Nottinghamshire County Council

The upper-tier local authority for the non-metropolitan county of Nottinghamshire in England

Nottinghamshire County Council

Type
Type|

County council

Leadership

Chair

Richard Butler,
Conservative
since 16 May 2024[1]

Leader

Ben Bradley,
Conservative
since 27 May 2021

Chief Executive

Adrian Smith
since September 2022

Structure
Seats| 66 councillors

Political groups

Administration (35)
Conservatives (35)
Other parties (31)
Labour (15)
Ashfield Ind. (10)
Independent (6)

Length of term

| 4 years
Elections

Voting system

| First past the post

Last election

| 6 May 2021

Next election

| 1 May 2025
Meeting place
County Hall, Loughborough Road, West Bridgford, Nottingham, NG2 7QP
Website
www.nottinghamshire.gov.uk

Nottinghamshire County Council is the upper-tier local authority for the non-metropolitan county of Nottinghamshire in England. It consists of 66 county councillors, elected from 56 electoral divisions every four years. The most recent election was held in 2021.

The county council is based at County Hall in West Bridgford. The council does not have jurisdiction over Nottingham, which is a unitary authority governed by Nottingham City Council. The council is a constituent member of the East Midlands Combined County Authority.

## History

[edit]

Elected county councils were created in 1889 under the Local Government Act 1888, taking over many administrative functions that had previously been performed by unelected magistrates at the quarter sessions. The borough of Nottingham had been a county corporate since 1449 with its own quarter sessions, and Nottingham's independence from the surrounding county was maintained by making it a county borough. The county council was elected by and provided services to the remainder of the county outside the borough of Nottingham, which area was termed the administrative county.[2]

The first elections to the county council were held on 15 January 1889, with 51 councillors being elected. There were also 17 aldermen chosen by the councillors to serve on the council as well.[3] The council formally came into its powers on 1 April 1889, on which day it held its first official meeting at the Shire Hall in Nottingham. Henry Strutt, Lord Belper, a Liberal Unionist peer, was the first chairman of the council.[4]

The county council was reconstituted in 1974 as a non-metropolitan county by the Local Government Act 1972; the first elections to the reformed council were held in 1973. All urban districts, rural districts and municipal boroughs within the county were abolished and replaced with non-metropolitan districts. Whilst previously the City of Nottingham was an independent county borough and therefore not included within the administrative county of Nottinghamshire or involved in the election of county councillors, the new non-metropolitan county included Nottingham for the first time as a non-metropolitan district.[5]

In 1998, Nottingham regained independent control over its affairs when it became a unitary authority. Since then the county council has had control over the county of Nottinghamshire, excluding the City of Nottingham.[6]

In 2024 a combined county authority was established covering Nottinghamshire, Nottingham, Derby and Derbyshire, called the East Midlands Combined County Authority. The combined authority is chaired by the directly elected Mayor of the East Midlands and oversees the delivery of certain strategic functions across the area.[7]

## Governance

[edit]

Nottinghamshire County Council provides county-level services such as education, transport, social care, libraries, trading standards and waste management.[8] District-level services are provided by the area's seven district councils:[9]

* Ashfield
* Bassetlaw
* Broxtowe
* Gedling
* Mansfield
* Newark and Sherwood
* Rushcliffe

Much of the county is also covered by civil parishes, which form a third tier of local government.[10]

### Political control

[edit]

The council has been under Conservative majority control since 2021.

