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{{Use British English|date=March 2015}}
{{Use British English|date=March 2015}}
{{Infobox legislature
{{Infobox legislature
| name = Worcestershire County - Council
| name = Worcestershire County Council
| coa_pic = Arms of Worcestershire County Council.svg
| coa_pic = Arms of Worcestershire County Council.svg
| coa_res = 100px
| coa_res = 100px
Line 9: Line 9:
| logo_res = 250px
| logo_res = 250px
| house_type = Non-metropolitan county
| house_type = Non-metropolitan county
| leader1_type = Chair of the Council
| leader1_type = [[Chairperson|Chair]]
| leader1 = Peter Tomlinson
| leader1 = Tracey Onslow
| party1 = [[Conservative Party (UK)|Conservative]]
| party1 = <br/>[[Conservative Party (UK)|Conservative]]
| election1 = 16 May 2024<ref>{{cite news |last1=Wilkinson-Jones |first1=Phil |title=Worcestershire County Council appoints new chairman and vice chairman |url=https://www.worcesternews.co.uk/news/24324497.worcestershire-county-council-appoints-new-chairman-vice-chairman/ |access-date=21 May 2024 |work=Worcester News |date=16 May 2024}}</ref>
| election1 = 16 May 2019
| leader2_type = Leader of the Council
| leader2_type = [[Leader of the council|Leader]]
| leader2 = Simon Geraghty
| leader2 = Simon Geraghty
| party2 = [[Conservative Party (UK)|Conservative]]
| party2 = <br/>[[Conservative Party (UK)|Conservative]]
| election2 = 14 January 2016
| election2 = 14 January 2016
| leader3_type = Chief executive
| leader3_type = [[Chief Executive]]
| leader3 = Paul Robinson
| leader3 = Paul Robinson
| party3 =
| party3 = <!-- Non-political role -->
| election3 = March 2018
| election3 = March 2018
| seats = 57 councillors<ref name=bbc/>
| seats = 57 councillors
| structure1 = England_Worcestershire_County_Council_2021.svg
| structure1 = United_Kingdom_Worcestershire_2023.svg
| structure1_res = 250px
| structure1_res = 250px
| structure1_alt =
| structure1_alt =
| political_groups1 =
| political_groups1 =
;Administration
;Administration (40)
: {{Color box|{{party color|Conservative Party (UK)}}|border=darkgray}} [[Conservative Party (UK)|Conservative]] (43)
: {{Color box|{{party color|Conservative Party (UK)}}|border=darkgray}} [[Conservative Party (UK)|Conservative]] (42)
;Other parties
;Other parties (17)
: {{Color box|{{party color|Green Party of England and Wales}}|border=darkgray}} [[Green Party of England and Wales|Green Party]] (5)
: {{Color box|{{party color|Green Party of England and Wales}}|border=darkgray}} [[Green Party of England and Wales|Green]] (5)
: {{Color box|{{party color|Labour Party (UK)}}|border=darkgray}} [[Labour Party (UK)|Labour]] (4)
: {{Color box|{{party color|Labour Party (UK)}}|border=darkgray}} [[Labour Party (UK)|Labour]] (4)
: {{Color box|{{party color|Independent politician}}|border=darkgray}} [[Independent politician|Independent]] (4)
: {{nowrap|{{Color box|{{party color|Liberal Democrats (UK)}}|border=darkgray}} [[Liberal Democrats (UK)|Liberal Democrats]] (3)}}
: {{nowrap|{{Color box|{{party color|Liberal Democrats (UK)}}|border=darkgray}} [[Liberal Democrats (UK)|Liberal Democrats]] (3)}}
: {{Color box|{{party color|Independent politician}}|border=darkgray}} [[Independent politician|Independent]] (2)
: {{Color box|{{party color|Reform UK}}|border=darkgray}} [[Reform UK]] (1)
| committees1 =
| committees1 =
| committees2 =
| joint_committees =
| joint_committees =
| term_length = 4 years
| term_length = 4 years
| voting_system1 = [[Plurality voting system|First past the post]]
| voting_system1 = [[Plurality voting system|First past the post]]
| last_election1 = [[2021 Worcestershire County Council election|6 May 2021]]
| last_election1 = [[2021 Worcestershire County Council election|6 May 2021]]
| next_election1 = [[2025 Worcestershire County Council election|8 May 2025]]
| next_election1 = [[2025 Worcestershire County Council election|1 May 2025]]
| session_room = Worcester - County Hall (geograph 3976307).jpg
| session_room = Worcester - County Hall (geograph 3976307).jpg
| session_res =
| session_res =
| meeting_place = [[County Hall, Worcester|County Hall]], [[Worcester, England|Worcester]]
| meeting_place = [[County Hall, Worcester|County Hall]], Spetchley Road, [[Worcester, England|Worcester]], WR5{{nbsp}}2NP
| website = {{URL|http://www.worcestershire.gov.uk}}
| website = {{URL|www.worcestershire.gov.uk}}
| footnotes =
| footnotes =
}}
}}


