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66-428: Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole Council , which styles itself BCP Council , is the local authority for Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole , a local government district in the ceremonial county of Dorset , England. The council is a unitary authority , being a district council which also performs the functions of a county council . It is independent from Dorset Council , the unitary authority which administers

132-505: A Mayor of London and 25-member London Assembly . The first mayoral and assembly elections took place in 2000. The former Leader of the Greater London Council , Ken Livingstone , served as the inaugural Mayor, until he was defeated by future Prime Minister Boris Johnson in 2008 . The incumbent, Sadiq Khan , was first elected in 2016 . The Mayor's functions include chairing Transport for London , holding

198-471: A non-metropolitan county both called Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole, each covering the area of the three former boroughs. There is no separate county council; instead the district council also performs county council functions, making it a unitary authority. The district remains part of the ceremonial county of Dorset for the purposes of lieutenancy . A shadow authority was established in May 2018 to oversee

264-543: A town council or city council , and are instead directly managed by a higher local authority such as a district or county council. Until the mid-nineteenth century there had been many areas that did not belong to any parish, known as extra-parochial areas . Acts of Parliament between 1858 and 1868 sought to abolish such areas, converting them into parishes or absorbing them into neighbouring parishes. After 1868 there were very few extra-parochial areas left; those remaining were mostly islands, such as Lundy , which did not have

330-483: A county council and a district council, which would share local authority functions. In May 2022, 21 non-metropolitan county councils and 164 non-metropolitan district councils remain. These are better known as simply county councils and district councils. The Local Government Act 1985 also abolished metropolitan county councils, but there are still 36 metropolitan district councils as of May 2022. There are also (as of April 2023) 62 unitary authorities. These carry out

396-547: A devolution deal, which are usually reserved to combined authorities for additional functions and funding. And, like some combined authorities and parish councils, local authorities do have a general power of competence . Separate to combined authorities, two or more local authorities can also work together through joint boards (for legally-required services: fire, public transport and waste disposal), joint committees (voluntarily) or through contracting out and agency arrangements. The Greater London Authority Act 1999 established

462-490: A group (initially called the 'Bournemouth Independents Group' following the 2023 election, subsequently renamed the 'Independents Group'), the other two do not belong to a group. As no one party controlled a majority of the council the Liberal Democrats, Christchurch Independents, Poole People Party and the group of three independents formed a coalition administration known as the "Three Towns Alliance." The council

528-515: A local authority. Ten currently exist, with more planned. Parish councils form the lowest tier of local government and govern civil parishes . They may also be called a 'community council', 'neighbourhood council', 'village council', 'town council' or (if the parish holds city status) 'city council', but these names are stylistic and do not change their responsibilities. As of December 2021 there are 10,475 parishes in England, but they do not cover

594-451: A meeting on 22 February 2022, council leader Drew Mellor denied rumours that the council had had reports prepared by consultants KPMG examining the issue, instead saying that workshops had been held with them and the council's auditors, which had given comfort that the approach was legitimate and within accounting rules. It subsequently transpired that two reports on the issue had been prepared by KPMG in 2021, which had raised concerns that if

660-519: A neighbouring parish into which they could be absorbed. Modern unparished areas (also termed "non-civil parish areas"), were created in 1965 in London and in 1974 elsewhere. They generally arose where former urban districts , municipal boroughs or county boroughs were abolished and where no successor parish was established. Parishes were not allowed in Greater London until the passing of

726-633: A parish council must meet certain conditions of quality. Civil parishes developed in the nineteenth century and were based on the Church of England's parishes , which until then had both ecclesiastical and local government functions; parish councils were created by the Local Government Act 1894 ( 56 & 57 Vict. c. 73). The ecclesiastical parishes continue to exist, but neither they nor their parochial church councils have any local government role. There are 317 local authorities covering

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792-561: A whole has limited revenue-raising powers compared to other G7 countries. In the 20th century, local authorities found that the costs of providing services exceeded the revenues raised from local taxes and so grants from the UK Government (specifically the Treasury ) gradually increased. However, UK Government grants were cut by 40% in real terms between the financial years 2009/10 and 2019/20, although grant income did grow due to

