Powys County Council

Powys County Council Cyngor Sir Powys
Type
Type	Principal area
History
Founded	1 April 1974
Preceded by	Brecknockshire Montgomeryshire Radnorshire
Leadership
Chair	Beverley Baynham, Independent since 18 May 2023 [1]
Leader	James Gibson-Watt [2] , Liberal Democrat since 26 May 2022
Chief Executive	Caroline Turner since 20 November 2018 [3]
Structure
Seats	68 councillors
Political groups	Administration (32)   Liberal Democrat (22)   Labour (9)   Green (1) Other Parties (38)   Independent (21)   Conservative (14)   Plaid Cymru (3)
Length of term	5 Years
Elections
Voting system	First past the post
Last election	5 May 2022
Next election	6 May 2027
Meeting place
County Hall, Spa Road East, Llandrindod Wells, LD1 5LG
Website
www.powys.gov.uk

Powys County Council (Welsh : Cyngor Sir Powys) is the local authority for Powys, one of the administrative areas of Wales. The County Hall is in Llandrindod Wells.

History

The county of Powys was created on 1 April 1974 under the Local Government Act 1972, covering the area of the three administrative counties of Brecknockshire, ^{[lower-alpha 1]} Montgomeryshire, and Radnorshire, which were abolished at the same time. From 1974 until 1996 there were two principal tiers of local government, with Powys County Council as the upper tier authority and three district councils below it, each of which corresponded to one of the pre-1974 counties: Brecknock Borough Council, Montgomeryshire District Council, and Radnorshire District Council. ^[4]

The three districts were abolished under the Local Government (Wales) Act 1994, with Powys County Council becoming a unitary authority with effect from 1 April 1996, taking on the functions formerly performed by the district councils. ^[5]

Political control

The council has been under no overall control since 2017. Following the 2022 election a Liberal Democrat and Labour coalition formed to take control of the council. ^[6] The Green councillor later joined the coalition. ^[7]

The first election to the council was held in 1973, initially operating as a shadow authority before coming into its powers on 1 April 1974. Political control of the council since 1974 has been held by the following parties: ^[8]

Upper-tier county council

Party in control		Years
	Independent	1974–1996

Unitary authority

Party in control		Years
	Independent	1996–2017
	No overall control	2017–present

Leadership

The leaders of the council since 2002 (formally called the chairman of the board prior to 2011) have been: ^[9]

Councillor	Party		From	To
Michael Jones [10] [11]		Independent	2002	17 May 2012
David Jones [12]		Independent	17 May 2012	10 Jan 2014
Barry Thomas [13]		Independent	10 Jan 2014	7 May 2017
Rosemarie Harris [14]		Independent	18 May 2017	8 May 2022
James Gibson-Watt		Liberal Democrats	26 May 2022

Composition

Following the 2022 election and subsequent changes of allegiance up to November 2023, the composition of the council was: ^{[15] [7] [16] [17] [18]}

Party		Councillors
	Independent	21
	Liberal Democrats	22
	Conservative	14
	Labour	9
	Plaid Cymru	3
	Green	1
Total		68

Of the independent councillors, seven form the "Independent Group", six form the "Independents for Powys Group" and the other eight are not affiliated to any group, as at July 2023. ^[19] The next election is due in 2027.

Council elections

Elections are held every five years. Since the last ward boundary changes in 2022, 68 councillors have been elected from 60 wards. ^[20] Prior to 2012, elections were generally held every four years.

Year	Seats	Independent	Labour	Conservative	Liberal Democrats	Plaid Cymru	Green Party	Notes
1995	84	62	10	3	8	1	0	Independent majority controlled
1999	73	57	6	0	10	0	0	New ward boundaries. [21] Independent majority controlled
2004	73	54	4	0	15	0	0	Independent majority controlled
2008	73	45	4	9	15	0	0	Independent majority controlled
2012	73	48	6	10	9	0	0	Independent majority controlled
2017	73	30	7	19	13	2	1	Independent-Conservative coalition
2022	68	17	9	14	24	3	1	New ward boundaries. [20] Control Lib Dem-Lab Coalition [22]

Party with the most elected councillors in bold. Coalition agreements in Notes column.