'''Worcestershire County Council''' is the [[county council]] for the [[non-metropolitan county]] of [[Worcestershire]] in England. The most recent elections to it were [[2021 Worcestershire County Council election|in 2021]]. Worcestershire County Council has its headquarters at [[County hall|County Hall]] in [[Worcester, England|Worcester]], which was also the headquarters for the preceding [[Hereford and Worcester]] County Council.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.complaintsdepartment.co.uk/worcestershire-county-council/|title=Complaints Department|publisher=Worcestershire County Council|access-date=23 August 2019}}</ref>
'''Worcestershire County Council''' is the [[county council]] for the [[non-metropolitan county]] of [[Worcestershire]] in England. Its headquarters are at [[County Hall, Worcester|County Hall]] in [[Worcester, England|Worcester]], the [[county town]]. The council consists of 57 councillors and is currently controlled by the [[Conservative Party (UK)|Conservative Party]].


The county council was first created in 1889. In 1974 the council was abolished when Worcestershire and neighbouring [[Herefordshire]] were merged to form a new county called [[Hereford and Worcester]]. In 1998 Worcestershire and Herefordshire became separate counties again, and Worcestershire County Council was re-established.
Worcestershire County Council was created in [[Local Government Act 1888|1889]]; it was abolished in [[Local Government Act 1972|1974]] and replaced by [[Hereford and Worcester]] County Council, and was eventually recreated in [[1990s United Kingdom local government reform#England|1998]]. It consists of 57 Councillors [[Worcestershire County Council elections|elected]] every four years, and is currently controlled by the [[Conservative Party (UK)|Conservative Party]].<ref name=bbc>{{cite web|url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/topics/c77jz3mdq5yt/worcestershire-county-council|title=Worcestershire County Council: Election 2017 Results|publisher=BBC|access-date=23 August 2019}}</ref>


== Governance ==
==History==
{{also|Evolution of Worcestershire county boundaries since 1844}}
{{for|historical political control and leadership|Worcestershire County Council elections}}
Elected county councils were created in 1889 under the [[Local Government Act 1888]], taking over many administrative functions which had previously been performed by unelected [[magistrate]]s at the [[quarter sessions]]. The boroughs of [[Worcester, England|Worcester]] and [[Dudley]] were considered large enough to provide their own county-level services and so they were made [[county borough]]s, independent from Worcestershire County Council. The county council was elected by and provided services to the rest of the county, which area was termed the [[administrative county]]. The 1888 Act also said that any [[urban sanitary district]]s which straddled county boundaries were to be placed entirely in the county which had the majority of that district's population, which saw Worcestershire gain the part of [[Redditch]] which had been in [[Warwickshire]].<ref>{{cite legislation UK|type=act|act=Local Government Act 1888|year=1888|chapter=41|access-date=27 August 2023}}</ref>
Worcestershire County Council currently operates using a [[Leader and cabinet|Leader and Cabinet]] system.