858-481: Is a public interest in disclosing information about local government investments which will generally outweigh any concerns about whether disclosure could affect an investment's performance or be protected by confidentiality requirements. Local authorities cannot borrow money to finance day-to-day spending and so must rely on yearly income or reserves for this type of expenditure, although they can borrow to fund capital expenditure. Local government in England as

924-669: Is based at the Civic Centre on Bourne Avenue in Bournemouth. The older part of the building was completed in 1885 as the Mont Dore Hotel. It was acquired by Bournemouth Borough Council and converted into Bournemouth Town Hall in 1921, with several extensions and annexes being added since then. When BCP Council was created in 2019, it inherited various municipal buildings from its three predecessors, notably including their three headquarters buildings: Bournemouth Town Hall,

990-517: Is clear both practically and democratically that the overly centralised arrangements of government in England are problematic" and that reform was also needed of funding structures. As of May 2024, the various combined authorities, county, district, and sui generis councils formed an administrative hierarchy as shown in the table below. Unitary authorities are legally either district councils which also perform county functions or county councils which also perform district functions; they therefore straddle

1056-462: Is the regional authority for Greater London , with responsibility for transport, policing, fire and rescue, development and strategic planning. Combined authorities are statutory bodies which allow two or more local authorities to voluntarily pool responsibilities and negotiate a devolution deal with the UK Government for the area they cover, giving it powers beyond those typically held by

1122-698: The 2024 United Kingdom general election . She was replaced as leader by Millie Earl, also a Liberal Democrat. Since the first election in 2019 the council has comprised 76 councillors representing 33 wards , with each ward electing two or three councillors. Elections are held every four years. The 33 wards are: Local government in England Civil parishes are the lowest tier of local government, and primarily exist in rural and smaller urban areas. The responsibilities of parish councils are limited and generally consist of providing and maintaining public spaces and facilities. Local authorities cover

1188-563: The COVID-19 pandemic . Local government receives two types of grants: the Revenue Support Grant, which can be spent on any service according to the wishes of the local government body in question, and specific grants, which are usually 'ring fenced' to specifically defined service areas. Council tax was introduced in 1993 to replace the ' poll tax '. It is a domestic property tax, based on eight bands (A to H) depending on

1254-717: The Commissioner of the Metropolitan Police and London Fire Commissioner to account and keeping strategies up to date, including the London Plan . Meanwhile, it is the Assembly's role to regularly hold the Mayor and their key advisers to account and it can also amend the budget or a strategy by a two-thirds majority, though this has not ever happened as of March 2022. Combined authorities can be created at

1320-662: The Local Government and Public Involvement in Health Act 2007 (which allows their formation in the London boroughs ) and it remained entirely unparished from 1965 until Queen's Park was created in 2014. Some cities and towns which are unparished areas in larger districts (i.e. not districts of themselves) have charter trustees to maintain a historic charter , such as city status (an example being in Bath ) or simply

1386-548: The Localism Act 2011 . In every area, one local authority acts as the billing authority (the district council in two-tier areas), which prepares and collects council tax bills. Other parts of local government (like county councils in two-tier areas, police and crime commissioners, fire authorities, parish councils and combined authorities) act as precepting authorities, which notify the relevant billing authority of their decision on council tax and later receive this money from

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1452-606: The independent councillors, led by Liberal Democrat councillor Vikki Slade , until her resignation after being elected as MP for Mid Dorset and North Poole at the 2024 United Kingdom general election in July 2024. She was succeeded by Deputy Leader and fellow Liberal Democrat councillor Millie Earl on 23 July 2024. The council is based at the Civic Centre in Bournemouth . The district of Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole and its council were created on 1 April 2019, covering

