North Yorkshire Council

Last updated

North Yorkshire Council
North Yorkshire Council logo.svg
Logo from 1 April 2023
Type
Type
History
Founded1 April 1974
Leadership
David Ireton,
Conservative
since 22 February 2023 [lower-alpha 1]
Carl Les,
Conservative
since 20 May 2015
Richard Flinton
since 2010 [2]
Structure
Seats90
Political groups
Administration (47)
  Conservative (44)
  Independent (3)
Other parties (43)
  Liberal Democrat (13)
  Independent (12)
  Labour (11)
  Green (4)
  Liberal (1)
  Reform UK (1)
  Social Justice (1)
Elections
First past the post
Last election
 5 May 2022
Next election
6 May 2027
Meeting place
Northallerton North Yorkshire County Hall.jpg
County Hall, Racecourse Lane, Northallerton, DL7 8AD
Website
www.northyorks.gov.uk

North Yorkshire Council, known between 1974 and 2023 as North Yorkshire County Council, is the local authority for the non-metropolitan county of North Yorkshire in England. Since 2023 it has been a unitary authority, having taken on district-level functions when the county's districts were abolished. The non-metropolitan county is smaller than the ceremonial county of North Yorkshire, which additionally includes Middlesbrough, Redcar and Cleveland, York, and the part of Stockton-on-Tees south of the River Tees. The council has been under no overall control since 2023. It is based at County Hall in Northallerton. The council is a constituent member of the York and North Yorkshire Combined Authority.

Contents

History

Logo of North Yorkshire County Council used until 2023 North Yorkshire County Council.svg
Logo of North Yorkshire County Council used until 2023

The council was formed in 1974, when North Riding County Council was abolished, and has been based at County Hall in Northallerton since then. [3] [4] The non-metropolitan county originally had eight districts: York, Craven, Hambleton, Harrogate, Richmondshire, Ryedale, Scarborough and Selby. [5] In 1996 the City of York was expanded with the addition of parishes from the districts of Harrogate, Ryedale, and Selby and became a unitary authority, removing it from the non-metropolitan county. [6]

The reorganisation began in October 2020, when the Government invited the councils in the non-metropolitan county of North Yorkshire and the City of York Council to submit proposals for reorganisation into unitary local authorities. The county council proposed a single unitary council for its entire administrative area and no change to York. The district councils (except Hambleton) jointly proposed an eastern council combining the areas of Ryedale, Scarborough, Selby and York, and a western council including Craven, Hambleton, Harrogate and Richmondshire. Following a public consultation, in July 2021 the Communities Secretary, Robert Jenrick, announced that the county council's proposal would be taken forward and the first elections for the new unitary authority would be held in May 2022. [7] [8] The reorganisation was approved by Parliament on 17 March 2022.

A combined authority was established in 2024 covering York and North Yorkshire, called the York and North Yorkshire Combined Authority. It is chaired by the directly elected Mayor of York and North Yorkshire. [9] [10]

Governance

Since 2023 the council has provided both district-level and county-level services. Between 1974 and 2023 the council provided only county-level services. It remains legally a county council, but also became a unitary authority on taking on the functions of the abolished districts. [11] Most of the area is covered by civil parishes, which form a second tier of local government.

Political control

The council has been under no overall control since June 2023, being led by a Conservative minority administration with support from three of the independent councillors. [12] [13]

The first election to the county council was held in 1973, initially operating as a shadow authority alongside the outgoing authorities until it came into its powers on 1 April 1974. Political control since 1974 has been as follows: [14] [15]

North Yorkshire County Council

Party in controlYears
Conservative 1974–1993
No overall control 1993–2001
Conservative 2001–2023

North Yorkshire Council (unitary authority)

Party in controlYears
Conservative 2023–2023
No overall control 2023–present

Leadership

The leaders of the council since 2001 have been: [16]

