Central Hertfordshire is expected to be a unitary authority area in the ceremonial county of Hertfordshire, England. It was planned to be formed on 1 April 2028, with elections to shadow authority planned to take place in May 2027. The largest settlement will be Stevenage and it will also include Baldock, Hatfield, Hitchin, Letchworth and Welwyn Garden City. The area has a 2024 estimated population of 320,795. Plans to create it were halted in September 2026 and the 2027 election was cancelled.
Formation It will be formed from the district of Stevenage, combined with most of the districts of North Hertfordshire and Welwyn Hatfield. The wards of Ermine, Royston Heath, Royston Meridian, Royston Palace, and Weston and Sandon from North Hertfordshire and the Welwyn Hatfield ward of Northaw and Cuffley will instead join the Eastern Hertfordshire unitary.
The district is being formed as part of ongoing local government changes throughout England, in which all areas of the country that have separate county councils and district councils will see those replaced with single-tier, or unitary, local governance. In Hertfordshire there will be four unitary authorities, with the other three being West Hertfordshire, South West Hertfordshire and East Hertfordshire and Broxbourne. The alternative proposals for two or three unitaries for Hertfordshire were not accepted.
In September 2026, the Hertfordshire proposals were halted by the government and placed under review.
Governance It will be run by Central Hertfordshire Council, which will comprise 89 councillors.
Parishes Baldock, Hitchin, Letchworth, Stevenage and Welwyn Garden City are currently unparished, the rest of the area is parished. Welwyn Hatfield Borough Council is considering the creation of a parish council for Welwyn Garden City.
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