Herefordshire Council

Herefordshire Council is the local government authority for the county of Herefordshire in England. It is a unitary authority, combining the powers of a non-metropolitan county and district.

Herefordshire Council
Type
Type
Leadership
Chair of the Council
Cllr Sebastian Bowen, Herefordshire Independents
Leader of the Council
Cllr David Hitchiner, Herefordshire Independents
since May 2019
Deputy Leader
Cllr Felicity Norman, Green
since May 2019
Leader of the Opposition
Cllr Jonathan Lester, Conservative
Chief Executive
Alistair Neill
since December 2012
Structure
Seats53 councillors[1][2]
Political groups
Administration (27)
  Herefordshire Independents (12)
  It's our County (8)
  Green (7)
Opposition (26)
  Conservative (13)
  Liberal Democrat (7)
  True Independents (5)
  Independent (1)
Elections
First past the post
Last election
2 May 2019
Next election
May 2023
Meeting place
Shirehall, Hereford
Website
www.herefordshire.gov.uk

History

The Council was formed on 1 April 1998 following the split of Hereford and Worcester back into two separate counties. The Council initially had its headquarters at Brockington House, 35 Hafod Road, Hereford[3] but moved to Plough Lane in Hereford in 2009.[4][5] Formal meetings of the council are held at the Shirehall in Hereford.[6]

Elections

It has adopted the Leader and Cabinet constitutional model.[7] It was run by the Conservatives until 2019.[8]

Immediately following 2019 local elections

The 2019 election resulted in the Conservative Party losing its majority on the council for the first time since 2007, winning 13 seats. Independents made gains and became the largest group on the council after winning 18 seats, 15 of which formed the Herefordshire Independents Group. The Liberal Democrats and Greens also made gains at the expense of the Conservatives. It's Our County lost four seats, down to 8.

Following negotiations, a three-way coalition between 'Herefordshire Independents', 'It's Our County' and the Green Party was formed. Herefordshire Independents took four cabinet positions, and the Leader of the Council, the Greens took two cabinet positions and Deputy Leader of the Council and It's Our County took the remaining two cabinet positions.[9]

Date Herefordshire Independents Conservative It's Our County Greens Lib Dems Independent Vacant Coalition Majority
3 May 2019 15 13 8 7 6 3 1 +7

The Ross North poll was postponed after the death of a UKIP candidate, leading to one unfilled vacancy at this point.

Defections and resignations

Following disagreements about a new by-pass road in the Herefordshire Independents group, five councillors left to form a new group, 'True Independents'.[10]

Separately, Councillor Sue Boulter resigned shortly after being elected for It's Our County, in Whitecross, creating a second vacancy and temporarily reducing the number of It's Our County councillors.[9]

Date Herefordshire Independents Conservative It's Our County Greens Lib Dems True Independents Independent Vacant Coalition Majority
5 June 2019 10 13 7 7 6 5 3 2 -3

Two by-elections

The Liberal Democrats won the by-election in Ross North the day after the five True Independents defected from the Herefordshire Independents.[11]

Date Herefordshire Independents Conservative It's Our County Greens Lib Dems True Independents Independent Vacant Coalition Majority
6 June 2019 10 13 7 7 7 5 3 1 -4

Following Sue Boulter's resignation upon her election, her husband won the resulting by-election.[12]

Date Herefordshire Independents Conservative It's Our County Greens Lib Dems True Independents Independent Vacant Coalition Majority
11 July 2019 10 13 8 7 7 5 3 0 -3

Unaligned Independents join the Herefordshire Independents

By the end of the summer, former Hereford mayor Jim Kenyon had temporarily joined the Herefordshire Independents to bolster their numbers, and since left again to sit as the last remaining standalone independent, as the other two previously unaligned independents have since joined the ruling coalition of Herefordshire Independents, taking Herefordshire Independents to 12 seats.[13]

Date Herefordshire Independents Conservative It's Our County Greens Lib Dems True Independents Independent Coalition Majority
14 Sept 2019 12 13 8 7 7 5 1 +1

Outsourced services

Herefordshire Council has outsourced the following services:

  • Human Resources & Finance – outsourced to a limited company named "Hoople", which is wholly owned by the Council and Wye Valley NHS Trust
  • Leisure – Halo Leisure (A not-for-profit trust which operates all leisure services)
  • Social Housing – Herefordshire Housing (A not-for-profit trust which operates all housing and accommodation services)
  • Commercial Services – Amey Wye Valley Services (A commercial venture which maintains roads, grounds, street lighting, etc.)
  • Waste Management – Severn Waste Management (Responsible for bin collection, sorting and recycling)

Elections
Main article: Herefordshire local elections

References
  1. About Herefordshire Council – Herefordshire Council
  2. Open Council Data UK - compositions councillors parties wards elections
  3. "New £12m Hereford care community opens to the public". Healthcare Business. 29 April 2019. Retrieved 29 September 2019.
  4. Council, Herefordshire. "Contact us". www.herefordshire.gov.uk.
  5. "Herefordshire Council scales back HQ plan". Hereford Times. 2 October 2011. Retrieved 29 September 2019.
  6. "Agenda and minutes Council". Herefordshire Council. 12 July 2019. Retrieved 29 September 2019.
  7. "Committee details - Cabinet". councillors.herefordshire.gov.uk. 16 March 2019.
  8. "Your Councillors". councillors.herefordshire.gov.uk. 16 March 2019.
  9. "Independent councillor set to lead Herefordshire Council". Hereford Times. 22 May 2019.
  10. Garcia, Carmelo (2019-06-05). "Eastern bypass spat splits ruling group". Hereford Times. Retrieved 2019-06-08.
  11. "Ross North Ward - Declaration of result of poll" (PDF). Herefordshire Council. 6 June 2019.
  12. "Whitecross Ward - Declaration of result of poll" (PDF). Herefordshire Council. 11 July 2019.
  13. "Former mayor leaves council group". Evesham Journal. 14 September 2019.



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