This article needs additional citations for verification .(May 2016) |
Reading Borough Council is the council for the unitary authority of Reading in Berkshire, England. Until 1 April 1998 it was a non-metropolitan district. Since the last boundary changes in 2022 the council has comprised 48 councillors representing 16 wards, with each ward electing three councillors. Elections are held three years out of every four, with a third of the council (one councillor for each ward) being elected each time for a four-year term. [1]
By-elections are listed on the pages of the last council-wide election prior to the by-election, with the exception of the 1977 by-election below which was due to a boundary change and increase in number of councillors rather than needing to fill a vacancy on the council.
By-election | Date | Incumbent party | Winning party | ||
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Abbey | 6 May 1999 | Labour | Labour | ||
Church | 15 June 2000 | Labour | Labour | ||
Redlands | 2 May 2002 | Labour | Labour | ||
Southcote | 4 May 2006 | Labour | Labour | ||
Thames | Conservative | Conservative | |||
Tilehurst | 16 November 2006 | Liberal Democrats | Liberal Democrats | ||
Church | 3 May 2007 | Labour | Conservative | ||
Southcote | Labour | Labour | |||
Park | 22 May 2014 | Green | Green | ||
Southcote | 24 July 2014 | Labour | Labour | ||
Southcote | 21 July 2016 | Labour | Labour | ||
Kentwood | 12 December 2019 | Conservative | Conservative | ||
Norcot | 3 August 2023 | Labour | Labour |
On 1 April 1977 the borough was enlarged by the addition of parts of the parishes of Eye and Dunsden, Kidmore End and Mapledurham, all from South Oxfordshire. The number of councillors on Reading Borough Council was increased from 46 to 49 as a result. The two South Oxfordshire district councillors representing much of the transferred area automatically became Reading borough councillors without needing to be re-elected, representing a new ward of Caversham Park. These two were Geoff Lowe and Harold Stoddart, both Liberals (although Lowe later defected to the Conservatives in 1978). [6] Reading's existing Thames and Caversham wards were also enlarged, and the increase in the size of Thames ward justified a fifth councillor being elected for that ward, for which a by-election was held on 21 April 1977, which was won by the Conservatives. After the by-election and two transfers, the balance of the council was 23 Conservatives, 13 Labour and 13 Liberals. [2] [7] [8]
Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Conservative | Brian Fowles | 2,619 | 75.3 | ||
Liberal | Katherine Gwinnell | 485 | 13.9 | ||
Labour | Pat Mander | 373 | 10.7 | ||
Majority | 2,134 | 61.4 | |||
Turnout | 3,477 | 33 | |||
Conservative win (new seat) |
South Oxfordshire is a local government district in the ceremonial county of Oxfordshire, England. Its council is temporarily based outside the district at Abingdon-on-Thames pending a planned move to Didcot, the district's largest town. The areas located south of the River Thames are within the historic county of Berkshire.
Reading East was a constituency represented in the House of Commons of the UK Parliament. In the 2019–2024 Parliament, it was one of two Labour seats from a total of eight seats in Berkshire.
Blackpool Borough Council elections are generally held every four years. Blackpool Borough Council is the local authority for the unitary authority of Blackpool in Lancashire, England. Since the last boundary changes in 2023, 42 councillors have been elected from 21 wards.
One third of Harrogate Borough Council in North Yorkshire, England was elected each year, followed by one year without election. Since the last boundary changes in 2002, 54 councillors had been elected from 35 wards. The last elections were held in 2018, ahead of the abolition of Harrogate Borough Council on 31 March 2023. Its functions transferred to the new North Yorkshire Council. The first elections to the North Yorkshire Council took place on 5 May 2022, when 21 councillors were elected from 21 divisions in the Borough of Harrogate.
One third of Basingstoke and Deane Borough Council in Hampshire, England is elected each year, followed by one year without election. Since the last boundary changes in 2021, 54 councillors have been elected from 18 wards.
Bracknell Forest Borough Council is the local authority for Bracknell Forest, a unitary authority in Berkshire, England. Until 1 April 1998 it was a lower-tier district council.
Reading Borough Council is the local authority for Reading in the county of Berkshire, England. Reading has had a council since at least 1542, which has been reformed on numerous occasions. Since 1998, the council has been a unitary authority, being a district council which also performs the functions of a county council.
South Oxfordshire District Council, a non-metropolitan district council in Oxfordshire, England is elected every four years.
Swindon Borough Council is the local authority for the unitary authority of Swindon in Wiltshire, England. Until 1 April 1997 its area was a non-metropolitan district called Thamesdown Borough Council, with Wiltshire County Council providing the county-level services.
One third of Woking Borough Council in Surrey, England is elected each year, followed by one year without election. Since the last boundary changes in 2016, 30 councillors have been elected from 10 wards.
One third of Hart District Council in Hampshire, England is elected each year, followed by one year without election. Since the last boundary changes in 2014, 33 councillors have been elected from 11 wards.
Caversham is an electoral ward of the Borough of Reading, in the English county of Berkshire. It is to the north of the town centre, in the suburb of Caversham to the north of the River Thames, and is bordered by Thames, Peppard and Abbey wards.
Kentwood is an electoral ward of the Borough of Reading, in the English county of Berkshire. It consists of the northern part of the suburb of Tilehurst, in the west of Reading, south of the River Thames. The ward is bordered by Caversham Heights and Battle wards to the east, and Norcot and Tilehurst wards to the south. To the west the ward is bordered by the reduced civil parish of Tilehurst in the district of West Berkshire which is the remainder of the larger ancient parish, before the expansion of the Borough of Reading. The ward has schools and churches bearing a Tilehurst, rather than Reading name.
Mapledurham was an electoral ward of the Borough of Reading, in the English county of Berkshire, which was abolished in the boundary changes prior to the 2022 Reading Borough Council election. The ward's area was joined with part of that of the former Thames ward to form the new Caversham Heights ward.
Emmer Green is an electoral ward of the Borough of Reading, in the English county of Berkshire. Until the 2022 Reading Borough Council election, it was known as Peppard ward and had slightly different boundaries.
Thames was an electoral ward of the Borough of Reading, in the English county of Berkshire, until it was abolished in the boundary changes prior to the 2022 Reading Borough Council election. It should not be confused with the ward of the same name that was created by those boundary changes, but which has no area in common with this former ward.
The 1976 Reading Borough Council election was held on 6 May 1976, at the same time as other local elections across England and Wales. All 46 seats on Reading Borough Council were up for election. The council remained under no overall control, but with the Conservatives becoming the largest party. The Conservative group leader, Deryck Morton, subsequently took the council's most senior political job as chairman of the policy committee, leading a Conservative minority administration.
Thames is an electoral ward of the Borough of Reading, in the English county of Berkshire. It includes areas on both sides of both the River Thames and the River Kennet, to the north and east of the centre of Reading on the south bank, and to the east of the centre of Caversham on the north bank. It should not be confused with the ward of the same name that existed prior to the 2022 Reading Borough Council election, with which it has no area in common.
Caversham Heights is an electoral ward of the Borough of Reading, in the English county of Berkshire. The ward was created by a boundary reorganisation prior to the 2022 Reading Borough Council election, and has replaced the Mapledurham ward, with the addition of parts of the old Thames and Peppard wards. During the reorganisation process, the ward was known as The Heights, but the name was subsequent changed as a result of public consultation.