CouncillorPartyFromTo
David Ashton Conservative 20 June 2001
John Weighell Conservative 20 June 200120 May 2015
Carl Les Conservative 20 May 2015

Composition

Following the 2022 election and subsequent by-elections and changes of allegiance up to April 2024, the composition of the council was:

PartyCouncillors
Conservative 44
Independent 15
Liberal Democrats 13
Labour 11
Green 4
Liberal 1
Reform UK 1
Social Justice Party 1
Total90

Of the fifteen independent councillors, three sit with the Conservatives as the "Conservatives and Independents" group, which forms the council's administration, nine sit as the "North Yorkshire Independents" group which also includes the Reform UK councillor, and the remaining three independents are unaffiliated to any group. The Liberal councillor sits in a group with the Liberal Democrats. [17] The next election is due in 2027.

Elections

Since the last boundary changes in 2022 the area has been divided into 90 electoral divisions, each electing one councillor. An election on the new boundaries was held in 2022, prior to the change to being a unitary authority. The next election is due in 2027, after which elections will be held every four years. [11]

Premises

The council is based at County Hall on Racecourse Lane, Northallerton (the building is just outside Northallerton's parish boundaries, being in the parish of Romanby). [18] County Hall was completed in 1906 as the headquarters for the North Riding County Council. It is a Grade II* listed building. [19] It transferred to the North Yorkshire County Council on local government reorganisation in 1974.

See also

Notes

  1. ↑ Having been acting chairman since death of predecessor in November 2022. [1]

Related Research Articles

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

North Yorkshire is a ceremonial county in the Yorkshire and the Humber and North East regions of England. It borders County Durham to the north, the North Sea to the east, the East Riding of Yorkshire to the south-east, South Yorkshire to the south, West Yorkshire to the south-west, and Cumbria and Lancashire to the west. Northallerton is the county town.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">North Riding of Yorkshire</span> Third of a historic county in England

The North Riding of Yorkshire was a subdivision of Yorkshire, England, alongside York, the East Riding and West Riding. The riding's highest point was at Mickle Fell at 2,585 ft (788 m).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Hambleton District</span> Former local government district in England

Hambleton was a local government district in North Yorkshire, England. The administrative centre was Northallerton, and the district included the outlying towns and villages of Bedale, Thirsk, Great Ayton, Stokesley, and Easingwold.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ryedale</span> Former local government district in England

Ryedale was a non-metropolitan district in North Yorkshire, England. It was in the Vale of Pickering, a low-lying flat area of land drained by the River Derwent. The Vale's landscape is rural with scattered villages and towns. It has been inhabited continuously from the Mesolithic period. The economy was largely agricultural with light industry and tourism playing an increasing role.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Borough of Scarborough</span> Former local government district in England

The Borough of Scarborough was a non-metropolitan district with borough status in North Yorkshire, England. In addition to the town of Scarborough, it covered a large stretch of the coast of Yorkshire, including Whitby and Filey. It bordered Redcar and Cleveland to the north, the Ryedale and Hambleton districts to the west and the East Riding of Yorkshire to the south.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Selby District</span> Former local government district in England

Selby District was a local government district of North Yorkshire, England, from 1974 to 2023. Its council was based in the town of Selby. The district had a population of 83,449 at the 2011 Census. The southernmost district of North Yorkshire, it bordered the City of York unitary authority, the Borough of Harrogate in North Yorkshire, the City of Leeds and City of Wakefield districts in West Yorkshire, the City of Doncaster in South Yorkshire, and the ceremonial county of the East Riding of Yorkshire.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Borough of Harrogate</span> Former local government district in England

The Borough of Harrogate was a local government district with borough status in North Yorkshire, England, from 1974 to 2023. Its council was based in the town of Harrogate, but it also included surrounding settlements, including the cathedral city of Ripon, and almost all of the Nidderdale Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty. At the 2011 Census, the borough had a population of 157,869.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Thirsk and Malton (UK Parliament constituency)</span> Parliamentary constituency in the United Kingdom

Thirsk and Malton is a constituency in North Yorkshire represented in the House of Commons of the UK Parliament since 2015 by Kevin Hollinrake, a Conservative.

