North Hertfordshire District Council
Coordinates: 51°58′34″N 0°13′48″W / 51.976°N 0.230°W
This article includes a list of general references, but it lacks sufficient corresponding inline citations. (November 2018) |
North Hertfordshire District Council | |
---|---|
Type | |
Type | Non-metropolitan district council |
Leadership | |
Chair of the Council | Val Bryant, Labour since 26 May 2021 |
Leader of the Council | Elizabeth Dennis-Harburg, Labour since 26 May 2021[1] |
Structure | |
Seats | 49 |
Political groups | Administration (26)
Opposition (23)
|
Elections | |
Last election | 6 May 2021 |
Meeting place | |
Council Offices, Gernon Road, Letchworth Garden City | |
Website | |
http://www.north-herts.gov.uk |
North Hertfordshire District Council is the local authority for the North Hertfordshire non-metropolitan district of England, the United Kingdom. North Hertfordshire covers the northern part of Hertfordshire, in the East of England region. The Council's offices are in Letchworth, one of the largest settlements in the district.
Composition[]
The Council consists of 49 elected members, representing twenty-four electoral wards. Nine of the wards elect two councillors each. Seven elect one, whilst eight elect three.
The Council has been under no overall control since 2019, being run by a Labour and Liberal Democrats joint administration. In the 2021 Council elections Labour lost the Letchworth Grange seat to the Conservative party. A total of 17 seats out of the 49 of the council were contested, including 2 bye-elections. The 16 other seats were held by the incumbent party.
Party | Councillors | Change (2021) | |
---|---|---|---|
Conservative | 23 | +1 | |
Labour | 15 | -1 | |
Liberal Democrats | 11 | - | |
Total | 49 | - | |
Source: BBC News |
Political leadership[]
Since the Local Government Act 2000, the council has used the 'Leader and cabinet' model. The current leader, appointed in May 2021, is Elizabeth Dennis-Harburg (Labour, leading a Labour - Liberal Democrat coalition). Prior to 2000 the term 'leader' was used to indicate the leader of the largest political group, who in North Hertfordshire took the formal role of Chair of the Policy and Resources Committee.
Party | Dates | Name | Formal role | |
---|---|---|---|---|
No overall control (Conservative minority administration) | 1974-1976 | Robert Flatman | Chair of Policy and Resources Committee | |
Conservative | 1976-1992 | Robert Flatman | Chair of Policy and Resources Committee | |
Conservative | 1992-1994 | Geoffrey Woods | Chair of Policy and Resources Committee | |
No overall control (Conservative minority administration) | 1994-1995 | Geoffrey Woods | Chair of Policy and Resources Committee | |
No overall control (Labour minority administration) | 1995-1996 | David Kearns | Chair of Policy and Resources Committee | |
Labour | 1996-1999 | David Kearns | Chair of Policy and Resources Committee | |
Conservative | 1999-2010 | F. John Smith | Leader of the Council | |
Conservative | 2010-2019 | Lynda Needham | Leader of the Council | |
No overall control (Labour - Liberal Democrat coalition) | 2019-2021 | Martin Stears-Handscomb | Leader of the Council | |
No overall control (Labour - Liberal Democrat coalition) | 2021- | Elizabeth Dennis-Harburg | Leader of the Council | |
Source: Minutes of Annual Council Meetings 1974-2021, North Hertfordshire District Council. This list is the political leaders of the council rather than the largely ceremonial Chairman of the Council role, to which a different councillor is appointed each year. |
Wards[]
North Hertfordshire consists of twenty four wards, electing 1, 2 or 3 members.
|
|
|
Premises[]
When the council was created in 1974, it inherited five sets of offices from the five former authorities, spread across the four towns of Hitchin, Letchworth, Baldock and Royston. Initially the new council used the former Hitchin Rural District Council's offices (later called Centenary House) on Grammar School Walk in Hitchin as its headquarters, with the other offices providing additional accommodation. In 1975, the year after the new council's creation, it consolidated most of its functions into a six-storey building on Gernon Road in Letchworth, which had been built as part of the Central Area (later Garden Square) Shopping Centre. The building was named Council Offices and has served as the council's headquarters since then.[2][3][4] The council rented the building until 2013, when it purchased it for £3.6 million.[5]
Arms[]
|
Logo[]
In 2021 the council adopted a new logo of four hearts (shown in the infobox above) and the style "North Herts Council" instead of its full formal name of "North Hertfordshire District Council". Prior to this, the council had used a logo of the initials "NHDC" in a green and purple square for approximately thirty years.[7]
References[]
- ^ "Minutes, Council 26 May 2021". North Herts Council. Retrieved 6 December 2021.
- ^ Miller, Mervyn (2002). Letchworth: The First Garden City (2nd ed.). Chichester: Phillimore. pp. 177, 189. ISBN 1-86077-213-7.
- ^ London Gazette, 13 June 1975, page 7654, council address given as Grammar School Walk, Hitchin
- ^ London Gazette, 10 July 1975, page 8810, council address given as Council Offices, Gernon Road, Letchworth.
- ^ Scott, James (12 December 2013). "NHDC buys own Letchworth GC offices for £3.6M". The Comet. Archant. Retrieved 14 October 2021.
- ^ "East of England Region". Civic Heraldry of England. Retrieved 9 March 2021.
- ^ "Council Plan 2022–2027" (PDF). North Herts Council. Retrieved 22 November 2021.
External links[]
- Politics of North Hertfordshire District
- Non-metropolitan district councils of England
- Local authorities in Hertfordshire
- Billing authorities in England