Royal Borough residents would elect a Thames Valley mayor in 2028. A consultation is due in the new year; bins, schools and planning stay with the council.

People in Windsor, Maidenhead and Ascot would vote for a Thames Valley mayor in 2028, under plans the government confirmed in last week’s Budget.

The Thames Valley is one of eight areas now on the government’s programme for a new mayoral strategic authority. It would cover Berkshire, Oxfordshire and Swindon. The Royal Borough of Windsor and Maidenhead set out the timetable in a statement on 29 October.

Nothing is settled yet. The 13 councils in the area still have to agree a detailed proposal, put it out to public consultation and then vote on it.

What the government announced

The Budget 2026 document, published on 28 October, says the government is “in the final stages of agreeing 10 new devolution agreements”. Its list of new mayoral strategic authorities includes “Thames Valley (Oxfordshire, Berkshire and Swindon)”.

The other mayoral areas on the same list are:

  • Devon, Plymouth and Torbay
  • Hertfordshire
  • Lancashire
  • Leicester, Leicestershire and Rutland
  • Stoke and Staffordshire
  • Surrey
  • Wessex

Kent and Medway, and Cornwall, are listed separately, as a strategic authority that may or may not have a mayor and a “foundation” authority without one.

The council says the announcement came with a proposed £9.1 million from the government’s Good Growth Funds, for investment in growth priorities while the authority is set up. The Budget document does not break that figure down by area, so it rests on the council’s statement.

The timetable

The council’s statement gives these steps:

  • December 2026: a proposal is shared with the councils across the area. Each is asked to approve a public consultation.
  • New year 2027: the consultation runs, if councils agree.
  • Spring 2027: a formal proposal goes to the government, subject to the consultation and each council’s final decision.
  • Later in 2027: the authority is set up in shadow form.
  • 2028: the first mayoral election.
Timeline of the Thames Valley mayoral strategic authority: proposal to councils in December 2026, public consultation in the new year, formal proposal to government in spring 2027, shadow authority later in 2027, first mayoral election in 2028.
The steps the Royal Borough has set out. Graphic by Windsor Today
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Leaders across Berkshire, Oxfordshire and Swindon wrote to the government earlier last week to confirm they wanted a mayoral authority, the council said.

What a mayor would do, and what stays with the council

The mayor would chair a board made up of representatives from every upper-tier council in the area. The council says the authority would get more funding and control over:

  • transport
  • skills and employment support
  • inward investment
  • affordable housing

The Royal Borough would carry on running day-to-day services, the council said. That means your bin collections, social care, housing, schools, leisure and local planning. Your council tax bill would still come from the Royal Borough.

The Budget also set out new money-raising powers for mayors and strategic authorities in general. It says:

  • mayors will get a share of income tax, starting in 2028
  • mayoral authorities will keep 20% of locally retained business rates from next year
  • the government plans to legislate so that every strategic authority can introduce an overnight visitor levy

That last point matters more in Windsor than in most places, because of the town’s hotel trade. It is a power the government plans to create, not a charge anyone has proposed for the Thames Valley. Any levy would be a decision for the new authority, once it exists.

What the council leader said

Cllr Simon Werner, the council’s leader, welcomed the chance to help shape devolution. But he said “the detail will be crucial”.

“Greater local control over investment, infrastructure, housing and skills could create new opportunities; but there are still important questions about funding, governance and whether the proposals will deliver real benefits for our residents,” he said.

He said the council would “work constructively with government and neighbouring authorities”.

What it means for you

  • You will get a say first. A public consultation is planned for the new year, if the councils approve it in December. We will publish the link when it opens.
  • Your services do not change. Bins, schools, social care and planning stay with the Royal Borough.
  • You would get an extra vote in 2028. The first Thames Valley mayoral election is planned for that year.
  • No visitor charge is proposed. The visitor levy is a power the government intends to give strategic authorities, not a plan for Windsor.

Sources