1518-503: The mayoralty of a town. Local authorities which are entirely parished are not listed. The ceremonial counties of Cornwall (apart from Wolf Rock ), Herefordshire , Isle of Wight , Northamptonshire , Northumberland , Rutland , Shropshire , and Wiltshire are entirely parished. Less parts from both included in parish of Ingol and Tanterton (created 2012). This is a list of unparished areas as they existed on 1 April 1974, noting changes which have happened since then to create

1584-636: The sui generis City of London Corporation . The other sui generis local authorities are the Council of the Isles of Scilly , Middle Temple and Inner Temple . Outside Greater London and the Isles of Scilly , the Local Government Act 1972 divided England into metropolitan and non-metropolitan counties, which would have one county council and multiple district councils each. That meant that each area would be covered by two tiers of local authorities - both

1650-534: The Bournemouth trustees being the district councillors representing wards in the former borough of Bournemouth, and the Poole trustees likewise being the district councillors representing wards in the former borough of Poole. The trustees preserve each town's civic charters and traditions, including appointing one of their number each year to serve as mayor for each town. Political control of the council since its formation in 2019 has been as follows: The shadow authority

1716-603: The Civic Offices on Bridge Street in Christchurch, completed in 1980, and Poole Civic Centre , on Parkstone Road in Poole, completed in 1932. The council decided to refurbish Bournemouth Town Hall to become its main headquarters, renaming it the Civic Centre, and to sell the other two buildings. The Conservatives had held a majority of the seats on the shadow authority, but the result of the first election left

1782-464: The Conservative administration announced plans to sell the council's 3,600 beach huts to a new council-owned company, which would buy the huts at market value with loans from the council and third party lenders. The plan was said to be able to raise £54   million. The idea was heavily criticised by opposition councillors, who described it as a "reverse equity release scheme" and "immoral". At

1848-424: The Conservative leader of Bournemouth Borough Council, was appointed as the shadow authority's deputy leader. Ray Nottage, a Conservative former leader of Christchurch Borough Council, was appointed to the more ceremonial position of chair of the shadow authority. The new district and council formally came into being on 1 April 2019, at which point the old councils were abolished. The shadow authority continued to run

1914-594: The Conservatives, giving the party a majority on the council for the first time. The Conservatives lost their majority in June 2022 when four of their councillors left the party to form the Poole Local Group with independent councillor Julie Bagwell. In 2021, the council set up an urban regeneration company, BCP FuturePlaces Limited. The company attracted controversy from the outset, with concerns about

1980-573: The Electoral Commission has recommended that all authorities use whole council elections every 4 years. Local authorities have a choice of executive arrangements under the Local Government Act 2000 : mayor and cabinet executive, leader and cabinet executive, a committee system or bespoke arrangements approved by the Secretary of State. As of April 2023, just 15 local authorities have directly-elected mayors . Some functions are just

2046-527: The Labour Party as of 2024 except for Tees Valley . Each combined authority's executive consists of a representative from each of its constituent local authorities, plus (if applicable) the mayor. Functions can be devolved directly to the mayor, to the combined authority as a whole, or have a different decision-making requirement. The budget and functions of each combined authority can be vastly different, but possible functions include responsibility for

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2112-637: The Secretary of State the power to provide for a directly-elected combined authority mayor . And, as of May 2022, nine out of the 10 combined authorities have mayors, including Andy Burnham in Greater Manchester and Andy Street in the West Midlands . In the 2024 local elections , new Combined Authorities were elected; they were the new York and North Yorkshire Combined Authority , North East Mayoral Combined Authority , East Midlands Combined County Authority . They are all controlled by

2178-472: The Unity Alliance was left one seat short of a majority. Whereas a by-election would normally have been held to fill the vacant seat, this was postponed due to the COVID-19 pandemic . Conservative group leader, Drew Mellor, moved a vote of no confidence , which was held on 9 June 2020. The 36 Conservatives and one independent voted for the motion and all 37 Unity Alliance councillors voted against;

2244-405: The agreement of the relevant local authorities, and under the Localism Act 2011 eligible parish councils can be granted a " general power of competence " (GPC) which allows them within certain limits the freedom to do anything an individual can do provided it is not prohibited by other legislation, as opposed to being limited to the powers explicitly granted to them by law. To be eligible for this

