Walsall Council
Logo
Type
Type
Leadership
Chris Towe,
Conservative
since 22 May 2023[1]
Mike Bird,
Conservative
since 23 May 2018[2]
Emma Bennett
since October 2023[3]
Structure
Seats60 councillors
Political groups
Administration (37)
  Conservative (37)
Opposition (23)
  Labour (20)
  Independent (3)
Length of term
4 years
Elections
First past the post
Last election
4 May 2023
Next election
2024
Meeting place
Council House, Lichfield Street, Walsall, WS1 1TW
Website
walsall.gov.uk

Walsall Council, formally Walsall Metropolitan Borough Council, is the local authority for the Metropolitan Borough of Walsall.

History

From 1889 to 1974 Walsall was a county borough, independent of any county council.[4] Under the Local Government Act 1972 it had its territory enlarged and became a metropolitan borough, with West Midlands County Council providing county-level services. West Midlands County Council was abolished in 1986 and Walsall became a unitary authority.

The council has been a constituent member of the West Midlands Combined Authority since 2016.

Governance

Political control

The Conservatives have held a majority of the seats on the council since 2019.

The first election to the reconstituted borough council was held in 1973, initially operating as a shadow authority before coming into its revised powers on 1 April 1974. Political control of the council since 1974 has been as follows:[5][6]

Party in controlYears
Labour1974–1976
No overall control1976–1980
Labour1980–1982
No overall control1982–1988
Labour1988–1992
No overall control1992–1995
Labour1995–1996
No overall control1996–1999
Labour1999–2000
No overall control2000–2004
Conservative2004–2011
No overall control2011–2019
Conservative2019–present

Leadership

The role of mayor is largely ceremonial in Walsall. Political leadership is provided by the leader of the council. The leaders since 2004 have been:[7]

CouncillorPartyFromTo
Tom Ansell Conservativepre-2004May 2007
John O'Hare Conservative23 May 2007May 2009
Mike Bird Conservative20 May 200911 Aug 2014
Sean Coughlan Labour11 Aug 20141 Jun 2015
Mike Bird Conservative1 Jun 201525 May 2016
Sean Coughlan[8] Labour25 May 201623 May 2018
Mike Bird Conservative23 May 2018

Composition

Following the 2023 election, the composition of the council was:[9]

Party Councillors
Conservative 37
Labour 20
Independent 3
Total 60

The next election is due in 2024.

Premises

Civic Centre, Darwall Street

The council meets at the Council House on Lichfield Street, which had been completed in 1905 for the old borough council. The council's main offices are in the adjoining Civic Centre on Darwall Street, which is linked to the Council House by a bridge over Darwall Street.[10][11]

Elections

Since the last boundary changes in 2004, 60 councillors have been elected from 20 wards. Elections to the council take place in three out of every four years, with one-third of the seats being contested at each election.[12]

Wards

The wards are:[12]

Ward name Area (ha)/mi2 Population
(2001 census)		 Population density (people per hectare) Ref.
Aldridge Central and South 1,143 hectares (4.41 sq mi)12,26710.73 [13]
Aldridge North and Walsall Wood 784 hectares (3.03 sq mi)12,87416.43 [14]
Bentley and Darlaston North 439 hectares (1.69 sq mi)13,68931.19 [15]
Birchills Leamore 413 hectares (1.59 sq mi)13,65933.05 [16]
Blakenall 353 hectares (1.36 sq mi)11,95033.86 [17]
Bloxwich East 369 hectares (1.42 sq mi)11,07229.99 [18]
Bloxwich West 388 hectares (1.50 sq mi)14,81638.15 [19]
Brownhills 724 hectares (2.80 sq mi)12,63717.45 [20]
Darlaston South 334 hectares (1.29 sq mi)12,25236.64 [21]
Paddock 546 hectares (2.11 sq mi)13,07323.92 [22]
Palfrey 368 hectares (1.42 sq mi)14,59639.71 [23]
Pelsall 499 hectares (1.93 sq mi)10,34428.74 [24]
Pheasey Park Farm 758 hectares (2.93 sq mi)10,43513.76 [25]
Pleck 338 hectares (1.31 sq mi)10,65331.53 [26]
Rushall-Shelfield 577 hectares (2.23 sq mi)11,75420.37 [27]
Short Heath 380 hectares (1.5 sq mi)11,43530.05 [28]
St. Matthew's 353 hectares (1.36 sq mi)12,21434.64 [29]
Streetly 750 hectares (2.9 sq mi)13,25117.66 [30]
Willenhall North 235 hectares (0.91 sq mi)12,53653.41 [31]
Willenhall South 481 hectares (1.86 sq mi)13,79528.70 [32]
Total 10,396 hectares (40.14 sq mi)253,49924.39 [33]