The first elections to the county council were held in January 1889 and it formally came into being on 1 April 1889. On that day it held its first official meeting at [[Worcester Guildhall]]. The first chairman was [[George Hastings (East Worcestershire MP)|George Hastings]], who was the [[Liberal Unionist Party|Liberal Unionist]] [[Member of Parliament (United Kingdom)|Member of Parliament]] for [[East Worcestershire (UK Parliament constituency)|East Worcestershire]].<ref>{{cite news |title=Worcestershire County Council |url=https://www.findmypast.co.uk/search-newspapers |access-date=2 February 2024 |work=Berrow's Worcester Journal |date=6 April 1889 |page=7}}</ref>

There were a number of changes to the boundaries of the administrative county over the years. It ceded territory in the north-east to [[Birmingham]] on several occasions, and the complicated boundaries in the south with [[Gloucestershire]] and [[Warwickshire]] were simplified in the 1930s. In 1966 [[Oldbury, West Midlands|Oldbury]] was transferred to the new [[County Borough of Warley]], which was ceremonially associated with Worcestershire but outside the administrative county controlled by the county council.

The administrative county of Worcestershire was abolished in 1974. The boroughs of [[Halesowen]] and [[Stourbridge]] were transferred to the new [[West Midlands (county)|West Midlands]] county, and the rest of administrative county merged with Herefordshire and the county borough of Worcester to form a new [[non-metropolitan county]] called Hereford and Worcester. [[Hereford and Worcester County Council]] therefore took over the old Worcestershire County Council's functions for most of its area.<ref>[[Local Government Act 1972]]</ref>

Hereford and Worcester only existed as a county for 24 years. It was abolished in 1998 as part of the [[1990s United Kingdom local government reform]]s and divided into separate counties of Herefordshire and Worcestershire, with Worcestershire County Council being re-established as the upper-tier local authority for Worcestershire.<ref name=structural>{{cite legislation UK|type=si|si=The Hereford and Worcester (Structural, Boundary and Electoral Changes) Order 1996|year=1996|number=1867|access-date=17 November 2023}}</ref>

==Governance==
Worcestershire County Council provides [[non-metropolitan county|county-level]] services. [[Non-metropolitan district|District-level]] services are provided by the six district councils:
*[[Bromsgrove District Council]]
*[[Malvern Hills District Council]]
*[[Redditch Borough Council]]
*[[Worcester City Council]]
*[[Wychavon District Council]]
*[[Wyre Forest District Council]]

Much of the county is also covered by [[civil parish]]es, which form a third tier of local government.<ref name=electionmaps>{{cite web |title=Election Maps |url=https://www.ordnancesurvey.co.uk/election-maps/gb/ |publisher=Ordnance Survey |access-date=17 October 2023}}</ref>

===Political control===
The council has been under [[Conservative Party (UK)|Conservative]] majority control since 2005.

The first elections to the re-established Worcesteshire County Council were held in 1997, initially operating as a shadow authority until the new arrangements came into effect on 1 April 1998. Political control of the council since 1998 has been as follows:<ref name=electionscentre>{{cite web |title=Compositions calculator |url=https://www.electionscentre.co.uk/?page_id=3825 |website=The Elections Centre | date=4 March 2016 |access-date=19 September 2022}}</ref>

{| class="wikitable"
|-
!colspan="2"|Party!!Tenure
|-
| {{Party name with colour|No overall control}} || 1998–2005
|-
| {{Party name with colour|Conservative Party (UK)}} || 2005–present
|}

===Leadership===
The [[leader of the council|leaders of the council]] since 1998 have been:<ref>{{cite web |title=Council minutes |url=https://worcestershire.moderngov.co.uk/mgCalendarMonthView.aspx?GL=1&bcr=1 |website=Worcestershire County Council |access-date=19 September 2022}}</ref>

