Manchester City Council

Manchester City Council is the local government authority for Manchester, a city and metropolitan borough in Greater Manchester, England. It is composed of 96 councillors, three for each of the 32 electoral wards of Manchester. Currently the council is controlled by the Labour Party and is led by Sir Richard Leese. Many, but not all, of the council's staff are based at Manchester Town Hall.

History

Manchester was incorporated in 1838 under the Municipal Corporations Act 1835 as the Corporation of Manchester or Manchester Corporation. It achieved city status in 1853, only the second such grant since the Reformation. The area included in the city has been increased many times, in 1885 (Bradford, Harpurhey and Rusholme), 1890 (Blackley, Crumpsall, part of Droylsden, Kirkmanshulme, Moston, Newton Heath, Openshaw, and West Gorton), 1903 (Heaton), 1904 (Burnage, Chorlton cum Hardy, Didsbury, and Moss Side), 1909 (Gorton, and Levenshulme), 1931 (Wythenshawe: Baguley, Northenden, and Northen Etchells), and Ringway. A new Town Hall was opened in 1877 (by Alderman Abel Heywood) and the Mayor of Manchester was granted the title of Lord Mayor in 1893.^[1]

Under the Local Government Act 1972 the council was reconstituted as a metropolitan borough council in 1974, and since then it has been controlled by the Labour Party. In 1980, Manchester was the first council to declare itself a nuclear-free zone. In 1984 it formed an equal opportunities unit as part of its opposition to Section 28.^[2][3][4]

Political makeup

Elections are usually by thirds (a third of the seats elected, three years in every four), although the 2004 elections, due to substantial boundary changes (which involved the total number of councillors reduced), saw all seats contested. Labour has controlled a majority of seats in every election since the council was reconstituted.

Coat of arms

• The Shield: red (Gules) with three gold (Or) bands drawn diagonally across to the right hand side.
• The Chief (the white (Argent) top segment): shows a ship at sea in full sail. This is a reference to the city's trading base.
• The Crest: On a multicoloured wreath stands a terrestrial globe, signifying Manchester's world trade, and covered by a swarm of flying bees. The bee was adopted in the 19th century as a symbol of industrial Manchester being the birthplace of the Industrial Revolution.
• The Supporters: On the left, a heraldic antelope with a chain attached to a gold (Or) collar, representing engineering industries, and hanging at the shoulder, the red rose of Lancashire, in which county Manchester once was. On the right, a golden lion stands guardant (facing us), crowned with a red (Gules) castle (a reference to the Roman fort at Castlefield from which the city originated). The lion also wears the Red Rose of Lancashire.
• Motto: Concilio et Labore, loosely translated "By wisdom and effort" (or "By counsel and hard work").

Leaders

• Graham Stringer (1984–1996)
• Sir Richard Leese (since 1996)

Wards

Notable achievements

• 2002 Commonwealth Games
• Repopulation of Manchester City Centre: see also Central Manchester Development Corporation
• Development of Hulme and Eastlands

Sources

Further reading

• McKechnie, H. M. (ed.) (1915) Manchester in Nineteen Hundred and Fifteen. Manchester U. P.; "Undertakings of the City Council; Social Amelioration in Manchester; Elementary Education in Manchester; Secondary Schools in Manchester; The Evening School System of Manchester", by E. D. Simon, et al.
• Manchester City Council. "Concilio et Labore" Series. No. 1-11. (Each pamphlet describes part of the council's work, e.g. no. 4: the City Treasurer.)
• Redford, Arthur (1939) The History of City Government in Manchester; Vol. 2 & 3: Borough and City; The Last Half Century.
• Simon, Ernest D. A City Council from Within.
• Simon, Shena D. (1938) A Century of City Government: Manchester 1838–1938.

External links

• Manchester City Council
• Labour Party in Manchester
• Liberal Democrat Party in Manchester
• Conservative Party in Manchester
• Open Data on Manchester City Council from OpenlyLocal