Torbay Council

Coat of arms

Council logo

Type
Type|

Unitary authority

History
Founded| 1 April 1968
Leadership

Mayor

Hannah Stevens,
Conservative
since 18 July 2024[1]

Leader

David Thomas,
Conservative
since 16 May 2023[2]

Chief Executive

Anne-Marie Bond
since 2021[3]

Structure
Seats| 36 councillors

Political groups

Administration (18)
Conservative (18)
Other parties (18)
Liberal Democrats (15)
Independent (3)

Length of term

| Whole council elected every four years
Elections

Voting system

| Plurality-at-large

Last election

| 4 May 2023

Next election

| 6 May 2027
Motto
SALUS ET FELICITAS (Health and Happiness)
Meeting place
Town Hall, Castle Circus, Torquay, TQ1 3DR
Website
www.torbay.gov.uk

Torbay Council is the local authority for Torbay, a local government district in the ceremonial county of Devon, England. Since 1998 the council has been a unitary authority, being a district council which also performs the functions of a county council; it is independent from Devon County Council.

The council has been under no overall control since 2023, being led by a Conservative minority administration. It is based at the Town Hall in Torquay.

## History

[edit]

The council was created on 1 April 1968 to govern the county borough of Torbay, which replaced the abolished municipal borough of Torquay, urban districts of Brixham and Paignton and civil parish of Churston Ferrers. The council's formal title on creation in 1968 was the "mayor, aldermen and burgesses of the borough of Torbay", informally known as the corporation or borough council. As a county borough, the council provided all local government services for the area.[4]

Six years later local government was reorganised again, under the Local Government Act 1972. Torbay kept the same boundaries, but on 1 April 1974 it became a non-metropolitan district, with Devon County Council once more providing county-level services to the area.[5] Torbay retained borough status, allowing the council to take the name "Torbay Borough Council" and letting the chair of the council take the title of mayor, continuing Torbay's series of mayors which had started in 1968.[6][7]

Torbay regained its independence from the county council on 1 April 1998. The way this change was implemented was to create a new non-metropolitan county of Torbay matching the borough, but with no separate county council. Instead, the existing borough council took on county council functions, making it a unitary authority. Since 1998 the council has styled itself "Torbay Council".[8][7]

Between 2005 and 2019 the council had a directly elected mayor. Since 2019 political leadership has instead been provided by a leader of the council.[9]

## Governance

[edit]

As a unitary authority, Torbay Council has the responsibilities of both a district council and county council combined. In its capacity as a district council it is a billing authority collecting Council Tax and business rates, and its responsibilities include town planning, housing, waste collection and environmental health. In its capacity as a county council it is a local education authority, and responsible for social services, libraries and waste disposal.

Torbay Council appoints two members to the Devon and Somerset Combined Fire Authority[10] and appoints one member to the Devon and Cornwall Police and Crime Panel.[11] The Torbay Health and Wellbeing Board is made up of representatives from Torbay Council and other local healthcare organisations.[12]

### Political control

[edit]

The council has been under no overall control since 2023. Following the May 2023 elections the Conservatives had a majority of the seats, but they lost their majority in October that year when two Conservative members left the party to form a new group, Prosper Torbay.[13][14] The Conservatives won a by-election in June 2024, giving them exactly half the seats on the council, so one seat short of an overall majority.[15] The Conservatives were therefore able to govern by relying on the Conservative mayor's casting vote.[16] When it came to appoint a new mayor in May 2024 there was a two-month delay to the appointment as the Conservatives tried to block the appointment of a Liberal Democrat as mayor, eventually succeeding in July 2024 with a Conservative being given the role instead.[1]

Political control of the council since the 1974 reforms has been as follows:[17][18]

Lower-tier non-metropolitan district

Party in control | Years

|

| Conservative | 1974–1990
| No overall control | 1990–1991
| Liberal Democrats | 1991–1998

Unitary authority

Party in control | Years

|

| Liberal Democrats | 1998–2000
| Conservative | 2000–2003
| Liberal Democrats | 2003–2007
| Conservative | 2007–2019
| No overall control | 2019–2023
| Conservative | 2023–2023
| No overall control | 2023–present

### Leadership

[edit]

Prior to 2005, political leadership was provided by the leader of the council. The leader from 2003 to 2005 was:[19]

Councillor | Party | From | To

|
|
|

Chris Harris |  | Liberal Democrats | 15 May 2003 | 23 Oct 2005

Between 2005 and 2019 the council had a directly elected mayor as its political leader. The directly elected mayors were:

Mayor | Party | From | To

|
|
|

Nick Bye[20] |  | Conservative | 24 Oct 2005 | 8 May 2011
Gordon Oliver[21] |  | Conservative | 9 May 2011 | 5 May 2019

In 2019 the council reverted to having a leader instead of a directly elected mayor. The leaders since 2019 have been:[19]

Councillor | Party | From | To

|
|
|

Steve Darling |  | Liberal Democrats | 28 May 2019 | 16 May 2023
David Thomas |  | Conservative | 16 May 2023 |

### Composition

[edit]

Following the 2023 election,[22][14] two subsequent changes of allegiance in October 2023, and a by-election in June 2024,[15] the composition of the council was:

Party  | Councillors

|

| Conservative | 18
| Liberal Democrats | 15
| Independent | 3
Total  | 36

Two of the independent councillors sit together as the "Independent Group."[23] The next election is due in 2027 where all seats will be contested.[24]

## Premises

[edit]

The council is based at Torquay Town Hall on Castle Circus, which had been completed in 1911 for the former Torquay Town Council.[25][26]

On its creation in 1968 the council also inherited the former Paignton Urban District Council's headquarters at Oldway Mansion and the former Brixham Urban District Council's headquarters at Brixham Town Hall. Oldway Mansion was used as additional office space for the council until 2013.[27] Brixham Town Hall was transferred to Brixham Town Council in 2011.[28]

## Elections

[edit]

See also: Torbay Council elections

Torbay Council wards

Since the last boundary changes in 2019 the council has comprised 36 councillors representing 16 wards, with each ward electing one, two or three councillors. Elections are held every four years.[29]

## References

[edit]

1. ^ a b Henderson, Guy (22 July 2024). "Torbay selects a new mayor - at last". Devon Air Radio. Retrieved 23 July 2024.
2. ^ "Council minutes, 16 May 2023". Torbay Council. Retrieved 30 May 2023.
3. ^ "Council formally confirms Anne-Marie Bond as new Chief Executive". Torbay Council. 1 April 2021. Retrieved 28 July 2022.
4. ^ Smith, R. J. D. (1 April 1968). "Torbay Borough starts with a history: Story of the foundation of the new borough". Herald Express. Torquay. p. 1968. Retrieved 3 August 2023.
5. ^ "The English Non-metropolitan Districts (Definition) Order 1972", legislation.gov.uk, The National Archives, SI 1972/2039, retrieved 31 May 2023
6. ^ "District Councils and Boroughs". Parliamentary Debates (Hansard). 28 March 1974. Retrieved 4 December 2021.
7. ^ a b "Council History - Torbay Council". torbay.gov.uk. Archived from the original on 26 December 2012. Retrieved 15 January 2022.
8. ^ "The Devon (City of Plymouth and Borough of Torbay) Structural Change) Order 1996: Article 6", legislation.gov.uk, The National Archives, SI 1996/1865  (art. 6), retrieved 23 July 2024
9. ^ "Torbay mayor and cabinet system scrapped in referendum". BBC News. 8 May 2016. Retrieved 15 August 2023.
10. ^ "Devon and Somerset Fire and Rescue Authority".
11. ^ Council, Torbay (17 June 2019). "Outside bodies – Devon and Cornwall Police and Crime Panel". Government of the United Kingdom.
12. ^ "Torbay Health and Wellbeing Board created | Torquay Herald Express". www.torquayheraldexpress.co.uk. Archived from the original on 13 December 2013. Retrieved 15 January 2022.
13. ^ "Councillors quit Tory party and form new group". BBC News. 26 October 2023. Retrieved 27 October 2023.
14. ^ a b Boothroyd, David (29 October 2023). "The home of lost causes and forsaken beliefs". Local Councils. Thorncliffe. Retrieved 29 October 2023.
15. ^ a b Davis, Miles (15 April 2024). "Conservatives win key Torbay Council by-election". BBC News. Retrieved 13 June 2024.
16. ^ Henderson, Guy (7 June 2024). "Tories back in control of Torbay Council". Radio Exe Devon. Retrieved 13 June 2024.
17. ^ "Compositions calculator". The Elections Centre. 4 March 2016. Retrieved 13 August 2023.
18. ^ "Torbay". BBC News Online. Retrieved 11 September 2009.
19. ^ a b "Council minutes". Torbay Council. Retrieved 28 July 2022.
20. ^ "Torbay Mayor Nick Bye loses local Conservative support". BBC News. 26 November 2010. Retrieved 28 July 2022.
21. ^ "Gordon Oliver remains Torbay Mayor". ITV News. 8 May 2015. Retrieved 28 July 2022.
22. ^ "Local elections 2023: live council results for England". The Guardian.
23. ^ "Your councillors". Torbay Council. Retrieved 15 August 2023.
24. ^ "Torbay". Local Councils. Thorncliffe. Retrieved 23 July 2024.
25. ^ Historic England. "The Town Hall (1208247)". National Heritage List for England. Retrieved 11 December 2020.
26. ^ "Contact us". Torbay Council. Retrieved 15 August 2023.
27. ^ Oldfield, Edward (28 January 2019). "Rescue plan drawn up to secure future of Oldway Mansion". Devon Live. Retrieved 15 August 2023.
28. ^ "Transfer of Brixham Town Hall to Brixham Town Council". Torbay Council. Retrieved 14 August 2023.
29. ^ "The Torbay (Electoral Changes) Order 2018", legislation.gov.uk, The National Archives, SI 2018/740, retrieved 15 August 2023

## External links

[edit]

* Torbay Council on Twitter

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* Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole
* Bracknell Forest
* Brighton and Hove
* Bristol
* Buckinghamshire
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* South Gloucestershire
* Stockton-on-Tees
* Stoke-on-Trent
* Swindon
* Telford and Wrekin
* Thurrock
* Torbay
* Warrington
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