{| class=wikitable
! Councillor !! colspan=2|Party !! From !! To
|-
| Carol Warren<ref>{{cite news |last1=McVey |first1=Clare |title=Fiasco on eve of counties' long-awaited separation |url=https://www.britishnewspaperarchive.co.uk/ |access-date=19 September 2022 |work=Birmingham Post |date=1 April 1998 |page=3}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |title=Severn - Carol Warren (Labour) |url=https://www.worcesternews.co.uk/news/7759267.severn-carol-warren-labour/ |access-date=19 September 2022 |work=Worcester News |date=25 May 2001}}</ref> || {{party name with colour|Labour Party (UK)}} || align=right|1 Apr 1998 || align=right|2001
|-
| George Lord<ref>{{cite news |title=Lord is new leader |url=https://www.worcesternews.co.uk/news/7754203.lord-is-new-leader/ |access-date=19 September 2022 |work=Worcester News |date=4 July 2001}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |last1=Paine |first1=David |title=Councillors focus on leadership after resignation of Dr George Lord |url=https://www.worcesternews.co.uk/news/8634303.councillors-focus-on-leadership-after-resignation-of-dr-george-lord/ |access-date=19 September 2022 |work=Worcester News |date=12 November 2010}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |title=Worcestershire sex assault council leader dies |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-hereford-worcester-43634364 |access-date=19 September 2022 |work=BBC News |date=3 April 2018}}</ref> || {{party name with colour|Conservative Party (UK)}} || align=right|2001 || align=right|6 Nov 2010
|-
| Adrian Hardman<ref>{{cite news |title=County Council selects Adrian Hardman as leader |url=https://www.worcesternews.co.uk/news/8677298.county-council-selects-adrian-hardman-as-leader/ |access-date=19 September 2022 |work=Worcester News |date=19 November 2010}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |last1=Farrington |first1=Dayna |title=Adrian Hardman to quit as Worcestershire County Council leader after drink drive charge |url=https://www.bromsgroveadvertiser.co.uk/news/14171256.adrian-hardman-to-quit-as-worcestershire-county-council-leader-after-drink-drive-charge/ |access-date=19 September 2022 |work=Bromsgrove Advertiser |date=29 December 2015}}</ref> || {{party name with colour|Conservative Party (UK)}} || align=right|18 Nov 2010 || align=right|14 Jan 2016
|-
| Simon Geraghty || {{party name with colour|Conservative Party (UK)}} || align=right|14 Jan 2016 || align=right|
|}

===Composition===
Following the [[2021 Worcestershire County Council election|2021 election]] and subsequent by-elections and changes of allegiance up to June 2024 the composition of the council was:<ref name=thorncliffe>{{cite web |title=Worcestershire |url=https://www.localcouncils.co.uk/councils/?council=worcestershire |website=Local Councils |publisher=Thorncliffe}}</ref>

{| class="wikitable"
! colspan=2| Party
! Councillors
|-
| {{Party name with colour|Conservative Party (UK)}}
| align=center|40
|-
| {{Party name with colour|Green Party of England and Wales}}
| align=center|5
|-
| {{Party name with colour|Labour Party (UK)}}
| align=center|4
|-
| {{Party name with colour|Independent politician}}
| align=center|4
|-
| {{Party name with colour|Liberal Democrats (UK)}}
| align=center|3
|-
| {{Party name with colour|Reform UK}}
| align=center|1
|-
! colspan=2|Total
! align=center|57
|}


The Council is currently composed of 57 councillors, the majority representing a single-member division. Elections are held every four years; the last in [[2021 Worcestershire County Council election|2021]].
Two of the independent councillors sit in a group with the Green Party. The next election is due in [[2025 Worcestershire County Council election|2025]].<ref name=thorncliffe/>


=== Cabinet ===
=== Cabinet ===
Worcestershire County Council's cabinet is composed of nine Conservative councillors and the Conservative Leader of the council. Cabinet members work closely with the directors and professional officers of the council to ensure the successful implementation of the decisions they make.<ref>{{Cite web|last=Manninen|first=Terhi|title=Cabinet|url=https://www.worcestershire.gov.uk/info/20088/about_your_council/1424/cabinet|access-date=2021-03-29|website=C|language=en}}</ref>
Worcestershire County Council currently operates using a [[Leader and cabinet|Leader and Cabinet]] system.
Worcestershire County Council's cabinet is composed of ten Conservative councillors and the Conservative Leader of the council. Cabinet members work closely with the directors and professional officers of the council to ensure the successful implementation of the decisions they make.<ref>{{Cite web|last=Manninen|first=Terhi|title=Cabinet|url=https://www.worcestershire.gov.uk/council-services/council-and-democracy/about-council/your-councillors/cabinet-members|website=C|language=en}}</ref>
{| class="wikitable"
{| class="wikitable"
!Title
!Title
Line 70: Line 149:
|-
|-
|Children and Families
|Children and Families
|Steve Mackay
|Andy Roberts
|-
|-
|Communities
|Communities
|Marcus Hart
|Lucy Hodgson
|-
|-
|Economy and Infrastructure
|Economy, Infrastructure and Skills
|Marc Bayliss
|Ken Pollock
|-
|-
|Education and skills
|Education
|Tracey Onslow
|Marcus Hart
|-
|-
|Health and Wellbeing
|Health and Wellbeing
|Karen May
|John Smith
|-
|-
|Highways
|Highways and Transport
|Mike Rouse
|Mike Rouse
|-
|-
|Corporate Services and Communication
|Transformation and Commissioning
|Adam Kent
|Karen May
|-
|Environment
|Richard Morris
|}
|}