The history of local government in Yorkshire is unique and complex. Yorkshire is the largest historic English county and consists of a diverse mix of urban and rural development with a heritage in agriculture, manufacturing, and mining. After a long period with little change, it has been subject to a number of reforms of local government structures in modern times, some of which were controversial. The most significant of these were the Local Government Act 1972, the 1990s UK local government reform, and the Localism Act 2011. The historic area currently corresponds to several counties and districts and is mostly contained within the Yorkshire and the Humber region.

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">City of York</span> Unitary authority area in North Yorkshire, England

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The 2022 North Yorkshire Council election took place on 5 May 2022, alongside the other local elections. These were the last elections to North Yorkshire County Council, and the elected councillors would also serve as the first councillors on the North Yorkshire Council, which replaced the existing county council in April 2023.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2022 United Kingdom local elections</span> Elections to local councils and mayoralties

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">North Yorkshire (district)</span> Unitary authority area in England

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References

  1. ↑ "North Yorkshire County Council elects new chair after predecessor's death". BBC News. 22 February 2023. Retrieved 10 April 2023.
  2. ↑ Aitchison, Gavin (13 May 2010). "Richard Flinton is new chief executive at North Yorkshire County Council". York Press. Retrieved 15 December 2023.
  3. ↑ Brown, Jonathan (27 May 2014). "Spinning Yarm: The referendum hoping to bring this picturesque" . The Independent. Archived from the original on 21 June 2022. Retrieved 15 August 2018.
  4. ↑ Chrystal, Paul; Sunderland, Mark (2010). Northallerton through time. Stroud: Amberley. p. 18. ISBN   9781848681811.
  5. ↑ Ministry of Housing, Communities & Local Government (22 July 2021). "Consultation response summary: local government reorganisation". GOV.UK. Retrieved 23 July 2021.
  6. ↑ "The North Yorkshire (District of York) (Structural and Boundary Changes) Order 1995" . Retrieved 21 June 2022.
  7. ↑ Ministry of Housing, Communities & Local Government (21 July 2021). "Next steps for new unitary councils in Cumbria, North Yorkshire and Somerset". GOV.UK. Retrieved 23 July 2021.
  8. ↑ House of Commons (21 July 2021). "Local Government Update Written Statement". UK Parliament. Retrieved 23 July 2021.
  9. ↑ "The York and North Yorkshire Combined Authority Order 2023", legislation.gov.uk , The National Archives, SI 2023/1432, retrieved 18 February 2024
  10. ↑ "York and North Yorkshire devolution deal". Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities. 1 August 2022. Retrieved 24 October 2022.
  11. 1 2 "The North Yorkshire (Structural Changes) Order 2022", legislation.gov.uk , The National Archives, SI 2022/328, retrieved 16 December 2023
  12. ↑ Plummer, John (12 June 2023). "Conservatives lose majority on North Yorkshire Council". The Stray Ferret. Retrieved 15 June 2023.
  13. ↑ "North Yorkshire: Conservatives lose majority after councillor quits". BBC News. 13 June 2023. Retrieved 15 June 2023.
  14. ↑ "Compositions calculator". The Elections Centre. 4 March 2016. Retrieved 1 June 2023.
  15. ↑ "North Yorkshire". BBC News Online. BBC. 5 June 2009. Retrieved 10 June 2009.
  16. ↑ "Council minutes". North Yorkshire County Council. Retrieved 17 June 2022.
  17. ↑ "Your councillors by political group". North Yorkshire Council. Retrieved 6 May 2024.
  18. ↑ "Election Maps". Ordnance Survey. Retrieved 15 December 2023.
  19. ↑ Historic England. "County Hall (Grade II*) (1150967)". National Heritage List for England . Retrieved 19 August 2018.
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