Reed set to replace commissioners with ministerial envoys at city council after “significant improvements” made

In a letter to the council's chief executive Sajeeda Rose James Blythe, Deputy Director – Local Government Stewardship and Interventions at the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government wrote: “The Secretary of State considers it is clear that the Authority has made significant improvements over the past two years under your and Cllr [Neghat] Khan’s leadership and with Commissioners’ oversight. Both the Authority’s letter of 5 December and the Commissioners’ latest report document areas of significant progress and also areas for further improvement and focus.

“Ministers agree with the Commissioners’ assessment that some improvements are very fragile and not yet embedded across the organisation, and that some areas, particularly around service design and transformation, are in early stages and yet to be implemented.”

The letter added that the Secretary of State is satisfied that Nottingham is not yet meeting its Best Value Duty requirements, specifically in the themes of Continuous Improvement and Service Delivery.

Reed has therefore proposed “a further but reduced” package of statutory support for 18 months, to be reviewed after 12.

This package includes the appointment of two ministerial envoys to support and oversee the council’s continued improvement. These envoys would not have powers to make any decisions on behalf of the authority, and they would spend significantly fewer days working with Nottingham than the team of three commissioners.

The letter revealed that Nottingham had asked for sector support in relation to adults’ and children’s services to support it reconfigure and transform these services as needed.

“The Secretary of State does not intend to make any ministerial appointments at this stage; but is proposing to direct the Authority to secure such expertise, which we would expect you to do in collaboration with the Envoys,” Blythe wrote.

Nottingham has been under intervention since the appointment of an Improvement and Assurance Board in January 2021. This was subsequently escalated in September 2022 and commissioners were appointed in February 2024.

The Ministry has also today (4 February) published the commissioners’ fourth report, which was submitted in December 2025, and the ministerial response.

Responding to the Ministry’s announcements, Nottingham’s Leader, Cllr Neghat Khan, said: “When I became Leader in 2024, I made a promise to get our house in order, and we’ve done that. Our finances are stable, we’re balancing our budget without a penny of Exceptional Financial Support, and we’ve reduced our debt by 64%. 

“We’ve always said that our priority was to deliver improvements right across the council so that the Commissioners leave as planned. With the return of all statutory powers to the council, we’ve done just that. Whilst we know that there is more to do and we must not be complacent in leading Nottingham forward, our focus now must be on delivering continuous improvement for Nottingham and our residents. We are ambitious for Nottingham and are committed to being the most improved council in the country.”

Sajeeda Rose said: “The departure of Commissioners is a major milestone in our improvement journey. We are now a stronger, more stable organisation and that is because of the hard work, commitment, skills and expertise of council staff and councillors. 

“However, it’s important to be clear that there is more work to do to embed ongoing improvement at the council so that we can effectively deliver on the priorities set out in our Council Plan – that’s why we’ve requested that support in expertise areas continues. A step down from Commissioner-led intervention is not the end of our improvement journey. It’s a marker of progress and the start of our next phase, where we continue to improve under our own steam.” 

“We welcome the provision of ongoing expertise in the form of two Ministerial Envoys and will work closely with them over the coming months to secure the further improvements needed.”