==Elections==
{{also|Worcestershire County Council elections}}
Since the last boundary changes in 2005 the council has comprised 57 [[councillor]]s representing 52 [[Wards and electoral divisions of the United Kingdom|electoral divisions]], with each division electing one or two councillors. Elections are held every four years.<ref>{{cite legislation UK|type=si|si=The County of Worcestershire (Electoral Changes) Order 2005|year=2005|number=174|access-date=2 February 2024}}</ref>

==Premises==
The county council has its headquarters at [[County Hall, Worcester|County Hall]] on Spetchley Road on the outskirts of Worcester.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.complaintsdepartment.co.uk/worcestershire-county-council/|title=Complaints Department|publisher=Worcestershire County Council|access-date=23 August 2019}}</ref> The building was purpose-built as the headquarters of Hereford and Worcester County Council and had been completed in 1978.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.gettyimages.com.au/detail/news-photo/prince-philip-duke-of-edinburgh-visits-worcester-county-news-photo/962207850?|title=Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh visits Worcester County Hall|date=23 May 2018 |publisher=Getty Images|accessdate=28 October 2020}}</ref> The building transferred to the re-established Worcestershire County Council as part of the 1998 reforms.<ref name=structural/>

[[File:The Shire Hall, Worcester.jpg|thumb|[[Shire Hall, Worcester|Shire Hall]]: Meeting place of the first incarnation of the county council]]
[[File:County House, Worcester - geograph.org.uk - 4305041.jpg|thumb|County Buildings, St Mary's Street: County Council's headquarters 1930–1974]]
Having held its first meeting in 1889 at Worcester Guildhall, the first Worcestershire County Council later established its usual meeting place at [[Shire Hall, Worcester]], a courthouse which had been built in 1835.<ref name=listed>{{National Heritage List for England|num=1389831|desc=Shire Hall, Worcester|accessdate=23 August 2019}}</ref> County Buildings was built alongside Shire Hall in 1930 to house the council's administrative offices.<ref>{{cite web |title=Adding a New Layer: 20th Century Heritage in Worcestershire - Civil Buildings |url=https://www.explorethepast.co.uk/2020/06/adding-a-new-layer-20th-century-heritage-in-worcestershire-civil-buildings/ |website=Explore the Past |access-date=1 February 2024 |date=10 June 2020}}</ref><ref>{{cite book |title=Local List of Heritage Assets |date=2017 |publisher=Worcester City Council |page=16 |url=https://www.worcester.gov.uk/component/fileman/file/PDF%20Documents/Planning/Conservation%20Area/Local%20List%20of%20Heritage%20Assets%202017.pdf?routed=1&container=fileman-files |access-date=1 February 2024}}</ref> County Buildings and Shire Hall continued to be used by the successor Hereford and Worcester County Council until the new County Hall at Spetchley Road was completed in 1978.<ref>{{cite book |title=The Municipal Year Book |date=1976 |publisher=Municipal Journal |location=London |page=517}}</ref>


==References==
==References==

Latest revision as of 13:05, 29 November 2024

Worcestershire County Council
Coat of arms or logo
Logo
Type
Type
Leadership
Tracey Onslow,
Conservative
since 16 May 2024[1]
Simon Geraghty,
Conservative
since 14 January 2016
Paul Robinson
since March 2018
Structure
Seats57 councillors
Political groups
Administration (40)
  Conservative (42)
Other parties (17)
  Green (5)
  Labour (4)
  Independent (4)
  Liberal Democrats (3)
  Reform UK (1)
Length of term
4 years
Elections
First past the post
Last election
6 May 2021
Next election
1 May 2025
Meeting place
County Hall, Spetchley Road, Worcester, WR5 2NP
Website
www.worcestershire.gov.uk

Worcestershire County Council is the county council for the non-metropolitan county of Worcestershire in England. Its headquarters are at County Hall in Worcester, the county town. The council consists of 57 councillors and is currently controlled by the Conservative Party.