Cabinet

2022-

Position [23]	Holder	Political group		Ward
Leader of the Council	James Gibson-Watt		Liberal Democrats	Glasbury
Deputy Leader and Cabinet Member for a Fairer Powys	Matthew Dorrance		Labour	Brecon West
Cabinet Member for a More Prosperous Powys	David Selby		Liberal Democrats	Newtown Central and South
Cabinet Member for Finance and Corporate Transformation	David Thomas		Labour	Tawe Uchaf
Cabinet Member for a Caring Powys	Sian Cox		Liberal Democrats	Llangors with Bwlch
Cabinet Member for a Safer Powys	Richard Church		Liberal Democrats	Welshpool Castle
Cabinet Member for a Learning Powys	Pete Roberts		Liberal Democrats	Llandrindod South
Cabinet Member for a Greener Powys	Jackie Charlton		Liberal Democrats	Llangattock and Llangynidr
Cabinet Members for Future Generations	Sandra Davies		Labour	Cwm-twrch Ynyscedwyn
Cabinet Member for a Connected Powys	Jake Berriman		Liberal Democrats	Llandrindod North

Premises

The council has its headquarters at County Hall on Spa Road East in Llandrindod Wells, which opened in 1990. ^[24] The site was formerly occupied by the Pump House Hotel, which had been the meeting place of the former Radnorshire County Council from 1889 and then served as both the offices and meeting place of Powys Council Council following the local government reorganisation in 1974. The old building was found to be structurally unstable in the late 1980s and it was decided to build a new county hall on the same site. ^[25]

The council also has three area offices, being one inherited from each of the three former districts abolished in 1996: ^[26]

• Neuadd Brycheiniog in Brecon, built in the 1980s as the headquarters for Brecknock Borough Council.
• The Gwalia in Llandrindod Wells, built in 1900 as the Gwalia Hotel, becoming offices of Radnorshire County Council 1950–1974 then Radnorshire District Council 1974–1996.
• Park Office in Newtown, built in 1968 as Newtown Town Hall, being the shared headquarters of Newtown and Llanllwchaiarn Urban District and Newtown and Llanidloes Rural District Councils, then used as an area office for Montgomeryshire District Council 1974–1996

The former headquarters of Montgomeryshire District Council at Neuadd Maldwyn in Welshpool also served as an area office for Powys County Council until 2019 when it was sold. ^[27]

Electoral wards

Electoral wards in Powys

Main article: List of electoral wards in Powys

Powys is administered by Powys County Council and has 68 elected councillors representing 60 council wards. Although it is a unitary authority, the highway functions of the council, along with the allocation of small grants, are delegated to the three Shire Committees. Brecknockshire has 24 councillors, Radnorshire has 15 and Montgomeryshire has 34. ^[28]

Local elections take place every five years. Some of the electoral wards are coterminous with communities (parishes) of the same name. There are 112 communities in the principal area. Nearly all communities have a local community council.

The following table lists the council wards, the political group representing them, and the communities they cover. Communities with a community council are indicated with a '*':

