West Berkshire Council
| West Berkshire Council | |
|---|---|
| Whole council elected every four years | |
 Council logo | |
| Type | |
| Type | Unitary authority council of West Berkshire |
| Houses | Unicameral |
| History | |
| Founded | 1 April 1974 |
| Leadership | |
| Chairman | Adrian Edwards, Conservative |
| Leader of the Council | Gordon Lundie, Conservative |
| Opposition Group Leader | Jeff Brooks, Liberal Democrats |
| Structure | |
| Seats | 52 councillors |
| Committees |
10
|
| Conservatives |
39 / 52 |
| Lib Dems |
13 / 52 |
| Elections | |
| Voting system | Plurality-at-large |
| Last election | 2011 |
| Next election | 2015 |
| Meeting place | |
| Council Offices, Market Street, Newbury | |
| Website | |
| West Berkshire Council | |
West Berkshire Council is the local authority of West Berkshire in Berkshire, England. It is a unitary authority, having the powers of a non-metropolitan county and district council combined. West Berkshire is divided into 30 wards, electing 52 councillors.[2] The council was created by the Local Government Act 1972 as the Newbury District Council and replaced five local authorities: Bradfield Rural District Council, Hungerford Rural District Council, Newbury Borough Council, Newbury Rural District Council and Wantage Rural District Council. On 1 April 1998 it was renamed West Berkshire Council and since then has been a unitary authority, assuming the powers and functions of Berkshire County Council. The next election to the authority will be in 2015.
History
The council was formed by the Local Government Act 1972 as the Newbury District Council. It replaced Bradfield Rural District Council, Hungerford Rural District Council, Newbury Borough Council, Newbury Rural District Council and Wantage Rural District Council. The current local authority was first elected in 1973, a year before formally coming into its powers and prior to the creation of the District of Newbury on 1 April 1974.
It was envisaged through the Local Government Act 1972 that Newbury as a non-metropolitan district council would share power with the Berkshire County Council. This arrangement lasted until 1998 when Berkshire County Council was abolished and the renamed Newbury District Council, now West Berkshire Council, gained responsibility for services that had been provided by the county council.
See also
References
- ↑ West Berkshire Council - Your Councillors. Westberks.gov.uk. Retrieved on 2013-07-17.
- ↑ http://www.westberks.gov.uk/index.aspx?articleid=2130
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