18-751: Hart is a local government district in Hampshire , England, named after the River Hart . Its council is based in Fleet . The district also contains the towns of Blackwater and Yateley , along with numerous villages and surrounding rural areas. In the English indices of deprivation for 2019, Hart was ranked as the least deprived district in England; a position it had also held in the 2015 index. For five years running (2011–2015), an annual study conducted by
36-576: A two-tier arrangement. Non-metropolitan districts with borough status are known as boroughs , able to appoint a mayor and refer to itself as a borough council. Some shire counties now have no sub divisions so are a single Non-metropolitan district such as Cornwall. Typically a district will consist of a market town and its more rural hinterland. However districts are diverse with some being mostly urban such as Dartford, and others more polycentric such as Thurrock. Non-metropolitan districts are subdivisions of English non-metropolitan counties which have
54-461: A two-tier structure of local government. Two-tier non-metropolitan counties have a county council and several districts, each with a borough or district council. In these cases local government functions are divided between county and district councils, to the level where they can be practised most efficiently: Many districts have borough status , which means the local council is called a borough council instead of district council and gives them
72-439: Is a post town it retains a parish council rather than a town council. 51°16′46″N 0°50′46″W / 51.2794°N 0.8461°W / 51.2794; -0.8461 Non-metropolitan district Non-metropolitan districts , or colloquially " shire districts ", are a type of local government district in England. As created, they are sub-divisions of non-metropolitan counties (colloquially shire counties ) in
90-488: Is also covered by civil parishes , which form a third tier of local government. The council has been under no overall control since 2012. Since 2017 the council has been run by a coalition of the Liberal Democrats and local party Community Campaign (Hart) , led by Liberal Democrat councillor David Neighbour. The first election to the council was held in 1973, initially acting as a shadow authority alongside
108-604: The District Councils' Network , special interest group which sits within the Local Government Association . The network's purpose is to "act as an informed and representative advocate for districts to government and other national bodies, based on their unique position to deliver for local people." This is a list of two-tier non-metropolitan counties and their districts. All unitary authorities are also non-metropolitan districts, which, with
126-604: The Halifax bank named Hart as the UK's most desirable place to live for quality of life. The study took into account jobs, housing, health, crime, weather, traffic and broadband access. It found that in 2014 97% of people in the local authority area were in good health, and in 2011 tended to have incomes 40% above the national average. The district was created on 1 April 1974 under the Local Government Act 1972 , covering
144-415: The area of two former districts, which were both abolished at the same time: The new district was initially going to be named Hartley Wintney , after the rural district which covered most of the area, which in turn was named after the village of the same name. The shadow authority elected to oversee the transition to the new system requested a change of name to Hart, after the River Hart which runs through
162-547: The area. The change of name was approved by the government on 17 January 1974, before the new district formally came into being. The River Hart is said to derive its name from the number of deer in the area, with a hart being an old term for an adult male deer, synonymous with "stag". The area historically had several deer parks . Hart District Council uses a profile of a stag as its logo. Hart District Council provides district-level services. County-level services are provided by Hampshire County Council . The whole district
180-454: The areas for Wales and England had been enacted separately and there were no Welsh metropolitan areas, the term 'non-metropolitan district' does not apply to Wales. A similar system existed in Scotland , which in 1975 was divided into regions and districts, this was also abolished in 1996 and replaced with a fully unitary system . In England most of the district councils are represented by
198-433: The council as a joint administration. The next election is due in 2026. Since the last boundary changes in 2014 the council has comprised 33 councillors representing 11 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) elected at a time for a four year term of office. Hampshire County Council elections are held in
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#1732779902532216-487: The exception of those of Berkshire , are coterminous with non-metropolitan counties. For a full list of districts of all types including unitary authorities, metropolitan districts and London boroughs , see Districts of England . This is a list of former two-tier districts in England which have been abolished, by local government reorganisations such as the 2009 structural changes to local government in England . It does not include districts that still exist after becoming
234-561: The fourth year of the cycle when there are no district council elections. The council is based at the Civic Offices on Harlington Way in Fleet. The building was purpose-built for the council in 1986. In mid-2003 Hart had an estimated 85,700 residents. This compares with the 2001 Census figure of 83,505 residents. The 2001 Census also reported that there were 32,470 households, with 77% of residents describing their health as 'good'. In
252-468: The outgoing authorities until the new arrangements took effect on 1 April 1974. Political control since 1974 has been as follows: The leaders of the council since 2008 have been: Following the 2024 election , the composition of the council is: No party has majority control of the council; currently the Liberal Democrats and Community Campaign (Hart), a local residents' association , run
270-565: The right to appoint a mayor . Borough status is granted by royal charter and, in many cases, continues a style enjoyed by a predecessor authority, which can date back centuries. Some districts such as Oxford or Exeter have city status , granted by letters patent , but this does not give the local council any extra powers other than the right to call itself a city council . By 1899, England had been divided at district level into rural districts , urban districts , municipal boroughs , county boroughs and metropolitan boroughs . This system
288-458: The twenty years between 1982 and 2002 the population of Hart grew by 19 per cent, compared with an increase of 11 per cent for the South East region as a whole. The whole district is divided into civil parishes , listed below. The parish councils for Blackwater and Hawley, Fleet, and Yateley have declared their parishes to be towns, allowing them to take the style "town council". Whilst Hook
306-526: The two-tier structure, but reforms in the 1990s and 2009 reduced their number to 192. A further 55 non-metropolitan districts are now unitary authorities, which combine the functions of county and borough/district councils. In Wales , an almost identical two-tier system of local government existed between 1974 and 1996 (see Districts of Wales ). In 1996, this was abolished and replaced with an entirely unitary system of local government, with one level of local government responsible for all local services. Since
324-620: Was abolished by the London Government Act 1963 and the Local Government Act 1972 . Non-metropolitan districts were created by this act in 1974 when England outside Greater London was divided into metropolitan counties and non-metropolitan counties. Metropolitan counties were sub-divided into metropolitan districts and the non-metropolitan counties were sub-divided into non-metropolitan districts. The metropolitan districts had more powers than their non-metropolitan counterparts. Initially, there were 296 non-metropolitan districts in
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