Ward	Political group		Councillor	Communities
Aber-craf and Ystradgynlais		Labour	Huw Williams	Ystradgynlais* (part)
		Labour	Sarah Williams
Banwy, Llanfihangel and Llanwddyn		Plaid Cymru	Bryn Davies	Banwy* Llanfihangel-yng-Ngwynfa* Llangynog* Llanwddyn* Pen-y-Bont-Fawr*
Berriew and Castle Caereinion		Conservative	Adrian Jones	Berriew* Castle Caereinion*
Brecon East		Labour	Liz Rijnenberg	Brecon* (part)
		Labour	Chris Walsh
Brecon West		Labour	Matthew Dorrance	Brecon* (part)
		Labour	David Meredith
Bronllys and Felin-fach		Liberal Democrats	Thomas Colbert	Bronllys* Erwood* Felinfach*
Builth		Independent	Jeremy Pugh	Builth Wells*
Caersws		Conservative	Les George	Caersws* Carno*
Churchstoke		Liberal Democrats	Danny Bebb	Churchstoke*
Crickhowell with Cwmdu and Tretower		Liberal Democrats	Claire Hall (since November 23 by-election)	Crickhowell* Vale of Grwyney* Cwmdu and District* (part)
		Liberal Democrats	Chloe Masefield (since November 23 by-election)
Cwm-twrch		Labour	Sandra Davies	Ystradgynlais* (part)
Disserth and Trecoed with Newbridge		Independent	Little Brighouse	Disserth and Trecoed* Llanyre* (part)
Dolforwyn		Conservative	Gareth Pugh	Abermule with Llandyssil* Bettws*
Forden and Montgomery		Green	Jeremy Thorp	Forden* (part) Montgomery*
Glantwymyn		Plaid Cymru	Elwyn Vaughan	Cadfarch* Glantwymyn*
Glasbury		Liberal Democrats	James Gibson-Watt	Clyro* Glasbury*
Guilsfield		Conservative	Ian Harrison	Guilsfield*
Gwernyfed		Liberal Democrats	William Lloyd	Gwernyfed* Llanigon*
Hay		Liberal Democrats	Gareth Ratcliffe	Hay*
Ithon Valley		Independent	Geoff Morgan	Llanbadarn Fawr* Llanbadarn Fynydd Llanbister* Llanddewi Ystradenny*
Kerry		Conservative	Benjamin Breeze	Kerry* (part)
Knighton with Beguildy		Liberal Democrats	Corinna Kenyon-Wade	Beguildy* Knighton*
		Independent	Ange Williams
Llanafanfawr with Garth		Independent	Bryan Davies	Cilmeri* Duhonw* Llanafan-fawr* Llanwrthwl* Treflys* (part)
Llanbrynmair		Plaid Cymru	Gary Mitchell	Llanbrynmair* Trefeglwys*
Llandinam with Dolfor		Conservative	Karl Lewis	Kerry* (part) Llandinam* Mochdre*
Llandrindod North		Liberal Democrats	Jake Berriman	Llandrindod Wells* (part)
Llandrindod South		Liberal Democrats	Josie Ewing	Llandrindod Wells* (part)
		Liberal Democrats	Pete Roberts
Llandrinio		Conservative	Lucy Roberts	Bausley with Criggion* Llandrinio*
Llandysilio		Independent	Arwel Jones	Carreghofa* Llandysilio*
Llanelwedd		Independent	Gareth Emlyn Jones	Aberedw* Glascwm* Llanelwedd* Painscastle*
Llanfair Caereinion and Llanerfyl		Independent	Gareth Jones	Llanerfyl* Llanfair Caereinion*
Llanfyllin		Conservative	Peter Lewis	Llanfyllin*
Llangattock and Llangynidr		Liberal Democrats	Jackie Charlton	Llangattock* Llangynidr*
Llangors with Bwlch		Liberal Democrats	Sian Cox	Llangors* Cwmdu and District* (part)
Llangunllo with Norton		Independent	Deb Edwards	Llanfihangel Rhydithon* Llangunllo* Presteigne* (part) Whitton*
Llangyniew and Meifod		Conservative	Jonathan Wilkinson	Llangyniew* Meifod*
Llanidloes		Liberal Democrats	Gareth Morgan	Llangurig* Llanidloes* Llanidloes Without*
		Liberal Democrats	Glyn Preston
Llanrhaeadr-ym-Mochnant and Llansilin		Conservative	Aled Davies	Llangedwyn* Llanrhaeadr-ym-Mochnant* Llansilin*
Llansantffraid		Conservative	Gwynfor Thomas	Llanfechain* Llansantffraid*
Llanwrtyd Wells		Independent	Peter James	Llangamarch* Llanwrtyd Wells* Treflys* (part)
Llanyre with Nantmel		Independent	Claire Mills	Abbeycwmhir* Llanyre* (part) Nantmel* St. Harmon*
Machynlleth		Independent	Mike Williams	Machynlleth*
Maescar and Llywel		Independent	Edwin Roderick	Cray* Llywel* Maescar*
Newtown Central and South		Liberal Democrats	Kelly Healy	Newtown and Llanllwchaiarn* (part)
		Liberal Democrats	David Selby
Newtown East		Independent	Joy Jones	Newtown and Llanllwchaiarn* (part)
Newtown North		Liberal Democrats	Adam Kennerley	Newtown and Llanllwchaiarn* (part)
Newtown West		Conservative	Peter Lewington	Newtown and Llanllwchaiarn* (part)
Old Radnor		Independent	Edward Jones	Gladestry* New Radnor* Old Radnor*
Presteigne		Independent	Beverley Baynham	Presteigne* (part)
Rhayader		Liberal Democrats	Angela Davies	Rhayader*
Rhiwcynon		Independent	Heulwen Hulme	Aberhafesp* Dwyriw* Manafon* Tregynon*
Talgarth		Liberal Democrats	William Powell	Talgarth*
Talybont-on-Usk		Liberal Democrats	Raiff Devlin (since November 23 by-election)	Glyn Tarell* Llanfrynach* Talybont-on-Usk*
Tawe Uchaf		Labour	David Thomas	Tawe Uchaf* Ystradfellte*
Trelystan and Trewern		Conservative	Amanda Jenner	Forden* (part) Trewern*
Welshpool Castle		Liberal Democrats	Richard Church	Welshpool* (part)
Welshpool Gungrog		Liberal Democrats	Carol Robinson	Welshpool* (part)
Welshpool Llanerchyddol		Independent	Graham Breeze	Welshpool* (part)
Ynyscedwyn		Labour	Susan McNicholas	Ystradgynlais* (part)
Yscir with Honddu Isaf and Llanddew		Conservative	Iain McIntosh	Honddu Isaf* Llanddew* Merthyr Cynog* Trallong* Yscir*

