Posted on: 15/01/2026

Thought Leadership

Local Government Reorganisation is one of the most demanding transformations councils will undertake, yet HR teams, responsible for guiding people through change, are often the least supported. In this article, Rachael Simpson explores why HR capacity is a strategic risk, not a functional detail, and how leadership teams can strengthen the people foundations that determine whether LGR succeeds. It offers practical guidance drawn from real programmes and highlights the investment, influence and support HR teams need to deliver lasting organisational stability.

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  By Rachael Simpson Chartered FCIPD, Principal Consultant HR

  Local Government Reorganisation represents one of the most complex workforce transformations public sector HR professionals will navigate in their careers. Yet across councils currently undergoing structural change, a troubling pattern is emerging: the very functions responsible for managing organisational transformation are themselves under-resourced, overstretched, and inadequately supported.

  This is not simply an HR issue—it is a strategic risk to successful reorganisation. When HR teams lack the capacity and support to function effectively during periods of intense change, the consequences extend far beyond the function itself, impacting service continuity, workforce stability, cultural integration, and ultimately, the viability of the new authority.

  Drawing on experience across multiple reorganisation programmes, this article examines why councils should reframe their approach to HR capacity during LGR and offers a strategic framework for leadership teams seeking to ensure their transformation programmes succeed.

  The strategic risk of under-resourced HR Functions

  
  The business case for adequate HR support during reorganisation is compelling. Often, people-related issues represent the primary cause of restructuring failures across sectors. In local government, where statutory obligations, complex employee relations frameworks, and public accountability intersect, the margin for error is minimal.

  Consider the scope of work HR teams manage during LGR: TUPE consultations affecting significant numbers of employees; harmonisation of terms, conditions, and policies across multiple legacy organisations; cultural due diligence and integration planning; workforce redesign; redundancy and redeployment processes; senior leadership appointments; and management of industrial relations throughout. Simultaneously, HR functions typically face their own restructures, creating the paradox of supporting organisational change while experiencing profound uncertainty about their own futures.

  When HR capacity is insufficient, several predictable risks materialise. Strategic workforce planning—critical for post-reorganisation success—is displaced by reactive crisis management. Employee relations issues escalate due to delayed responses. Talent retention strategies are inadequately developed, resulting in the loss of institutional knowledge and key capability. Importantly, the cultural foundation of the new authority becomes fragmented before it has properly formed, as inconsistent employee experiences undermine trust and engagement.

  The financial implications are significant. Poor people management during reorganisation drives costs through employment tribunal claims, agency staff expenditure, extended consultation periods, and productivity losses. More fundamentally, it jeopardises the efficiency gains and service improvements that provide the rationale for reorganisation itself.

  From transactional support to strategic partnership

  Effective LGR requires HR to operate as a strategic partner rather than a transactional service. However, this shift cannot occur without deliberate investment in both capacity and capability. Four interconnected areas require attention:

  1. Early strategic involvement and decision rights

  HR leadership must be embedded in LGR governance from initial design stages, not consulted retrospectively on implementation. This ensures workforce implications inform structural decisions, talent and cultural considerations shape organisational design, and people-related costs and risks are accurately assessed and resourced. Where HR has genuine influence in shaping reorganisation strategy, authorities demonstrate measurably better outcomes in employee engagement, talent retention, and implementation timescales.

  Practical mechanisms include HR Director representation on shadow authority executive teams with equal status to service directors; HR input to business case development, particularly workforce modelling and cost projections; and formal sign-off authority for people-related aspects of transformation programmes before progression.

  2. Protected capacity and specialist expertise

  Counter-intuitively, reorganisation often presents the worst possible time to reduce HR establishment. Councils achieving successful transformations typically ring-fence HR capacity and enhance it strategically.This includes retaining experienced HR business partners who understand legacy organisations; securing specialist external support for technical areas such as pensions harmonisation, senior executive TUPE, or organisational development; and providing dedicated project management resources to coordinate the people workstream, allowing HR professionals to focus on strategic and operational delivery.

  Temporary capacity investment during peak reorganisation phases represents a fraction of the cost incurred through poorly managed people processes, yet remains one of the most common false economies in LGR planning.

  3. Capability development for transformation

  LGR demands capabilities that may not exist within established HR teams. Investment in developing expertise in change management, organisational development, cultural integration, workforce analytics, and digital transformation is essential. This development serves dual purposes: enhancing immediate reorganisation delivery and building the strategic HR function the new authority requires.

  Progressive councils are partnering with professional bodies Regional Employers Organisations to provide structured development programmes aligned to transformation milestones, ensuring HR professionals acquire and apply new capabilities in real-time.

  4. Wellbeing and peer support infrastructure

  The psychological demands of supporting organisational change while experiencing it personally are substantial. HR professionals face ethical dilemmas, emotional labour, and role ambiguity that require dedicated support mechanisms. Evidence suggests that structured peer support, professional supervision, and psychologically safe spaces to process experiences significantly improve HR team resilience and effectiveness.

  Good practice includes cross-authority HR peer networks facilitated by Regional Employers Organisations; regular access to occupational health support and coaching; and clear protocols for managing conflicts of interest when HR teams are simultaneously advising on and subject to restructuring processes.
  

  The leadership imperative

  Leadership teams directly influence HR effectiveness during reorganisation through their actions, decisions, and behaviours. Visible, authentic leadership that values HR input, protects HR capacity, and acknowledges the pressures facing the function creates conditions for success.

  This manifests in specific leadership practices: actively seeking HR advice on strategic decisions and demonstrating how that input has shaped thinking; publicly recognising the scope and complexity of HR work during transformation; challenging unrealistic timescales or under-resourced plans when HR raises legitimate concerns; and personally engaging with HR teams to understand pressures and respond appropriately.

  Where senior leadership treats HR as a valued strategic partner, organisational culture during reorganisation is demonstrably stronger, employee relations remain more constructive, and implementation proceeds more smoothly.

  A strategic choice, not an optional extra

  
  Supporting HR capacity during reorganisation is not corporate goodwill—it is strategic necessity backed by evidence. Councils face a clear choice: invest in the function that enables successful transformation, or accept the predictable consequences of under-supported people management.

  The authorities that navigate LGR most successfully will be those that recognise HR professionals as critical infrastructure for change, resource them appropriately, and ensure they have the support, capability, and influence required to deliver. This requires challenging assumptions, making difficult budget decisions, and potentially slowing timescales to ensure adequate capacity exists.

  The alternative—expecting transformational outcomes from an under-resourced function—is neither realistic nor responsible.

  Practical recommendations for Leadership Teams

  For authorities currently planning or implementing LGR, the following actions merit immediate consideration:

  • Conduct an honest assessment of HR capacity against reorganisation demands, identifying gaps and developing a resourced plan to address them
  • Ensure HR leadership has appropriate representation, influence, and decision rights within LGR governance structures
  • Ring-fence HR budgets during reorganisation and consider temporary capacity enhancement for peak periods Invest in targeted capability development aligned to transformation requirements
  • Establish peer support mechanisms and wellbeing infrastructure for HR teams
  • Create protected time for HR leaders to engage in strategic planning rather than operational firefighting
  • Model visible, authentic leadership that values and supports the HR function

The question is not whether councils can afford to support their HR professionals adequately during reorganisation—it is whether they can afford not to. Because ultimately, you cannot ask drowning people to throw lifelines.

The quality of transformation councils achieve will be directly proportional to the support provided to those tasked with delivering it.

Details of how West Midlands Employers support councils through Local Government Reorganisation can be found below: 

View WME Local Government Restructure Offer