Northumberland County Council

Northumberland County Council is a unitary authority in North East England. The population of the non-metropolitan unitary authority at the 2011 census was 316,028.[1]

Northumberland County Council
Type
Type
History
Founded1 April 2009[lower-alpha 1]
Preceded by
Leadership
Civic Head
Cllr Jeffrey George Watson, Conservative
since 24 May 2017
Chairman of the Council
Cllr Richard Robert Dodd, Conservative
since 24 May 2017
Leader of the Council
Cllr. Hugh Glen Howard Sanderson, Conservative
since 24 May 2017
Structure
Seats67 councillors
Political groups
Administration
  Conservative (33)
Other parties
  Labour (24)
  Liberal Democrats (3)
  Non Aligned (4)
  Bedlington Independents (3)
Elections
First past the post
Last election
4 May 2017
Next election
6 May 2021
Meeting place
County Hall, Morpeth
Website
northumberland.gov.uk
Northumberland proper, as administered by the Council

History

It was formed in 1889 as the council for the administrative county of Northumberland and reformed, downsized in 1974 to cover the newly formed non-metropolitan county of Northumberland, which for the first time excluded the City of Newcastle upon Tyne conurbation. As part of the 2009 structural changes to local government in England it became a unitary authority with the same boundaries, this disregarded the referendum held in 2005 in which the population voted against the forming of a unitary authority.[2]

Its elections have been in May 2008, 2013, and 2017 to be at four-yearly intervals, the expected length of office of each councillor. The next local election is expected in May 2021.

Naming of the new unitary authority

Throughout 2008, the people of Northumberland were consulted about the new name of the unitary authority. The choice was between having the name of the incumbent county council as the name for the new unitary authority – Northumberland County Council or whether a brand new name should be given – Northumberland Council. Online polls were held and the votes of staff within the former district councils were collated and overall, the name of the incumbent county council was preferred on a ratio of nearly 2:1.[3]

On 17 December 2008 it was decided that the new name would be Northumberland County Council. The chairman of the council stated that:

Having considered the findings of this consultation, it has been decided to call the new authority Northumberland County Council. It is important to reiterate that whilst the single unitary will adopt the name of an existing council, this is emphatically not a County Council takeover. As of 1 April 2009, all existing Northumberland councils will be abolished to make way for a brand new organisation, with new vision, values, and behaviours.

Legally, however, the council remains the same body as at present, simply assuming the functions of the districts.[4]

Council leadership

Civic leadership and offices of honour
Offices(s) Name
Civic Head of Northumberland County Council

First Citizen of Northumberland

Coun. Jeffrey George Watson
Deputy Civic Head of Northumberland County Council

Second Citizen of Northumberland

 Coun. James Ian Hutchinson
Father of the Council Coun. Ian Carr Fry Swithenbank CBE
Baby of the Council Coun. Gregah Alan Roughead FRSA

Presiding Officers
Offices(s) Name
Chairman of the Council Coun.Richard Robert Dodd
Deputy Chairman of the Council Coun. Barry Malcolm Flux

Leader of the council and cabinet

Following the election of May 2017, Northumberland County Council has no overall control, however the Conservative Party are the largest group on the Council being one seat short of an overall majority so form the council's current administration.

Offices(s) Name
Leader of the Council

Leader of the Conservative Group

 Coun Glen Sanderson
Deputy Leader of the Council

Cabinet Member for Children's Services

Deputy Leader of the Conservative Group

 Coun Richard Dodd
Cabinet Secretary

Cabinet Member for Corporate Resources

 Coun. Nicholas Oliver
Cabinet Member for Adult Well-being and Health

Secretary of the Conservative Group

 Coun. Veronica Jones
Cabinet Member for Economic Development

Chairman of Arch Group

 Coun. Richard Watson Wearmouth
Cabinet Member for Culture, Arts and Leisure

Non-Executive Board Member of Active Northumberland

 Coun. Catherine Homer
Cabinet Member for Planning, Housing and Resilience

Chairman of Northumberland Fire Authority

 Coun. John Robert Riddle
Cabinet Member for Environment and Local Services Coun. Hugh Glen Howard Sanderson JP

Leader of the official opposition and shadow cabinet
Offices(s) Name
Leader of the Official Opposition

Leader of the Labour Group

 Coun. Susan Elizabeth Dungworth
Deputy Leader of the Official Opposition

Deputy Leader of the Labour Group

 Coun. Scott James Dickinson
Chairman of Northumberland Labour Group Coun.

Composition
See also: Northumberland local elections

Following the election of 2017, Northumberland County Council has no overall control, with the Conservative Party being the largest group on the Council.[5]

Affiliation Members
Conservative Group 33
Labour Group 24
Independent Group
7
Liberal Democrat Group 3
 Total
 67

Other uses

Eurostat statistical area

For Eurostat purposes the area under the jurisdiction of Northumberland County Council is a NUTS 3 region (code UKC21) and is one of six boroughs or unitary districts that comprise the "Northumberland and Tyne and Wear" NUTS 2 region.

Notes
  1. Creation of unitary authority.

References
  1. "Non-metropolitan unitary population 2011". Retrieved 28 January 2016.
  2. "Northumberland County Council". Archived from the original on 20 December 2008. Retrieved 3 January 2009.
  3. "Northumberland County Council". Archived from the original on 20 December 2008. Retrieved 3 January 2009.
  4. "The Northumberland (Structural Change) Order 2008". www.opsi.gov.uk. Retrieved 6 April 2018.
  5. "Local Election Results 2017". Northumberland County Council. Retrieved 5 May 2017.

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