Nuneaton and Bedworth

Nuneaton and Bedworth
Borough and non-metropolitan district
Market Place in Nuneaton, the borough's largest town
Shown within Warwickshire
Sovereign state	United Kingdom
Constituent country	England
Region	West Midlands
Administrative county	Warwickshire
Admin. HQ	Nuneaton
Government
• Type	Non-metropolitan borough
•  MPs	Jodie Gosling Rachel Taylor John Slinger
Area
• Total	31 sq mi (79 km2)
• Rank	218th
Population  (2024)
• Total	141,565
• Rank	Ranked 167th
• Density	4,600/sq mi (1,800/km2)
Ethnicity (2021) [1]
•  Ethnic groups	List 87.1% White 8% Asian 1.8% Mixed 1.8% Black 1.2% other
Religion (2021) [1]
•  Religion	List 48.5% Christianity 37.8% no religion 3% Islam 1.6% Hinduism 0.1% Judaism 2.6% Sikhism 0.5% Buddhism 0.6% other 5.3% not stated
Time zone	UTC+0 (Greenwich Mean Time)
• Summer (DST)	UTC+1 (British Summer Time)
Postcode	CV7, CV10, CV11, CV12
ONS code	44UC (ONS) E07000219 (GSS)

Nuneaton and Bedworth is a local government district with borough status in Warwickshire, England. It includes the towns of Nuneaton (where the council is based) and Bedworth, as well as a modest rural hinterland including the village of Bulkington.

The neighbouring districts are Rugby, Coventry, North Warwickshire and Hinckley and Bosworth.

History

The district was created on 1 April 1974 under the Local Government Act 1972, by a merger of two former districts which were both abolished at the same time, these were: ^[2]

• Bedworth Urban District
• Nuneaton Municipal Borough

The new district was initially named Nuneaton, after its largest town. ^[3] Nuneaton's borough status, which it had held since 1907, ^[4] was transferred to the enlarged district, allowing the chair of the council to take the title of mayor. ^[5] Following a campaign from Bedworth residents the borough's name was changed to "Nuneaton and Bedworth" with effect from 1 October 1980. ^{[6] [7]}

Governance

Nuneaton and Bedworth Borough Council
Type
Type	Non-metropolitan district
Leadership
Mayor	Bhim Saru, Labour since 14 May 2025 [8]
Leader	Chris Watkins, Labour since 15 May 2024
Chief Executive	Tom Shardlow since 1 June 2024 [9]
Structure
Seats	38 councillors
Political groups	Administration (19)   Labour (19) Other parties (19)   Conservative (17)   Green (2)
Elections
Voting system	First past the post
Last election	2 May 2024
Next election	7 May 2026
Meeting place
Town Hall, Coton Road, Nuneaton, CV11 5AA
Website
www.nuneatonandbedworth.gov.uk

Bedworth, the second town and second-largest settlement in the borough

Nuneaton and Bedworth Borough Council provides district-level services. County-level services are provided by Warwickshire County Council. ^[10] There are no civil parishes in the borough, which is an unparished area. ^[11]

Political control

At the 2024 election, Labour won a two-seat majority on the council. ^[12] A subsequent change of allegiance in December 2024 left Labour with exactly half the seats on the council, since when it has been under no overall control. ^[13]

Political control of the council since the 1974 reforms has been as follows: ^{[14] [15]}

Party in control		Years
	Labour	1974–2008
	Conservative	2008–2010
	No overall control	2010–2012
	Labour	2012–2018
	No overall control	2018–2021
	Conservative	2021–2024
	Labour	2024–2024
	No overall control [13]	2024–present

Leadership

The role of mayor is largely ceremonial in Nuneaton and Bedworth. Political leadership is provided instead by the leader of the council. The leaders since 1974 have been:

Councillor	Party		From	To
Fred Warr [16] [17]		Labour	1 Apr 1974	Jan 1975
John Haynes [18] [19]		Labour	Feb 1975	1982
Bill Olner [20]		Labour	May 1982	May 1986
Dennis Harvey [21] [22]		Labour	1986	May 2008
Marcus Jones [23] [24]		Conservative	May 2008	2009
Peter Gilbert [25]		Conservative	2009	May 2010
Dennis Harvey [26]		Labour	May 2010	May 2018
Julie Jackson [27] [28]		Labour	16 May 2018	May 2021
Kris Wilson [29] [30]		Conservative	19 May 2021	15 May 2024
Chris Watkins [31] [30]		Labour	15 May 2024	21 January 2026
Steve Hey [32] [30]		Labour	21 January 2026

