A TRAILBLAZING 'devolution deal' for Worcestershire is gathering momentum - with council chiefs eyeing up six key areas to grab control from the Government.

A new 12-page summary has been published by Worcestershire County Council revealing the areas it intends to focus on during negotiations with ministers.

The dossier, called 'Our Case for Devolution', is a first step towards trying to get a deal from Chancellor George Osborne to transfer more power and responsibility into the county.

The six themes are:

- The environment, including taking control of devolved funding for flooding protection and rural development via partnerships with bodies like the Environment Agency and Natural England

- Infrastructure and investment, which mentions bringing forward cash to dual the Carrington Bridge and upgrade the A38

- Connecting People, based around setting up a "pioneering new service" to bring together all the available help for struggling families needing support

- Health and social care reform, including multi-year funding deals for the NHS and councils to bring the two areas together

- Public estates, based on extending the current 'Place Partnership', a deal to sell-off any unwanted public sector buildings, to include the likes of Network Rail and the Ministry of Defence

- Skills and innovation, with one section revealing a proposal for the Department for Work and Pensions to develop a "local employment offer" for older people willing and capable of being in a job

The document will form the basis of more detailed negotiations with minister over the winter period and spring period, with a fuller plan expected to be published some time in 2016.

The Conservative leadership says it is in "listening mode" on what can be added to it, saying the devolution work is an ongoing process.

Councillor Adrian Hardman said: "I fully understand why some (councillors) felt in the dark about this because it's an evolving process - as a county are looking at a different solution to metropolitan counties.

"It's still very much a work in progress and I don't think we'll enter into formal negotiations with DCLG (the Department for Communities and Local Government) until late winter or spring."

Speaking during a full council meeting yesterday, he also said he was determined to make the devolution deal an ambitious one.

"The question of size is one that comes up quite often, a lot of people have said to me 'are you sure Worcestershire is big enough?'.

"Well, we're a bit bigger than Cornwall (which has got a major devolution deal in place), and we're not alone in pursuing a single county deal, Nottinghamshire and Derbyshire are also doing the same, Somerset is too."

It has also emerged how Worcestershire is one of 38 different parts of the UK to formally signal its intention to the Goverment to grab devolved powers.

The biggest and most-publicised deal so far is the Manchester 'Northern powerhouse' one, while Sheffield has secured its own exciting City-region plan and Cornwall is the first non-metropolitan county to secure a firm deal with the Government.

The devolution attempts follow the aftermath of the Scottish referendum, which saw Mr Osborne and the Prime Minister promise the most radical overhaul in the way the nation is governed ever, with more powers and responsibility handed to local areas.

Worcestershire's most senior politicians, as we revealed in the summer, have ruled out any local government re-organisation, such as creating a unitary authority - nor will it join the West Midlands Combined Authority covering Birmingham and much of its neighbouring conurbations having snubbed the offer.

Councillor Simon Geraghty, the deputy leader and cabinet member for economy, skills and infrastructure, said: "We're very much in listening mode and while there's some in the country that want to wrap up their deals relatively quickly, I think those deals that take longer may better stand the 'test of time'.

"I'm fully happy with the way this process is going."

* Want to read the 'Our Case for Devolution' document yourself? See the PDF HERE.

* See what we said last month about Worcestershire looking for a 'single county' deal HERE, and to find out how the leadership at County Hall rejected the chance to join the West Midlands Combined Authority go HERE.