2310-604: The billing authority. Between financial years 2009/10 and 2021/22, council tax rates increased by 30% in real terms, in light of reduced grants from the UK Government. Business rates is a tax on business premises. It is based on the rateable value of the premises (set by the Valuation Office Agency ) and a business rate multiplier. It is set and collected by billing authorities. Reforms in 2013 now mean that local authorities keep 50% of business rate revenues raised locally. The UK Government then distributes

2376-425: The combined area of the three former boroughs of Bournemouth , Christchurch and Poole , which were all abolished at the same time. Bournemouth and Poole had both been unitary authorities since 1997, whilst Christchurch was a lower tier district council, with Dorset County Council providing county-level services in that borough. The way the changes were implemented was to create a new non-metropolitan district and

2442-497: The company and bring its regeneration sites and projects back under direct council management. In 2021 the council bid for Bournemouth to be awarded city status as part of the Platinum Jubilee Civic Honours contest. It later transpired that the application document, though for Bournemouth only, also contained photographs of multiple sites in Poole and Christchurch. The application was unsuccessful, with

2508-506: The council applying for alternative sources of funding from government, and a letter from Greg Clark to all councils in August 2022 criticising "dodgy deals" which attempted to exploit loopholes in council spending rules. A petition from local residents to remove Drew Mellor and his deputy, Philip Broadhead, from office was debated at BCP Council on 8 November 2022, having attracted 2,066 valid signatures. The council voted to take no action over

2574-528: The council provided loans or guarantees to enable a company to buy the council's own assets, that may be deemed improper. It also emerged that the reports had not been released in February 2022 at the specific suggestion of Drew Mellor. The government also intervened in the row, with the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities , Greg Clark , having meetings with the council. These led to

2640-646: The council under no overall control . The Conservatives were the largest party, but a coalition of all groups other than the Conservatives and UKIP formed a 'Unity Alliance' administration, with Vikki Slade (leader of the Liberal Democrat group) appointed leader of the council. After two changes of allegiance in October 2019, and the death of Christchurch Independents councillor Colin Bungey in April 2020,

2706-413: The council until the inaugural election in May 2019. As a unitary authority, the council provides both district-level and county-level services. There are five civil parishes in the district, which form an additional tier of local government for their areas. The former borough of Poole and most of the former borough of Bournemouth are unparished . Bournemouth and Poole each have charter trustees ;

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2772-678: The county and district columns. Metropolitan districts and London boroughs are also shown straddling the county and district columns. In much of the country there is also a lower tier of civil parishes . This administrative hierarchy differs from the ceremonial hierarchy . Unparished area In England , an unparished area is an area that is not covered by a civil parish (the lowest level of local government, not to be confused with an ecclesiastical parish ). Most urbanised districts of England are either entirely or partly unparished. Many towns and some cities in otherwise rural districts are also unparished areas and therefore no longer have

2838-632: The entirety of England, and are responsible for services such as education, transport, planning applications, and waste collection and disposal. In two-tier areas a non-metropolitan county council and two or more non-metropolitan district councils share responsibility for these services. In single-tier areas a unitary authority , London borough , or metropolitan borough provides all services. The City of London and Isles of Scilly have unique local authorities. The London boroughs, metropolitan boroughs, and some unitary authorities collaborate through regional authorities. The Greater London Authority (GLA)

2904-576: The financial year 2019/20, local authorities received 22% of their funding from grants, 52% from council tax and 27% from retained business rates. In the financial year 2023/24, 51% of revenue expenditure is expected to come from UK Government grants, 31% from council tax and 15% from retained business rates. Local government can also receive some money from fees and charges for the use of services, returns and interest from investments , commercial income, fixed penalty notices and capital receipts. The Information Commissioner's Office has ruled that there