Composition

Following the 2024 election, ^[33] and a subsequent change of allegiance in December 2024, the composition of the council was: ^[34]

Party		Councillors
	Labour	19
	Conservative	17
	Green	2
Total		38

The next election is due in May 2026. ^[34]

Elections

See also: Nuneaton and Bedworth Borough Council elections

Since the last boundary changes in 2024 the council has comprised 38 councillors representing 19 wards, with each ward electing two councillors. Elections are held in alternate years, with half the council (one councillor for each ward) elected each time for a four-year term of office. ^[35]

Premises

The council is based at Nuneaton Town Hall on Coton Road in Nuneaton. The building was purpose-built for the old Nuneaton Borough Council and opened in 1934. ^[36]

Subdivisions

Bulkington, the third-largest settlement in the borough

Wards of Nuneaton and Bedworth

Nuneaton and Bedworth are divided into 19 wards, each represented by 2 councillors, giving a total of 38 councillors. The borough has no civil parishes.

Ward name	Approximate coverage	Population (2001 census)	Population (2011 census)
Arbury	Heath End, Glendale, Bermuda, Arbury	5,482	6,736
Attleborough	Attleborough, Maple Park, SW Whitestone	7,564	7,676
Bede	Collycroft (east), Furnace Fields (north), Bedworth town centre, Burnside, Water Tower estate	6,760	6,666
Bulkington	Bulkington, Weston-in-Arden, Ryton, Marston Jabbett, Bramcote (west)	6,303	6,146
Camp Hill	Camp Hill	7,325	7,321
Chilvers Coton	Chilvers Coton	[ to be determined ]	[ to be determined ]
Eastboro	Eastboro	[ to be determined ]	[ to be determined ]
Exhall	Exhall (west), Ash Green, Neals Green, Keresley End	7,381	8,006
Galley Common	Galley Common, Chapel End, Whittleford	7,593	8,233
Heath	Bedworth Heath, Goodyers End, Market End	6,377	7,473
Milby	Milby	[ to be determined ]	[ to be determined ]
Poplar	Furnace Fields (south), Coalpit Field, Exhall (east), Hawkesbury Village	6,850	8,043
Slough	Collycroft (west), Mount Pleasant, Bedworth Woodlands, Woodland Park	7,058	7,041
St Mary's	St Mary's	[ to be determined ]	[ to be determined ]
St Nicolas	Horeston Grange, Hinckley Road, The Long Shoot, St Nicolas Park (south)	7,073	6,943
Stockingford East	Stockingford East	[ to be determined ]	[ to be determined ]
Stockingford West	Stockingford West	[ to be determined ]	[ to be determined ]
Weddington	Weddington, St Nicolas Park (north)	7,286	7,256
Whitestone	Whitestone (except SW part), Attleborough Fields	7,435	6,877
TOTAL	NUNEATON & BEDWORTH	119,132	125,252

For a sortable list of wards in Nuneaton and Bedworth by population, see List of wards in Nuneaton and Bedworth by population.

Twinnings

Nuneaton and Bedworth is twinned with:

