Forest of Dean District

Last updated

Forest of Dean District
Market Place, Coleford - geograph.org.uk - 2380564.jpg
Coleford Market Place, the town where Forest of Dean District Council is based
Forest of Dean UK locator map.svg
Forest of Dean shown within Gloucestershire
Sovereign state United Kingdom
Constituent country England
Region South West England
Non-metropolitan county Gloucestershire
Status Non-metropolitan district
Admin HQ Coleford
Incorporated1 April 1974
Government
  TypeNon-metropolitan district council
  BodyForest of Dean District Council
  Leadership Leader & Cabinet
   MPs Matt Bishop
Area
  Total203.2 sq mi (526.4 km2)
  Rank75th (of 296)
Population
 (2022)
  Total87,937
  Rank270th (of 296)
  Density430/sq mi (170/km2)
Ethnicity (2021)
[1]
   Ethnic groups
List
Religion (2021)
[1]
   Religion
List
Time zone UTC0 (GMT)
  Summer (DST) UTC+1 (BST)
ONS code 23UD (ONS)
E07000080 (GSS)
OS grid reference SO6206309601
Forest of Dean District Council
Forest of Dean District Council logo.svg
Type
Type
Leadership
Di Martin,
Labour
since 25 May 2023
Adrian Birch,
Green
since 18 April 2024
Nigel Brinn
since November 2023 [2]
Structure
Seats38 councillors [3]
United Kingdom Gloucestershire Forest of Dean District Council 2023.svg
Political groups
Administration (15)
  Green (15)
Other parties (23)
  Independent (11)
  Labour (5)
  Conservative (4)
  Liberal Democrats (3)
Elections
First past the post
Last election
4 May 2023
Next election
6 May 2027
Meeting place
Forest of Dean District Council Offices - geograph.org.uk - 3691468.jpg
Council Offices, High Street, Coleford, GL16 8HG
Website
www.fdean.gov.uk

Forest of Dean is a local government district in west Gloucestershire, England, named after the Forest of Dean. Its council is based in Coleford. Other towns and villages in the district include Blakeney, Cinderford, Drybrook, English Bicknor, Huntley, Littledean, Longhope, Lydbrook, Lydney, Mitcheldean, Newnham and Newent. [4] [5]

Contents

History

The district was formed on 1 April 1974 under the Local Government Act 1972. The new district covered the whole area of four former districts and part of a fifth, which were all abolished at the same time: [6] [7]

The new district was named Forest of Dean after the ancient woodland which covers much of the district. [8]

Governance

Forest of Dean District Council provides district-level services. County-level services are provided by Gloucestershire County Council. [9] The whole district is also covered by civil parishes, which form a third tier of local government. [10]

Political control

Since the 2023 election the council has been run by a Green minority administration with support from Labour on a confidence and supply basis. [11]

The first election to the council was held in 1973, initially operating as a shadow authority alongside the outgoing authorities until the new arrangements came into effect on 1 April 1974. Political control of the council since 1974 has been as follows: [12] [13]

Party in controlYears
Independent 1974–1976
No overall control 1976–1991
Labour 1991–2003
No overall control 2003–present

Leadership

The leaders of the council since 2007 have been: [14]

CouncillorPartyFromTo
Marion Winship Conservative 23 May 2007Sep 2009
Peter Amos Conservative 11 Sep 20098 May 2011
Patrick Molyneux Conservative 26 May 201113 Jul 2017
Tim Gwilliam Independent 13 Jul 201725 May 2023
Mark Topping [15] Green 25 May 202318 Apr 2024
Adrian Birch [16] Green 18 April 2024

Composition

Following the 2023 election, the composition of the council was: [17]

PartyCouncillors
Green 15
Independent 11
Labour 5
Conservative 4
Liberal Democrats 3
Total38

The next election is due in 2027.

Premises

The council is based at the Council Offices on High Street in Coleford. [18]

Elections

Since the last boundary changes in 2019, the council has comprised 38 councillors elected from 21 wards, with each ward electing one, two or three councillors. Elections are held every four years. [19]

Parishes and settlements

The whole district is divided into civil parishes. The parish councils of Cinderford, Coleford, Lydney and Newent take the style "town council". [20]

Settlements include:

Media

Television

The district is served by BBC West and ITV West Country with television signals received from the Mendip TV transmitter. [21] Northern parts of the district is served by BBC West Midlands and ITV Central with television signals received from the Ridge Hill transmitter. [22]

Radio

Radio stations for the area are:

Newspapers

The district's local newspaper is The Forester. [24]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Gloucestershire</span> County of England