2970-578: The functions of both county and district councils and have replaced two-tier local government in some areas. The creation of these first became possible under the Local Government Act 1992 , but now takes place under the Local Government and Public Involvement in Health Act 2007 . In the 2023/24 financial year, 33% of budgeted service expenditure across local government as a whole is set to be on education , 19% on adult social care , 13% on police , 11% on children's social care and 24% on all other services. Notably, Cornwall Council has been subject to

3036-701: The largest party, with 28 seats (up from 13). On 23 May 2023, Vikki Slade was elected leader of BCP Council unopposed; she would be leading a coalition administration, 'the Three Towns Alliance', comprising all 28 Liberal Democrat councillors, the 8 Christchurch Independents, the Bournemouth Independents Group (3 councillors), and the Poole People's Party (5 councillors). Vikki Slade stood down as leader in July 2024 after being elected MP for Mid Dorset and North Pool at

3102-523: The people within government are unsure at times where powers and responsibility, and hence accountability, rest, this lack of clarity is magnified for individuals who have little knowledge or experience of the structures. This has the potential to leave individuals less likely to be able to access what they need from government, leaving them often unable to know who is responsible, and as a result are not properly able to hold their democratic representatives to account. The Committee also said that "[t]he evidence

3168-427: The petition. Around the start of 2023, Conservative councillor Mark Anderson, the administration's portfolio holder for environment and place, devised what came to be known as "cleaning for votes", a street-cleaning scheme aimed at benefitting wards the Conservatives hoped to retain or win in the May 2023 local elections. An independent report on the matter concluded that he had breached the council's code of conduct. It

3234-773: The relevant police force and/or fire brigade , bus franchising and spatial strategy. Lower-tier of a two-tier system. Upper-tier of a two-tier system. De facto unitary authorities since abolition of metropolitan county councils . Metropolitan county councils were abolished in 1986 and most of their functions were devolved to the metropolitan boroughs making them unitary authorities in all but name. Some combined and regional authorities may assume responsibility for policing, e.g. South Yorkshire . Some combined and regional authorities may assume responsibility for policing, e.g. Greater Manchester . In England, local authorities have three main sources of funding: UK Government grants, council tax and business rates . In

3300-478: The remaining 50% of business rate revenues according to its own judgement. It was initially planned to increase the proportion of business rates that local authorities retain to 100%, but this was indefinitely delayed in 2021. In 2022, the Public Administration and Constitutional Affairs Committee said that it had "significant concerns about the current governance arrangements for England": If

3366-527: The request of two or more local authorities. Combined authorities do not replace the local authorities in question, but can receive separate functions and funding. As of May 2022, there are 10 combined authorities covering some of England. The Secretary of State was first granted the power to create combined authorities by the Local Democracy, Economic Development and Construction Act 2009 . The Cities and Local Government Devolution Act 2016 gave

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3432-513: The responsibility of the executive of a local authority, but local authorities must also have at least one overview and scrutiny committee to hold the executive to account. The London Government Act 1963 established 32 London borough councils. It also established the Greater London Council , covering the whole of Greater London , but this was later abolished by the Local Government Act 1985 . Greater London also includes

3498-513: The rest of the county. The district was created on 1 April 2019 by the merger of the areas that were previously administered by the unitary authorities of Bournemouth and Poole , and the non-metropolitan district of Christchurch . The council has been under no overall control since 2022. Since the 2023 election it has been run by a coalition of the Liberal Democrats , Christchurch Independents , Poole People Party and some of

3564-443: The single UKIP councillor abstained. The vote was thus tied 37-37, and the chairman of the council, David Flagg, used his casting vote to defeat the motion, dedicating it to the memory of the late Colin Bungey. In the three months after that confidence vote, Liberal Democrat councillor Pete Parish died in July 2020, and independent (and former Poole People) councillor Julie Bagwell left the Unity Alliance. A second vote of no confidence

3630-506: The six-figure salaries paid to its management and its reliance on public money, including an £8 million loan from the council advanced in 2022. The delivery of regeneration projects proved slower than originally anticipated, and concerns were identified in a best value inspection from the government in 2023 which said councillors were too involved in the day-to-day running of the company. The council therefore decided in September 2023 to close

