is the catalyst. Collaboration is the opportunity.
If we are bold enough to act collectively, this period will be remembered not simply for creating new councils, but for creating a new way of working – one that delivers better services, stronger partnerships and better value for every public pound.