• Roanne, France
• Guadalajara, Castile-La Mancha, Spain
• Cottbus, Germany

References

1. UK Census (2021). "2021 Census Area Profile – Nuneaton and Bedworth Local Authority (E07000219)". Nomis. Office for National Statistics . Retrieved 5 January 2024.
2. "The English Non-metropolitan District (Definition) Order 1972", legislation.gov.uk , The National Archives, SI 1972/2039, retrieved 17 November 2023
3. "The English Non-metropolitan Districts (Names) Order 1973", legislation.gov.uk , The National Archives, SI 1973/551, retrieved 3 January 2024
4. "Nuneaton Urban District / Municipal Borough". A Vision of Britain through Time. GB Historical GIS / University of Portsmouth. Retrieved 21 January 2024.
5. "District Councils and Boroughs". Parliamentary Debates (Hansard) . 28 March 1974. Retrieved 4 December 2021.
6. Alteration of Areas and Status of Local Authorities 1 October 1980 to 1 April 1981 (PDF). London: Department of the Environment. 1981. p. 17. Retrieved 21 January 2024.
7. "Bedworth Timeline". The Bedworth Society. Archived from the original on 25 March 2014. Retrieved 21 January 2024.
8. "Council minutes, 14 May 2025". Nuneaton and Bedworth Borough Council. Retrieved 12 July 2025.
9. "New Chief Executive named". Nuneaton and Bedworth Borough Council. 23 February 2024. Retrieved 23 July 2024.
10. "Local Government Act 1972", legislation.gov.uk , The National Archives, 1972 c. 70, retrieved 31 May 2023
11. "Election Maps". Ordnance Survey. Retrieved 9 January 2023.
12. "Labour gains control of Nuneaton and Bedworth council after Conservative loss". Channel 4 News. 3 May 2024. Retrieved 4 May 2024.
13. Nevett, Joshua; McIntyre, Alex (12 December 2024). "Labour loses control of council after defection". BBC News. Retrieved 12 July 2025.
14. "Compositions Calculator". The Elections Centre. University of Exeter. Retrieved 21 May 2025. (Put "Nuneaton & Bedworth" in search box to see specific results.)
15. "Nuneaton & Bedworth". BBC News Online. 19 April 2009. Retrieved 7 May 2010.
16. "Tories challenge one-party choice in Nuneaton". Coventry Evening Telegraph. 22 June 1973. p. 52. Retrieved 12 July 2025.
17. "Former mayor dies at work". Coventry Evening Telegraph. 21 January 1975. p. 19. Retrieved 12 July 2025.
18. "Labour group's new leader". Coventry Evening Telegraph. 6 February 1975. p. 12. Retrieved 12 July 2025.
19. "Bedworth goes to the polls". Bedworth Echo. 6 May 1982. p. 3. Retrieved 12 July 2025.
20. "Alliance squeezed from the picture". Coventry Evening Telegraph. 9 May 1986. p. 10. Retrieved 12 July 2025.
21. Dineen, Maria (12 June 1986). "Club land sale plans ruled out". Coventry Evening Telegraph. p. 2. Retrieved 12 July 2025.
22. Harrison, Claire (30 November 2017). "Borough council leader announces shock retirement". Coventry Live. Retrieved 9 September 2022.
23. "Conservative control for Nuneaton". BBC News. 2 May 2008. Retrieved 12 July 2025.
24. "The Rt Hon Marcus Jones". gov.uk. Retrieved 12 July 2025.
25. "Election 2010: Nuneaton & Bedworth Borough Council control in the balance". Coventry Live. 8 May 2010. Retrieved 12 July 2025.
26. Harrison, Claire (4 May 2018). "Labour sensationally lose control in Nuneaton and Bedworth election". Coventry Live. Retrieved 12 July 2025.
27. Harrison, Claire (17 May 2018). "First female leader elected at Nuneaton and Bedworth Borough Council". Coventry Live. Retrieved 12 July 2025.
28. "Elections 2021: Conservatives take control of Nuneaton and Bedworth council". BBC News. 8 May 2021. Retrieved 12 July 2025.
29. "Council minutes, 19 May 2021". Nuneaton and Bedworth Borough Council. Retrieved 12 July 2025.
30. Harrison, Claire (16 May 2024). "'Be courteous' says new council leader after toxic Town Hall claims". Coventry Live. Retrieved 23 July 2024.
31. "Council minutes, 15 May 2024". Nuneaton and Bedworth Borough Council. Retrieved 12 July 2025.
32. "Council minutes, 15 May 2024". Nuneaton and Bedworth Borough Council. Retrieved 12 July 2025.
33. "Nuneaton & Bedworth election result". BBC News. Retrieved 4 May 2024.
34. "Nuneaton and Bedworth". Local Councils. Thorncliffe. Retrieved 12 July 2025.
35. "The Nuneaton and Bedworth (Electoral Changes) Order 2024", legislation.gov.uk , The National Archives, SI 2024/3, retrieved 21 January 2024
36. Veasey, E.A. (2002), Nuneaton A History, Phillimore & Co. Limited, pages 104, 113–114, 126 ISBN   1 86077 215 3.

External links

• The Nuneaton Local History Group
• Nuneaton and Bedworth Borough Council
• Election Results

52°31′18″N1°28′03″W / 52.5218°N 1.4676°W / 52.5218; -1.4676