3696-418: The three new cities in England created following that contest being Colchester , Doncaster and Milton Keynes . The Conservative administration of Drew Mellor was criticised in 2022 for its abolition of the council's overview and scrutiny board, one of the main mechanisms by which opposition parties were able hold the administration to account. The decision was criticised both as a matter of principle and for

3762-473: The transition, comprising the 120 councillors from the three borough councils plus the five county councillors who represented Christchurch. The shadow authority met in lecture theatres at Bournemouth University , as no council venue was sufficiently large to host all 125 members. Janet Walton, the Conservative leader of Poole Borough Council, was appointed leader of the shadow authority, and John Beesley,

3828-411: The value of the property on 1 April 1991. Various discounts are set out in law and exist at the discretion of billing authorities. On a yearly basis, local government bodies review and consider whether to increase or decrease the level of council tax to fund their spending plans. The level at which a local authority can increase council tax each year without holding a local referendum is regulated by

3894-472: The way in which the abolition was secured. The debate on abolishing the board was held at a full council meeting on 26 April 2022. Due to a large number of absences on the Conservative side, the opposition won an amendment that would have retained the board. Two Conservative councillors with COVID were then telephoned during an interval and turned up to the debate shortly afterwards, despite having sent apologies hours previously on COVID-related grounds. The meeting

3960-560: The whole of England. There are five main types of local authorities: London borough councils , two-tier county and district councils , metropolitan district councils and unitary authorities . Some local authorities have borough , city or royal borough status, but this is purely stylistic. All local authorities are made up of councillors , who represent geographical wards . There are 7,026 wards as of December 2021. Local authorities run on four year cycles and councillors may be elected all at once, by halves or by thirds; although

4026-430: The whole of the country as many urban parishes were abolished in 1974. The only specific statutory function of parish councils, which they must do, is establishing allotments . However, there are a number of other functions given by powers in the relevant legislation, which they can do, such as providing litter bins and building bus shelters . Their statutory functions are few, but they may provide other services with

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4092-625: Was also reported to Dorset Police , who decided to take no action as the scheme had not actually been implemented. Anderson resigned in March 2023. Whilst the investigation into cleaning for votes was underway, and amid criticism of his administration's proposals for the 2023 budget, Drew Mellor resigned as leader on 13 February 2023 and announced he would not be standing for re-election in the May 2023 local elections . Conservative councillor Philip Broadhead, who had been deputy leader under Mellor since 2020,

4158-404: Was led by Janet Walton, Conservative leader of the outgoing Poole Borough Council. She failed to secure a seat on the new council at the first election in May 2019. The leaders of the council since 2019 have been: Following the 2023 election and subsequent by-elections and changes of allegiance up to June 2024, the composition of the council was: Three of the five independents sit together as

4224-420: Was subsequently appointed leader on 21 February 2023. He only served as leader for three months. The Conservative vote collapsed at the May 2023 local elections, with Broadhead's group reduced from 34 to 12 seats (out of 76). Several cabinet members lost their seats; Broadhead himself retained his seat by just five votes. Other groups increased their vote share substantially, with the Liberal Democrats emerging as

4290-474: Was tabled by Mellor for 15 September 2020, which this time was carried, with 39 votes in support and 33 against, ending Vikki Slade's tenure as leader. Mellor was appointed the new leader of the council at a subsequent meeting on 1 October 2020. The Christchurch Independents group rejected Mellor's overtures to become part of the new administration, so the Conservatives formed a minority administration. In September 2021, four councillors from various groups joined

4356-535: Was then adjourned due to safety concerns. At the reconvened meeting on 10 May there were enough Conservatives present to win a further amendment which abolished the overview and scrutiny board and replaced it with four smaller committees which would meet less frequently. Members of the Conservative group were elected as chairs and vice-chairs of these new committees, contrary to normal practice at local authorities that scrutiny committees are chaired by opposition councillors. In February 2022, as part of its proposed budget,

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