Reading Borough Council is asking the government to keep all of Tilehurst within Berkshire to protect local services for residents. As part of the current local government reorganisation process, Reading has formally submitted a proposal asking the government to move three West Berkshire wards into the borough: Tilehurst Birch Copse; Tilehurst & Purley; and Tilehurst South & Holybrook. Other western suburbs such as Calcot and Theale have been part of the wider debate, but Reading’s formal submission focuses on those three Tilehurst wards, and the council has said it will not include Pangbourne or Theale in its revised request.
A seven‑week statutory consultation opened on 5 February 2026 (running to 26 March 2026), giving people in the affected areas a chance to have their say. Reading council leaders argue that many residents in the contested wards already rely on Reading services — including local schools, bus services, leisure centres and the Royal Berkshire Hospital — and that it would therefore make sense for those areas to remain connected to the borough. If the boundaries are changed the responsible authority for council tax, schools, roads and parks would also change for affected residents.
West Berkshire Council has strongly opposed Reading’s bid, calling it an ‘unhelpful and unsolicited attempted land grab’ and saying the proposal is ‘uninvited, unwanted and a hostile act’ that damages relations between the councils. West Berkshire supports its own reorganisation approach (the proposals that would form a new ‘Ridgeway’ authority in the area) as the better option for its communities and for delivering efficiencies under the wider LGR programme. This disagreement follows a non‑binding parish poll in Theale on 6 November 2025 in which about 95% of those who voted said they wished to remain within West Berkshire; turnout was roughly 25% and the result is not legally binding.
The government is seeking public feedback through the official GOV.UK consultation on local government reorganisation in Oxfordshire and surrounding areas. A final decision by ministers on the shape of new boundaries is expected in the summer of 2026. Residents can respond to the consultation before it closes on 26 March 2026 to make their views known about which council should serve their area.
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