The county council was first created in 1889. In 1974 the council was abolished when Worcestershire and neighbouring Herefordshire were merged to form a new county called Hereford and Worcester. In 1998 Worcestershire and Herefordshire became separate counties again, and Worcestershire County Council was re-established.

History

[edit]
See also: Evolution of Worcestershire county boundaries since 1844

Elected county councils were created in 1889 under the Local Government Act 1888, taking over many administrative functions which had previously been performed by unelected magistrates at the quarter sessions. The boroughs of Worcester and Dudley were considered large enough to provide their own county-level services and so they were made county boroughs, independent from Worcestershire County Council. The county council was elected by and provided services to the rest of the county, which area was termed the administrative county. The 1888 Act also said that any urban sanitary districts which straddled county boundaries were to be placed entirely in the county which had the majority of that district's population, which saw Worcestershire gain the part of Redditch which had been in Warwickshire.[2]

The first elections to the county council were held in January 1889 and it formally came into being on 1 April 1889. On that day it held its first official meeting at Worcester Guildhall. The first chairman was George Hastings, who was the Liberal Unionist Member of Parliament for East Worcestershire.[3]

There were a number of changes to the boundaries of the administrative county over the years. It ceded territory in the north-east to Birmingham on several occasions, and the complicated boundaries in the south with Gloucestershire and Warwickshire were simplified in the 1930s. In 1966 Oldbury was transferred to the new County Borough of Warley, which was ceremonially associated with Worcestershire but outside the administrative county controlled by the county council.

The administrative county of Worcestershire was abolished in 1974. The boroughs of Halesowen and Stourbridge were transferred to the new West Midlands county, and the rest of administrative county merged with Herefordshire and the county borough of Worcester to form a new non-metropolitan county called Hereford and Worcester. Hereford and Worcester County Council therefore took over the old Worcestershire County Council's functions for most of its area.[4]

Hereford and Worcester only existed as a county for 24 years. It was abolished in 1998 as part of the 1990s United Kingdom local government reforms and divided into separate counties of Herefordshire and Worcestershire, with Worcestershire County Council being re-established as the upper-tier local authority for Worcestershire.[5]

Governance

[edit]

Worcestershire County Council provides county-level services. District-level services are provided by the six district councils:

Much of the county is also covered by civil parishes, which form a third tier of local government.[6]

Political control

[edit]

The council has been under Conservative majority control since 2005.

The first elections to the re-established Worcesteshire County Council were held in 1997, initially operating as a shadow authority until the new arrangements came into effect on 1 April 1998. Political control of the council since 1998 has been as follows:[7]

Party Tenure
No overall control 1998–2005
Conservative 2005–present

Leadership

[edit]

The leaders of the council since 1998 have been:[8]

Councillor Party From To
Carol Warren[9][10] Labour 1 Apr 1998 2001
George Lord[11][12][13] Conservative 2001 6 Nov 2010
Adrian Hardman[14][15] Conservative 18 Nov 2010 14 Jan 2016
Simon Geraghty Conservative 14 Jan 2016

Composition

[edit]

Following the 2021 election and subsequent by-elections and changes of allegiance up to June 2024 the composition of the council was:[16]

Party Councillors
Conservative 40
Green 5
Labour 4
Independent 4
Liberal Democrats 3
Reform UK 1
Total 57

Two of the independent councillors sit in a group with the Green Party. The next election is due in 2025.[16]

Cabinet

[edit]

Worcestershire County Council currently operates using a Leader and Cabinet system.

Worcestershire County Council's cabinet is composed of ten Conservative councillors and the Conservative Leader of the council. Cabinet members work closely with the directors and professional officers of the council to ensure the successful implementation of the decisions they make.[17]

Title Councillor
Leader of the Council Simon Geraghty
Adult Services Adrian Hardman
Children and Families Steve Mackay
Communities Marcus Hart
Economy, Infrastructure and Skills Marc Bayliss
Education Tracey Onslow
Health and Wellbeing Karen May
Highways and Transport Mike Rouse
Corporate Services and Communication Adam Kent
Environment Richard Morris