Political control of the council since the 1974 reforms has been as follows:[11][12]

Party in control | Years

|

| Labour | 1973–1977
| Conservative | 1977–1981
| Labour | 1981–2009
| Conservative | 2009–2013
| Labour | 2013–2017
| No overall control | 2017–2021
| Conservative | 2021–present

### Leadership

[edit]

The leaders of the council since 1974 have been:[13]

Councillor | Party | From | To

|
|
|

Dick Wilson[14] |  | Labour | 1 Apr 1974 | 1977
Peter Wright[15] |  | Conservative | May 1977 | 1980
Herbert Bird |  | Conservative | 1980 | 1981
Gordon Cragg[16] |  | Conservative | 1981 | May 1981
Dennis Pettitt[17] |  | Labour | May 1981 | 2001
Mick Warner[18] |  | Labour | 2001 | 8 May 2005
David Kirkham |  | Labour | 19 May 2005 | 7 Jun 2009
Kay Cutts |  | Conservative | 18 Jun 2009 | 16 May 2013
Alan Rhodes |  | Labour | 16 May 2013 | 25 May 2017
Kay Cutts |  | Conservative | 25 May 2017 | 9 May 2021
Ben Bradley |  | Conservative | 27 May 2021 |

### Composition

[edit]

Following the 2021 election and subsequent by-elections and changes of allegiance up to December 2023, the composition of the council was:[19]

Party  | Councillors

|

| Conservative | 35
| Labour | 15
| Ashfield Ind. | 10
| Independent | 6
Total  | 66

The next election is due in 2025.

## Premises

[edit]

The county council is based at County Hall on the south bank of the River Trent in West Bridgford. A replacement headquarters is under construction on the A611 Annesley Road in the parish of Linby, on the northern outskirts of Hucknall, due to open in 2025.[20][21]

Old Shire Hall, High Pavement, Nottingham: Council's meeting place 1889–1954

When the county council was first created it met at the Shire Hall on High Pavement in Nottingham, a courthouse built in 1770 which had been the meeting place of the quarter sessions which preceded the county council.[22] The council moved to County Hall in 1954; construction had begun in 1939 but had been paused due to the Second World War. When construction began the site was within the boundaries of Nottingham.[23] Boundary changes in April 1952 adjusted the boundary between Nottingham and West Bridgford in this area to follow the centre of the River Trent, transferring the County Hall site and other areas on the south bank of the Trent from Nottingham to West Bridgford.[24]

## Elections

[edit]

See also: Nottinghamshire County Council elections

Since the last boundary changes in 2017 the council has comprised 66 councillors representing 56 electoral divisions, with each division electing one or two councillors. Elections are held every four years.[25]

### Electoral Divisions

[edit]

Nottinghamshire is divided into 56 divisions for electoral purposes. Current boundaries have been in place since 2017 following a review by the Local Government Boundary Commission for England. Each Councillor is allocated a locality budget, described as their "Councillors' Divisional Fund".[26]

Map of the electoral divisions of Nottinghamshire. Map No. | Electoral division | Councillors

|
|

1 | Arnold North | 2
2 | Arnold South | 2
3 | Ashfields | 1
4 | Balderton | 1
5 | Beeston Central & Rylands | 1
6 | Bingham East | 1
7 | Bingham West | 1
8 | Blidworth | 1
9 | Blyth & Harworth | 1
10 | Bramcote & Beeston North | 1
11 | Calverton | 1
12 | Carlton East | 1
13 | Carlton West | 2
14 | Collingham | 1
15 | Cotgrave | 1
16 | Eastwood | 1
17 | Farndon & Trent | 1
18 | Greasley & Brinsley | 1
19 | Hucknall North | 1
20 | Hucknall South | 1
21 | Hucknall West | 1
22 | Keyworth | 1
23 | Kirkby North | 1
24 | Kirkby South | 1
25 | Leake & Ruddington | 2
26 | Mansfield East | 2
27 | Mansfield North | 2
28 | Mansfield South | 2
29 | Mansfield West | 2
30 | Misterton | 1
31 | Muskham & Farnsfield | 1
32 | Newark East | 1
33 | Newark West | 1
34 | Newstead | 1
35 | Nuthall & Kimberley | 1
36 | Ollerton | 1
37 | Radcliffe on Trent | 1
38 | Retford East | 1
39 | Retford West | 1
40 | Selston | 1
41 | Sherwood Forest | 1
42 | Southwell | 1
43 | Stapleford & Broxtowe Central | 2
44 | Sutton Central & East | 1
45 | Sutton North | 1
46 | Sutton West | 1
47 | Toton, Chilwell & Attenborough | 2
48 | Tuxford | 1
49 | Warsop | 1
50 | West Bridgford North | 1
51 | West Bridgford South | 1
52 | West Bridgford West | 1
53 | Worksop East | 1
54 | Worksop North | 1
55 | Worksop South | 1
56 | Worksop West | 1

