Unitary Authorities
Unitary Authorities are single tier authorities which replace the two tier Local Authority structure of an upper tier County Council and the lower tier district, borough or city councils. Unitary Authorities carry out all of the services and functions carried out by the County Council and the district or borough councils combined. Unitary Authorities are both Waste Collection Authorities and Waste Disposal Authorities
Within England there are 58 Unitary Authorities[1]. They provide all local government services in their areas. These are mainly in the cities, urban areas and larger towns e.g. Luton Borough Council, Blackpool Borough Council and Bath and North East Somerset Council, although there are now six shire county councils that are unitary (i.e. have no district councils beneath them) e.g. Cornwall, Northumberland and Wiltshire[1].
All 32 Local Authorities in Scotland are Unitary Authorities; all 22 Local Authorities in Wales are Unitary Authorities and all 11 Local Authorities in Northern Ireland are Unitary Authorities.