Elections

[edit]
See also: Worcestershire County Council elections

Since the last boundary changes in 2005 the council has comprised 57 councillors representing 52 electoral divisions, with each division electing one or two councillors. Elections are held every four years.[18]

Premises

[edit]

The county council has its headquarters at County Hall on Spetchley Road on the outskirts of Worcester.[19] The building was purpose-built as the headquarters of Hereford and Worcester County Council and had been completed in 1978.[20] The building transferred to the re-established Worcestershire County Council as part of the 1998 reforms.[5]

Shire Hall: Meeting place of the first incarnation of the county council
County Buildings, St Mary's Street: County Council's headquarters 1930–1974

Having held its first meeting in 1889 at Worcester Guildhall, the first Worcestershire County Council later established its usual meeting place at Shire Hall, Worcester, a courthouse which had been built in 1835.[21] County Buildings was built alongside Shire Hall in 1930 to house the council's administrative offices.[22][23] County Buildings and Shire Hall continued to be used by the successor Hereford and Worcester County Council until the new County Hall at Spetchley Road was completed in 1978.[24]

References

[edit]
  1. ^ Wilkinson-Jones, Phil (16 May 2024). "Worcestershire County Council appoints new chairman and vice chairman". Worcester News. Retrieved 21 May 2024.
  2. ^ "Local Government Act 1888", legislation.gov.uk, The National Archives, 1888 c. 41, retrieved 27 August 2023
  3. ^ "Worcestershire County Council". Berrow's Worcester Journal. 6 April 1889. p. 7. Retrieved 2 February 2024.
  4. ^ Local Government Act 1972
  5. ^ a b "The Hereford and Worcester (Structural, Boundary and Electoral Changes) Order 1996", legislation.gov.uk, The National Archives, SI 1996/1867, retrieved 17 November 2023
  6. ^ "Election Maps". Ordnance Survey. Retrieved 17 October 2023.
  7. ^ "Compositions calculator". The Elections Centre. 4 March 2016. Retrieved 19 September 2022.
  8. ^ "Council minutes". Worcestershire County Council. Retrieved 19 September 2022.
  9. ^ McVey, Clare (1 April 1998). "Fiasco on eve of counties' long-awaited separation". Birmingham Post. p. 3. Retrieved 19 September 2022.
  10. ^ "Severn - Carol Warren (Labour)". Worcester News. 25 May 2001. Retrieved 19 September 2022.
  11. ^ "Lord is new leader". Worcester News. 4 July 2001. Retrieved 19 September 2022.
  12. ^ Paine, David (12 November 2010). "Councillors focus on leadership after resignation of Dr George Lord". Worcester News. Retrieved 19 September 2022.
  13. ^ "Worcestershire sex assault council leader dies". BBC News. 3 April 2018. Retrieved 19 September 2022.
  14. ^ "County Council selects Adrian Hardman as leader". Worcester News. 19 November 2010. Retrieved 19 September 2022.
  15. ^ Farrington, Dayna (29 December 2015). "Adrian Hardman to quit as Worcestershire County Council leader after drink drive charge". Bromsgrove Advertiser. Retrieved 19 September 2022.
  16. ^ a b "Worcestershire". Local Councils. Thorncliffe.
  17. ^ Manninen, Terhi. "Cabinet". C.
  18. ^ "The County of Worcestershire (Electoral Changes) Order 2005", legislation.gov.uk, The National Archives, SI 2005/174, retrieved 2 February 2024
  19. ^ "Complaints Department". Worcestershire County Council. Retrieved 23 August 2019.
  20. ^ "Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh visits Worcester County Hall". Getty Images. 23 May 2018. Retrieved 28 October 2020.
  21. ^ Historic England. "Shire Hall, Worcester (1389831)". National Heritage List for England. Retrieved 23 August 2019.
  22. ^ "Adding a New Layer: 20th Century Heritage in Worcestershire - Civil Buildings". Explore the Past. 10 June 2020. Retrieved 1 February 2024.
  23. ^ Local List of Heritage Assets (PDF). Worcester City Council. 2017. p. 16. Retrieved 1 February 2024.
  24. ^ The Municipal Year Book. London: Municipal Journal. 1976. p. 517.
[edit]
New creation Cam
1889 – 1974 		Succeeded by
Preceded by County council
1998 – present 		Current
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