Gloucestershire is a ceremonial county in South West England. It is bordered by Herefordshire to the north-west, Worcestershire to the north, Warwickshire to the north-east, Oxfordshire to the east, Wiltshire to the south, Bristol and Somerset to the south-west, and the Welsh county of Monmouthshire to the west. The city of Gloucester is the largest settlement and the county town.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Forest of Dean</span> Geographical, historical and cultural region in England

The Forest of Dean is a geographical, historical and cultural region in the western part of the county of Gloucestershire, England. It forms a roughly triangular plateau bounded by the River Wye to the west and northwest, Herefordshire to the north, the River Severn to the south, and the City of Gloucester to the east.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cinderford</span> Human settlement in England

Cinderford is a town and civil parish on the eastern fringe of the Forest of Dean in Gloucestershire, England. The population was 8,777 at the 2021 Census.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Coleford, Gloucestershire</span> Market town in Gloucestershire, England

Coleford is a market town in the west of the Forest of Dean, Gloucestershire, England, two miles (3 km) east of the Welsh border and close to the Wye Valley. It is the administrative centre of the Forest of Dean district. The combined population of the town's two electoral wards at the 2011 census was 8,359. The population of the town's parish was 9,273 in the 2021 Census. The parish includes the village of Baker's Hill.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Forest of Dean (UK Parliament constituency)</span> Parliamentary constituency in the United Kingdom, 1997 onwards

Forest of Dean is a constituency in Gloucestershire represented in the House of Commons of the UK Parliament since 2024 UK General Election by Matt Bishop, a Labour MP. Previously represented from 2005 by Mark Harper, a Conservative who served as Secretary of State for Transport between 2022 and 2024.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">East Dean Rural District</span> Historical rural district

East Dean and United Parishes Rural District, later renamed East Dean Rural District, was a rural district in Gloucestershire, England from 1894 to 1974. It included a number of civil parishes, including East Dean, and was subject to a significant boundary reform in 1935.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mitcheldean</span> Human settlement in England

Mitcheldean is a market town in the Forest of Dean in Gloucestershire, England.

Forest of Dean District Council is the local authority for the Forest of Dean in Gloucestershire, England. The council is elected every four years. Since the last boundary changes in 2019, 38 councillors are elected from 21 wards.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Forest of Dean Radio</span> Community radio station in Gloucestershire, England

Forest of Dean Radio was a community radio station in Gloucestershire. It was established in 1995 and started with a 3-day broadcast to coincide with the Cinderford Carnival. It broadcast around the whole of the Forest of Dean Area from its main studio in Cinderford.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lydbrook</span> Village in Gloucestershire, England

Lydbrook is a civil parish in the Forest of Dean, a local government district in the English county of Gloucestershire and is located in the Wye Valley. It is on the north west edge of the Forest of Dean's present legal boundary proper. It comprises the districts of Lower Lydbrook, Upper Lydbrook, Joys Green and Worrall Hill. It has a mile and a half long high street, reputed to be the longest high street of any village in England.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tibberton, Gloucestershire</span> Human settlement in England

Tibberton is a village and civil parish in the Forest of Dean District of Gloucestershire, England. The village is 5 miles (8 km) north-west of Gloucester and 5 miles (8 km) south-east of Newent. At the 2021 Census, the population of the output areas roughly equating to the civil parish was 576. Tibberton is a parish of 1,406 acres (5.69 km2) in an area with 254 households. The population of the central village area within the parish was estimated at 345 people by Forest of Dean District Council in July 2024.

The GL postcode area, also known as the Gloucester postcode area, is a group of 27 postcode districts in south-west England and a very small part of south-east Wales, within 28 post towns. These cover most of Gloucestershire, including Gloucester, Cheltenham, Stroud, Cirencester, Tewkesbury, Badminton, Berkeley, Blakeney, Chipping Campden, Cinderford, Coleford, Drybrook, Dursley, Dymock, Fairford, Lechlade, Longhope, Lydbrook, Lydney, Mitcheldean, Moreton-in-Marsh, Newent, Newnham, Ruardean, Stonehouse, Tetbury, Westbury-on-Severn and Wotton-under-Edge. The area also covers very small parts of Herefordshire, Worcestershire, Warwickshire, Oxfordshire and Wiltshire, while the GL16 district extends across the Welsh border to cover a very small part of Monmouthshire.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Severn and Wye Railway</span> Former railway in England

The Severn and Wye Railway began as an early tramroad network established in the Forest of Dean to facilitate the carriage of minerals to watercourses for onward conveyance. It was based on Lydney, where a small harbour was constructed, and opened its line to Parkend in 1810. It was progressively extended northwards, and a second line, the Mineral Loop was opened to connect newly opened mineral workings.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">East Dean, Gloucestershire</span> Township and civil parish