References

  1. ↑ Thandi, Gurdip (17 June 2023). "Music-loving council veteran becomes the new Mayor of Walsall". Birmingham Mail. Retrieved 17 June 2023.
  2. ↑ "Council minutes, 23 May 2018". Walsall Council. Retrieved 13 September 2022.
  3. ↑ "Emma Bennett, Chief Executive biography". Walsall Council. Retrieved 19 October 2023.
  4. ↑ "Walsall Municipal Borough / County Borough". A Vision of Britain through Time. GB Historical GIS / University of Portsmouth. Retrieved 12 September 2022.
  5. ↑ "Compositions calculator". The Elections Centre. Retrieved 10 August 2022.
  6. ↑ "England council elections". BBC News Online. 10 May 2011. Retrieved 16 September 2011.
  7. ↑ "Council minutes". Walsall Council. Retrieved 12 September 2022.
  8. ↑ Thandi, Gurdip (17 March 2022). "Shamed ex-Walsall Council leader escapes prison sentence for child sex offences". Birmingham Mail. Retrieved 13 September 2022.
  9. ↑ "Councillors". Walsall Council. Retrieved 17 June 2023.
  10. ↑ Historic England. "Council House, Walsall (1343029)". National Heritage List for England. Retrieved 12 April 2020.
  11. ↑ "Walsall Council". Retrieved 17 June 2023.
  12. 1 2 "The Borough of Walsall (Electoral Changes) Order 2003", legislation.gov.uk, The National Archives, SI 2003/2511, retrieved 12 September 2022
  13. ↑ "Area: Aldridge Central and South (Ward) Population Density (UV02)". Office for National Statistics. Retrieved 27 October 2009.
  14. ↑ "Area: Aldridge North and Walsall Wood (Ward) Population Density (UV02)". Office for National Statistics. Retrieved 27 October 2009.
  15. ↑ "Area: Bentley and Darlaston North (Ward) Population Density (UV02)". Office for National Statistics. Retrieved 27 October 2009.
  16. ↑ "Area: Birchills Leamore (Ward) Population Density (UV02)". Office for National Statistics. Retrieved 27 October 2009.
  17. ↑ "Area: Blakenall (Ward) Population Density (UV02)". Office for National Statistics. Retrieved 27 October 2009.
  18. ↑ "Area: Bloxwich East (Ward) Population Density (UV02)". Office for National Statistics. Retrieved 27 October 2009.
  19. ↑ "Area: Bloxwich East (Ward) Population Density (UV02)". Office for National Statistics. Retrieved 27 October 2009.
  20. ↑ "Area: Brownhills (Ward) Population Density (UV02)". Office for National Statistics. Retrieved 27 October 2009.
  21. ↑ "Area: Darlaston South (Ward) Population Density (UV02)". Office for National Statistics. Retrieved 27 October 2009.
  22. ↑ "Area: Paddock (Ward) Population Density (UV02)". Office for National Statistics. Retrieved 27 October 2009.
  23. ↑ "Area: Palfrey (Ward) Population Density (UV02)". Office for National Statistics. Retrieved 27 October 2009.
  24. ↑ "Area: Pelsall (Ward) Population Density (UV02)". Office for National Statistics. Retrieved 27 October 2009.
  25. ↑ "Area: Pheasey Park Farm (Ward) Population Density (UV02)". Office for National Statistics. Retrieved 27 October 2009.
  26. ↑ "Area: Pleck (Ward) Population Density (UV02)". Office for National Statistics. Retrieved 27 October 2009.
  27. ↑ "Area: Rushall – Shelfield (Ward) Population Density (UV02)". Office for National Statistics. Retrieved 27 October 2009.
  28. ↑ "Area: Short Heath (Ward) Population Density (UV02)". Office for National Statistics. Retrieved 27 October 2009.
  29. ↑ "Area: St. Matthew's (Ward) Population Density (UV02)". Office for National Statistics. Retrieved 27 October 2009.
  30. ↑ "Area: Streetly (Ward) Population Density (UV02)". Office for National Statistics. Retrieved 27 October 2009.
  31. ↑ "Area: Willenhall North (Ward) Population Density (UV02)". Office for National Statistics. Retrieved 27 October 2009.
  32. ↑ "Area: Willenhall South (Ward) Population Density (UV02)". Office for National Statistics. Retrieved 27 October 2009.
  33. ↑ "Area: Walsall (Local Authority) Population Density (UV02)". Office for National Statistics. Retrieved 27 October 2009.
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