Test Valley Borough Council has been praised for its strong leadership, community-first approach and positive transformation work following a progress check by the Local Government Association’s corporate peer challenge team.
A cross-party team of senior councillors and experienced officers spent a week at the council in November 2024 during the original peer review, examining finance, performance and governance across all services. They spoke to more than 100 people, including staff, councillors and external partners, and described TVBC as a high-performing authority with a clear focus on residents and a strong sense of organisational pride.
The peer team issued nine recommendations designed to support continued improvement. These included strengthening community engagement, making greater use of performance data to evaluate impact for residents, and further investment in the workforce.
Two representatives from the team returned in October 2025 to carry out a formal progress check. Their update report – available at www.testvalley.gov.uk/CorporatePeerChallenge – confirms that positive progress has been made against all nine recommendations. They highlighted TVBC’s strategic leadership, constructive approach to change, and strong community involvement, particularly during ongoing discussions around potential local government reorganisation in Hampshire.
Leader of the council, Councillor Phil North, said:
“This update report shows the improvements we’re making for residents across Test Valley. We’re continuing to strengthen local leadership and are forging ahead for our communities, focusing on better outcomes for people and places. Our major regeneration projects in Andover and Romsey are two examples of that, as well as investing up to £10 million to help deliver a range of community projects that meet local priorities.
“Over the next year, we’ll be progressing our transformation programme and rolling out new digital services that will make it easier to get things done.
“Alongside all this, we’ll continue to advocate for our communities, to make sure we do everything we possibly can to get the best outcome for them as the government continues to press on with plans to reorganise local councils in Hampshire.”