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Stevenage Borough Council

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51°54′00″N 0°12′11″W / 51.900°N 0.203°W / 51.900; -0.203

Stevenage Borough Council
Leadership
Jim Brown,
Labour
since 22 May 2024[1]
Richard Henry,
Labour
since 1 January 2023[2]
Matt Partridge
since 25 July 2019[3]
Structure
Seats39 councillors[4]
Political groups
Administration (32)
  Labour (32)
Other parties (7)
  Liberal Democrat (6)
  Conservative (1)
Elections
First past the post
Last election
2 May 2024
Next election
7 May 2026
Meeting place
Daneshill House, Danestrete, Stevenage, SG1 1HN
Website
www.stevenage.gov.uk

Stevenage Borough Council is the local authority for Stevenage, a local government district with borough status in Hertfordshire, England. The council has been under Labour majority control since 1974. It is based at Daneshill House on Danestrete.

History

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Stevenage's first elected council was a local board established in 1873, prior to which the town had been administered by the parish vestry.[5] Such local boards were converted into urban district councils in 1894. The Local Government Act 1972 reconstituted Stevenage Urban District as a non-metropolitan district with effect from 1 April 1974.[6] The district was awarded borough status on the same date, allowing the chair of the council to take the title of mayor.[7]

Governance

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Stevenage Borough Council provides district-level services. County-level functions are provided by Hertfordshire County Council. There are no civil parishes in the borough.

Political control

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The first elections to the borough council as reformed under the Local Government Act 1972 were held in 1973, initially acting as a shadow authority until the new arrangements took effect on 1 April 1974. The Labour Party has held a majority of the seats on the council since 1974:[8]

Party in control Years
Labour 1974–present

Leadership

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The role of mayor is largely ceremonial in Stevenage, and is usually held by a different councillor each year. Political leadership is instead provided by the leader of the council. The leaders since 1974 have been:[9]

Councillor Party From To
Brian Hall Labour 1974 1975
Labour 1975 1976
Brian Hall[10][11] Labour 1976 23 May 2006
Sharon Taylor Labour 23 May 2006 31 Dec 2022
Richard Henry Labour 1 Jan 2023

Composition

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Following the 2024 election the composition of the council was as follows:[12]

Party Councillors
Labour 32
Liberal Democrats 6
Conservative 1
Total 39

The next election is due 7 May 2026. A third of the council's seats will be up for election.

Elections

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Main article: Stevenage Borough Council elections

Since the last ward boundary changes in 2024 the council has comprised 39 councillors, with the borough being divided into 13 wards each electing three councillors. Elections are held three years out of every four, electing one councillor from each ward each time to serve a four-year term of office. Hertfordshire County Council elections are held in the fourth year of the cycle when there are no borough council elections.[13]

The wards are:

Premises

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The council is based at Daneshill House on Danestrete in the town centre. The building was built in 1961 for the development corporation which oversaw the development of Stevenage as a New Town between 1946 and 1980. The building was bought by the council in 1980 when the development corporation was wound up.[14]

Arms

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Coat of arms of Stevenage Borough Council
Notes
Originally granted to Stevenage Urban District Council on 10 March 1958.
Crest
Out of a crown palisado Or a demi hart Proper its sinister fore leg resting upon a cogwheel Gold.
Escutcheon
Argent on a mount in base point Vert an oak tree eradicated Proper fructed Or transfixed with a sword in bend sinister point downward also Proper hilt and pommel also Or and over all a fess Gules charged with six mullets of six points Gold.
Motto
The Heart Of A Town Lies In Its People.[15]

References

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  1. ^ Day, Christopher (23 May 2024). "Stevenage: Jim Brown confirmed as new mayor for 2024/25". The Comet. Retrieved 24 May 2024.
  2. ^ "Council minutes, 14 December 2022". Stevenage Borough Council. Retrieved 4 March 2023.
  3. ^ "New CEO for Stevenage". The UK Innovation Corridor. 30 July 2019. Retrieved 4 March 2023.
  4. ^ "Political Makeup". Stevenage Borough Council. Retrieved 18 May 2024.
  5. ^ "No. 24022". The London Gazette. 3 October 1873. p. 4434.
  6. ^ "Stevenage Urban District". A Vision of Britain through Time. GB Historical GIS / University of Portsmouth. Retrieved 9 May 2023.
  7. ^ "District Councils and Boroughs". Parliamentary Debates (Hansard). 28 March 1974. Retrieved 4 December 2021.
  8. ^ "Compositions calculator". The Elections Centre. Retrieved 22 September 2022.
  9. ^ "Council minutes". Stevenage Borough Council. Retrieved 7 June 2022.
  10. ^ "End of an era". The Comet. 25 May 2006. Retrieved 7 June 2022.
  11. ^ "Mayors of Stevenage from 1974". Stevenage Borough Council. Retrieved 7 June 2022.
  12. ^ "Local elections 2024: full mayoral and council results for England". The Guardian. 4 May 2024. Retrieved 21 May 2024.
  13. ^ "The Stevenage (Electoral Changes) Order 2023", legislation.gov.uk, The National Archives, SI 2023/653, retrieved 24 May 2023
  14. ^ Cole, Emily; Harwood, Elain (2020). The New Town Centre, Stevenage, Hertfordshire: Architecture and Significance. Historic England. pp. 118, 150. Retrieved 4 December 2021.
  15. ^ "East of England Region". Civic Heraldry of England. Retrieved 9 March 2021.
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