AN OXFORDSHIRE council’s move to merge services with three other authorities has been given £400,000 of Government funding.

Local government minister Kris Hopkins announced yesterday that the partnership between West Oxfordshire District Council, Cheltenham Borough Council, Cotswold District Council and Forest of Dean District Council will be given money from a £9m fund.

The four councils are planning to set up a company to provide services, which would mean they would not directly employ any of their own staff.

In a statement, West Oxfordshire District Council, which shares its chief executive, David Neudegg, with Cotswold District Council, said: “The partner councils have commissioned work by independent specialists to identify the most appropriate interim shared management arrangements.”

The district council said the merger would need to be agreed in the autumn and would save £500,000 a year from April next year.

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