Salisbury City Council

Salisbury City Council is a parish-level council for Salisbury, England. It was established in April 2009 and is based in the city's historic Guildhall. The Conservatives currently have an overall majority.

Salisbury City Council
Type
Type
Leadership
Mayor
Cllr. John Walsh[1]
Structure
Seats23
16 / 23
5 / 23
1 / 23
1 / 23
Elections
Plurality-at-large voting
Last election
4 May 2017
Meeting place
The Guildhall, Salisbury
Website
www.salisburycitycouncil.gov.uk

Population

The civil parish of Salisbury – which excludes some of the city's suburbs such as Laverstock, Ford, Britford, Netherhampton and Odstock – had a population of 40,302 at the 2011 census.[2]

Establishment

As New Sarum, Salisbury has been ranked as a city since "time immemorial". The Local Government Act 1972, which took effect in 1974, eliminated the administration of the City of New Sarum under its charters, with the Salisbury District taking over its administrative functions. However, the status of a city was preserved after 1974 by the Charter Trustees of the City of New Sarum.

That name was formally changed from "New Sarum" to "Salisbury" by the reforms of 2009 which created Salisbury civil parish, where the first tier of local government would be the new Salisbury City Council.[3][4] The parish was again granted city status by letters patent dated 1 April 2009.[5]

The council met in temporary offices until 2011, while the 18th-century Guildhall was adapted.[3]

Coat of arms

On 23 March 2010, the city council was granted a royal licence, transferring to it the armorial bearings of the previous City of New Sarum. The arms and supporters were originally recorded at the heraldic visitations of Wiltshire in 1565 and 1623.[6] The blazon of the arms is:

Barry of eight Azure and Or. Supporters: On either side an eagle displayed with two heads Or, ducally gorged Azure.[7][8]

There do not appear to be any meanings attached to the design.[9] The traditional explanation that the blue stripes represent the rivers that meet in the city is now discounted.[9][10] It has also been suggested that the eagles derive from the arms of the Bouverie family, Earls of Radnor, benefactors of the city. However, this also can be discounted, as the arms of the city were recorded before the family was connected with it.[9][10]

Membership

The council consists of twenty-three councillors, elected in eight wards, each having three councillors except St Mark's & Bishopdown ward which has two.[11] Elections to the city council took place on Thursday, 4 May 2017. The city councillors are now as follows, those marked with an * are also Wiltshire Councillors:

WardCouncillorPartyTerm of office
Bemerton Caroline Corbin Labour 2017–21
Tom Corbin Labour 2017–21
Mike Osment Labour 2017–21
Fisherton & Bemerton Village Frogg Moody Conservative 2017–21
Jeremy Nettle Conservative 2017–21
John Walsh* Labour 2017–21
Harnham Brian Dalton* Liberal Democrat 2017–21
Stephen Berry Conservative 2017–21
Simon Jackson Conservative 2017–21
St Edmund & Milford Amanda Foster Conservative 2017–21
Atiqul Hoque* Conservative 2017–21
Liz Sirman Conservative 2017–21
St Francis & Stratford Kevin Daley Conservative 2017–21
Mark McClelland Conservative 2017–21
Charles Rogers Conservative 2017–21
St Mark's & Bishopdown John Baber Conservative 2017–21
Derek Brown* Conservative 2017–21
St Martin's & Cathedral Jo Broom Conservative 2017–21
Sven Hocking* Conservative 2017–21
Ivan Tomes Labour 2017–21
St Paul's Matthew Dean* Independent 2017–21
John Farquhar Conservative 2017–21
John Lindley Conservative 2017–21

History of control

At the first elections to the city council in 2009, the Liberal Democrats gained twelve seats, giving them a majority of one over all other parties.

At the next elections, on Thursday, 2 May 2013, no party had overall control. Days after the election, Jo Broom, who had been elected in Fisherton & Bemerton Village as a Liberal Democrat, joined the Conservatives. Then, following the resignation of a Conservative, there was a by-election in the St Martin's & Cathedral ward on 9 January 2014, won by Patricia Fagan for Labour.

In 2017, the Conservatives won an overall majority for the first time.

Functions

The council is responsible for the following properties and services:[3]

  • Parks and associated public conveniences
  • Car parks
  • Cemeteries and Salisbury Crematorium
  • Play areas
  • Sports pitches
  • Open spaces
  • Allotments
  • Charter market etc.
  • Charter fair
  • The Guildhall
  • Bemerton Heath neighbourhood centre
  • General fund shops and garages owned by the city prior to 1974
  • Events: Christmas Lights, St George's Day, Salisbury Food Festival, Music in the Parks, Britain in Bloom
  • City Centre management
  • General Community Fund

See also

References
  1. "Mayor of Salisbury". Salisbury City Council. Retrieved 1 July 2013.
  2. Office for National Statistics
  3. "Case study on the experience of newly established local (parish and town) councils: Salisbury" (PDF). National Association of Local Councils. January 2011. Retrieved 10 August 2020.
  4. "Civic History Its Charters and Silver". The Guildhall Salisbury. Salisbury City Council. 2009. Archived from the original on December 23, 2008. Retrieved 25 November 2009.
  5. "No. 59250". The London Gazette. 24 November 2009. p. 20329. The QUEEN has been pleased by Letters Patent under the Great Seal bearing date 1 April 2009 to confer on the Parish of Salisbury the status of a City.
  6. "No. 59398". The London Gazette. 21 April 2010. p. 7045.
  7. Briggs, Geoffrey (1971). Civic and Corporate Heraldry: A Dictionary of Impersonal Arms of England, Wales and N. Ireland. London: Heraldry Today. p. 346. ISBN 0-900455-21-7.
  8. Fox-Davies, A C (1915). The Book of Public Arms, 2nd edition. London: T C & E C Jack. p. 690.
  9. "What is the symbolism behind Salisbury's coat of arms?". Wiltshire History Questions. Wiltshire Council. 19 November 2004. Retrieved 11 June 2010.
  10. Scott-Giles, C Wilfrid (1953). Civic Heraldry of England and Wales, 2nd edition. London: J M Dent & Sons. p. 384.
  11. "About Your Council". Salisbury City Council. Retrieved 18 February 2018.
  • Official website
  • "Views sought on new city council". BBC News Online. 5 March 2008. Retrieved 15 May 2015. Under the new system of local government, the city council would have the same powers and functions as a town or parish council. These include looking after allotments, burial ground, cemeteries and crematoria, bus shelters, community centres, the arts, public footpaths and public toilets.
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