Lancashire Combined County Authority

The Lancashire Combined County Authority (LCCA) is a proposed combined county authority the three upper tier councils in Lancashire, namely Blackpool Council, Blackburn with Darwen Borough Council, and Lancashire County Council.

The proposed authority would consist of four constituent members, one each from Blackpool and Blackburn with Darwen councils and two from Lancashire County Council, two non-constituent members nominated by the twelve lower tier district councils beneath Lancashire County Council, and two further non-constituent members. There would be no direct elections to the authority.

History
The deal was signed in November 2023 but will not come into effect until the public consultation as concluded. The deal proposes to devolve certain powers, i.e. housing, transport, education and skills as well as environmental matters to LCCA. The deal leaves room for Lancashire to progress to level 2 or 3 devolutions which on top of increasing the depth and breadth of the powers devolved, would also create the position of an elected mayor. However at the signing ceremony the leader of Lancashire county council stated that Lancashire was not a good fit for a mayor due to its rural nature.