South West Essex Council is a planned English unitary authority for the new local government district of South West Essex. The council will be a constituent member of the Greater Essex Combined Authority.
As part of the Starmer ministry local government reform, a goal of "simpler local government structures" was set out by the government, including a commitment to phase out two-tier local government structures. South West Essex Council was announced in March 2026 as the replacement for Basildon Borough Council and Essex County Council in Basildon and Thurrock Council in Thurrock. The area of Basildon and Thurrock will form the South West Essex local government district.
The 2027 South West Essex Council election is set to take place in May 2027, with the authority taking over local government responsibilities on 1 April 2028. The council will be a constituent member of the Greater Essex Combined Authority, which is also being established ahead of the 2028 Greater Essex mayoral election.
Thurrock Council, one of the predecessor authorities, had ã1.5 billion of debt from bad investments. In December 2025, ã677 million of this remained. In March 2026, to coincide with the announcement of the new South West Essex Council, the government provided ã200 million to pay off part of the debt.