East Dean is a hamlet and former civil parish, now in the parish of Mitcheldean, in the Forest of Dean district, in the county of Gloucestershire, England.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Drybrook Road railway station</span> Former railway station in England

Drybrook Road is a closed station on the Cinderford to Coleford direct railway line in the Forest of Dean in Gloucestershire, near the village of Drybrook. The former station was on the former Severn and Wye Railway system. It opened in 1875 and closed in 1929.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mitcheldean Road & Forest of Dean Junction Railway</span> Independent railway company in England

The Mitcheldean Road and Forest of Dean Junction Railway was an independent railway company incorporated in 1871, to provide a northerly outlet for iron ore and coal products from the Cinderford and Whimsey area in the Forest of Dean, to the Hereford, Ross and Gloucester Railway line; mineral traffic to industrial centres in South Wales and the Midlands was foreseen.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Borough of Tewkesbury</span> Non-metropolitan district and borough in England

The Borough of Tewkesbury is a local government district with borough status in Gloucestershire, England. The borough is named after its largest town, Tewkesbury, which is where the council is based. The district also includes the town of Winchcombe and numerous villages including Bishops Cleeve, Ashchurch, Churchdown, Innsworth and Brockworth as well as other hamlets and surrounding rural areas. Parts of the district lie within the Cotswolds Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty. In September 2024 the council voted to formally change the borough's name to North Gloucestershire, with the new name due to be brought into use from December 2024.

References

  1. 1 2 UK Census (2021). "2021 Census Area Profile – Forest of Dean Local Authority (E07000080)". Nomis. Office for National Statistics . Retrieved 5 January 2024.
  2. "New Forest of Dean Council chief exec on £110k a year describes role as a 'great opportunity'". The Forester. 10 August 2023. Retrieved 11 May 2024.
  3. "Find a district councillor - Forest of Dean District Council".
  4. "Forest of Dean Parish Map" (PDF). Gloucestershire County Council. Archived (PDF) from the original on 25 August 2020. Retrieved 25 August 2020.
  5. "Administrative unit Forest of Dean District District/Unitary Authority". A Vision of Britain. Archived from the original on 9 July 2020. Retrieved 25 August 2020.
  6. "The English Non-metropolitan Districts (Definition) Order 1972", legislation.gov.uk , The National Archives, SI 1972/2039, retrieved 31 May 2023
  7. "Forest of Dean: Local government and public services Pages 377-381 A History of the County of Gloucester: Volume 5, Bledisloe Hundred, St. Briavels Hundred, the Forest of Dean". British History Online. Victoria County History. Archived from the original on 7 March 2016. Retrieved 25 August 2020.
  8. "The English Non-metropolitan Districts (Names) Order 1973", legislation.gov.uk , The National Archives, SI 1973/551, retrieved 31 May 2023
  9. "Local Government Act 1972", legislation.gov.uk , The National Archives, 1972 c. 70, retrieved 31 May 2023
  10. "Election maps". Ordnance Survey. Retrieved 6 June 2023.
  11. Garcia, Carmelo (19 May 2023). "Labour to vote for Green council leader but rules out Forest of Dean coalition administration". Gloucestershire Live. Retrieved 25 June 2023.
  12. "Compositions calculator". The Elections Centre. Retrieved 1 June 2023.
  13. "Forest of Dean". BBC News Online . Retrieved 26 September 2009.
  14. "Council minutes". Forest of Dean District Council. Retrieved 28 June 2022.
  15. Tunnidge, Sarah (11 April 2024). "Forest of Dean council leader steps down". BBC News. Retrieved 20 April 2024.
  16. Garcia, Carmelo (19 April 2024). "'Inexperienced' councillor chosen to lead council". BBC News. Retrieved 20 April 2024.
  17. "Local elections 2023: live council results for England". The Guardian.
  18. "Contact us". Forest of Dean District Council. Retrieved 25 June 2023.
  19. "The Forest of Dean (Electoral Changes) Order 2018", legislation.gov.uk , The National Archives, SI 2018/547
  20. "Parish council contact details". Forest of Dean District Council. Retrieved 25 June 2023.
  21. "Full Freeview on the Mendip (Somerset, England) transmitter". UK Free TV. 1 May 2004. Retrieved 7 September 2024.
  22. "Full Freeview on the Ridge Hill (County of Herefordshire, England) transmitter". UK Free TV. 1 May 2004. Retrieved 7 September 2024.
  23. "Dean Radio" . Retrieved 7 September 2024.
  24. "The Forester". British Papers. 19 June 2014. Retrieved 7 September 2024.

51°47′N2°33′W / 51.783°N 2.550°W / 51.783; -2.550