External links

• Powys County Council

References

1. "Council minutes, 18 May 2023". Powys County Council. Retrieved 11 July 2023.
2. "Cabinet revealed by new Powys council leader". Brecon and Radnor Express. Retrieved 27 May 2022.
3. "New CEO for Powys County Council". fyi: Brecon. 22 November 2018. Retrieved 11 July 2023.
4. "Local Government Act 1972", legislation.gov.uk , The National Archives, 1972 c. 70, retrieved 27 September 2022
5. "Local Government (Wales) Act 1994", legislation.gov.uk , The National Archives, 1994 c. 19, retrieved 27 September 2022
6. "Lib Dems and Labour to take control of Powys Council". Brecon and Radnor Express. 25 May 2022. Retrieved 11 July 2023.
7. Hearn, Elgan (11 July 2023). "Two councillors quit Powys Lib Dems over school closure vote". Powys County Times. Retrieved 11 July 2023.
8. "Compositions calculator". The Elections Centre. Retrieved 28 September 2022.
9. "Council minutes". Powys Council. Retrieved 28 September 2022.
10. Brumwell, Ariane (9 May 2022). "Former Powys leader retired after nearly 40 years as a Radnorshire councillor". Brecon & Radnor Express. Retrieved 28 September 2022.
11. Masters, Adrian (17 May 2012). "Powys Council Leader Chosen". ITV News. Retrieved 28 September 2022.
12. "Powys council: David Jones elected as new leader". BBC News. 17 May 2012. Retrieved 28 September 2022.
13. "Powys council leader Barry Thomas to stand down in May". BBC News. 8 March 2017. Retrieved 28 September 2022.
14. "Rosemarie Harris first woman leader for Powys council". BBC News. Retrieved 28 September 2022.
15. "TikTok: Little Brighouse suspended over anti-Semitic clip". BBC News. 10 May 2022. Retrieved 11 July 2023.
16. Hearn, Elgan (31 January 2023). "Third Powys councillor leaves the Liberal Democrats". Brecon and Radnor Express. Retrieved 11 July 2023.
17. https://nation.cymru/news/lib-dems-toast-double-by-election-success-in-powys/
18. https://www.countytimes.co.uk/news/23943016.liberal-democrats-win-by-election-powys-county-council/
19. "Your councillors by party". Powys County Council. Retrieved 11 July 2023.
20. "The County of Powys (Electoral Arrangements) Order 2021", legislation.gov.uk , The National Archives, SI 2021/1081, retrieved 28 September 2022
21. "The County of Powys (Electoral Arrangements) Order 1998", legislation.gov.uk , The National Archives, SI 1998/3143, retrieved 28 September 2022
22. "Powys result - Local Elections 2022". BBC News.
23. "Powys Council AGM". Brecon and Radnor Express. Retrieved 27 May 2022.
24. "Chief Executive's Department" (PDF). Powys County Council. Retrieved 31 October 2020.
25. "The Pump House Hotel". Powys Built Heritage. Archived from the original on 24 February 2017. Retrieved 21 October 2019.
26. "Contact us". Powys County Council. Retrieved 3 October 2022.
27. Hearn, Elgan (4 April 2019). "Powys: Neuadd Maldwyn could become care facility". Powys County Times. Retrieved 29 September 2022.
28. "Articles of the Constitution, Part 2 Article 10" (PDF). Powys Council. Retrieved 22 December 2006.^{[ permanent dead link ]}

1. Except Brynmawr and Llanelly, which were transferred to Gwent, and Penderyn and Vaynor, which were transferred to Mid Glamorgan.