## References

[edit]

1. ^ "Cotgrave councillor elected Chairman of Nottinghamshire County Council". West Bridgford Wire. 18 May 2024. Retrieved 21 May 2024.
2. ^ "Local Government Act 1888", legislation.gov.uk, The National Archives, 1888 c. 41, retrieved 27 August 2023
3. ^ "History of Nottinghamshire County Council". Nottinghamshire County Council. Retrieved 15 October 2016.
4. ^ "County Councils: Nottinghamshire". Retford and Gainsborough Times. 5 April 1889. p. 3. Retrieved 18 December 2023.
5. ^ Local Government Act 1972. 1972 c.70. The Stationery Office Ltd. 1997. ISBN 0-10-547072-4.
6. ^ "The Nottinghamshire (City of Nottingham) (Structural Change) Order 1996". legislation.gov.uk. Retrieved 15 October 2016.
7. ^ "The East Midlands Combined County Authority Regulations 2024", legislation.gov.uk, The National Archives, SI 2024/232, retrieved 6 May 2024
8. ^ "Understand how your council works". www.gov.uk. HM Government. Retrieved 15 October 2016.
9. ^ "Local Government Act 1972", legislation.gov.uk, The National Archives, 1972 c. 70, retrieved 31 May 2023
10. ^ "Election Maps". Ordnance Survey. Retrieved 18 November 2023.
11. ^ "Compositions calculator". The Elections Centre. 4 March 2016. Retrieved 10 August 2022.
12. ^ "Nottinghamshire". BBC News Online. 19 April 2009. Retrieved 25 September 2009.
13. ^ "Council minutes". Nottinghamshire County Council. Retrieved 19 August 2022.
14. ^ Wilson, Judy (5 July 2023). "Dick Wilson obituary". The Guardian. Retrieved 17 December 2023.
15. ^ "'Dignity' call as Tories step in". Nottingham Evening Post. 18 May 1977. Retrieved 17 December 2023.
16. ^ "Tories have new leader". Stapleford and Sandiacre News. 14 May 1981. p. 2. Retrieved 17 December 2023.
17. ^ "Councillor Dennis Pettitt, Leader of the County Council (1981–2001)". Art UK. Retrieved 17 December 2023.
18. ^ "Twin the money". The Mirror. 4 April 2004. Retrieved 17 December 2023.
19. ^ "Councillors". Nottinghamshire County Council. Retrieved 18 December 2023.
20. ^ "County Council to make major savings by moving civic and democratic base from County Hall". Nottinghamshire County Council. 13 July 2023. Retrieved 18 December 2023.
21. ^ Burrows, Fionn (14 December 2023). "Work begins on Nottinghamshire County Council's new £18.3m, low carbon headquarters office near Hucknall after decision to leave County Hall in West Bridgford, Nottingham". Newark Advertiser. Retrieved 18 December 2023.
22. ^ Historic England. "Shire Hall and adjoining county gaol, High Pavement, Nottingham (1254517)". National Heritage List for England. Retrieved 13 August 2019.
23. ^ "1:25,000 Administrative Area Series, 1946". National Library of Scotland. Ordnance Survey. Retrieved 1 July 2023.
24. ^ "Nottingham City and County Boundaries Act 1951 (14 & 15 Geo 6 c. 31)". legislation.gov.uk. The National Archives. Retrieved 1 July 2023.
25. ^ "The Nottinghamshire (Electoral Changes) Order 2016", legislation.gov.uk, The National Archives, SI 2016/659, retrieved 18 December 2023
26. ^ "Councillors' divisional fund". Nottinghamshire County Council. Nottinghamshire County Council. Retrieved 4 March 2022.

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