Local government in England broadly consists of three layers: civil parishes, local authorities, and regional authorities. Every part of England is governed by at least one local authority, but parish councils and regional authorities do not exist everywhere. In addition, there are 31 police and crime commissioners , four police, fire and crime commissioners , and ten national park authorities with local government responsibilities. Local government is not standardised across the country, with the last comprehensive reform taking place in 1974 .
56-757: Rochdale Borough Council is the local authority of the Metropolitan Borough of Rochdale in Greater Manchester , England. It is a metropolitan borough council and provides the majority of local government services in the borough. The council has been a member of the Greater Manchester Combined Authority since 2011. The council has been under Labour majority control since 2011. It is based at Number One Riverside . The town of Rochdale had been governed by improvement commissioners from 1825. In 1856
112-505: 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
168-565: A councilor is a member of a local council that is the legislative body of the local government unit. They are commonly referred to as "Sanggunian Member" because the official designation of municipal, city and provincial councils is the equivalent term in Filipino (used even when speaking or writing in English): Sanggunian Bayan, Sanggunian Panglunsod and Sanggunian Panlalawigan, respectively. All local authorities in
224-492: A council where insufficient candidates have stood for election, although in practice this is rare outside parish councils. They are bound by a code of conduct enforced by standards boards. In 2007 the Electoral Administration Act 2006 reduced the age limit for councillors to 18, leading to younger people standing. Youth councillors are also elected in local areas by organisations that are members of
280-483: 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
336-547: 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
392-515: 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
448-633: 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
504-493: A regional devolved assembly and its members are referred to as Assembly Members, not councillors. Council member , councilman/councilwoman , councilor , or councillor is a title for a member of a council used in the United States . In particular, the title is used in the following cases: In Australia , The Bahamas , Canada , New Zealand , South Africa , Botswana , Trinidad and Tobago and other parts of
560-440: A third of the council (one councillor for each ward) elected each time for a four-year term of office. Each ward of the council's 20 wards is represented by three councillors. The council is based at Number One Riverside on Smith Street in the centre of Rochdale. It was purpose-built for the council and opened in 2013. Prior to 2013 the council met and had some offices at Rochdale Town Hall , which had been completed in 1871 for
616-561: 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
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#1732793474367672-665: Is burgemeester . This is expressed in English as "mayor" or " burgomaster ". The municipal executive is referred to collectively as the College van Burgemeester en Wethouders . In Belgium , a member of the municipal council is called a gemeenteraadslid in Dutch, and Conseiller Communal in French. Someone out of this group who is elected to serve on the municipal executive is called a schepen in Dutch or échevin in French. This
728-481: 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
784-664: Is called a kommunestyrerepresentant in Norwegian. The Norwegian word for mayor is ordfører . In Hong Kong , members of district councils are also referred to as councillors. Before 1999 the district councils were known as district boards, upon the abolition of the municipal councils (the UrbCo and the RegCo ) in December that year. In addition, members of the legislative council are also referred to as councillors. From 1996 to 1998
840-517: 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
896-452: Is instead provided by the leader of the council . The leaders since 2006 have been: Following the 2024 election , the composition of the council was: The next election is due in May 2026. Since the last boundary changes in 2022, the council has comprised 60 councillors representing 20 wards , with each ward electing three councillors. Elections are held three years out of every four, with
952-420: Is someone who sits on, votes in, or is a member of, a council . This is typically an elected representative of an electoral district in a municipal or regional government , or other local authority . The title of a councillor varies geographically, with a name generally being preceded by their title (or the shortened version Cllr when written) in formal or council-related situations in many places. Due to
1008-462: 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
1064-508: Is usually translated as "alderman" or "councillor" in English. The municipal executive is referred to collectively as the College van Burgemeester en Schepenen ou Collège du Bourgmestre et Echevins . In Bangladesh , a member of the city council is called a Councillor . The Councillor of Bangladesh is a city corporation's ward representatives who are elected City Corporations election by popular vote in every five years. Councilors carry out
1120-563: 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
1176-717: 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
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#17327934743671232-546: The Commonwealth , as well as Ireland , a councillor or councilor is an elected representative on a local government council. In the Netherlands , a member of the municipal council is called a gemeenteraadslid or raadslid . Someone out of this group who is elected to serve on the municipal executive is called a wethouder , which is usually translated as 'alderman' or 'councillor'. The Dutch word for mayor
1288-627: The Legislative Council were known as "Provisional Legislative Council", upon the abolition of the interim legislature in July 1998. Two types of councillor are elected in local elections held every five years in Turkey . These include 1,251 provincial councillors and 20,500 municipal councillors. Municipal councillors serve on the council of the 1,351 district and 30 metropolitan municipalities of Turkey, while provincial councillors serve on
1344-460: The Local Government Act 2000 , be paid for their services. In Scotland, since 2007, councillors have received a salary of £15,000, as opposed to a series of allowances. This rises annually and as of 1 April 2023 councillor pay in Scotland stands at £20,099 per annum. These are often topped up by special responsibility allowances. The London Assembly is regarded not as a local authority but as
1400-548: 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
1456-636: 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
1512-682: The British Youth Council, such as Salford Youth Council. Most councillors are not full-time professionals. In England, Wales and Northern Ireland most larger borough, unitary authority or county councils do pay them basic allowances and out-of-pocket expenses . In addition, special responsibility allowances are paid to councillors who carry out more senior duties. The basic allowances and special responsibility allowances are theoretically paid to compensate councillors for time spent on council duties and are classed as salaries for tax purposes. Parish, town or community councillors may, since
1568-573: 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
1624-527: 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
1680-881: The Russian Rule. Some examples of different councillors in Finland are as follows: As per the Seventy-fourth Amendment of the Constitution of India , municipal governance in India is looked after by elected councillors who are members of either a municipal corporation (for cities) or a municipality (for towns). Under the Philippine Republic Act No. 7160 (otherwise known as the Local Government Code of 1991),
1736-569: 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
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1792-520: The United Kingdom are overseen by elected councillors. These include: According to Debrett's Correct Form the English title "Councillor" (often shortened to 'Cllr') applies only to elected members of city, borough or district councils. However, there is no legal basis for this restriction and in practice the title is applied to all councillors at all levels of local government. Where necessary, parish and county councillors are differentiated by
1848-405: 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
1904-585: The area are provided by the Greater Manchester Combined Authority; the leader of Rochdale Council sits on the combined authority as Rochdale's representative. There are no civil parishes in the borough. Rochdale has been under Labour majority control since 2011. Political control of the council since the 1974 reforms took effect has been as follows: The role of mayor is largely ceremonial in Rochdale. Political leadership
1960-423: The area's six outgoing authorities, being the borough councils of Rochdale , Heywood and Middleton and the urban district councils of Littleborough , Milnrow and Wardle . The new metropolitan district and its council formally came into being on 1 April 1974, at which point the old districts and their councils were abolished. The metropolitan district was awarded borough status from its creation, allowing
2016-604: 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
2072-487: The chair of the council to take the title of mayor, continuing Rochdale's series of mayors dating back to 1856. The council styles itself Rochdale Borough Council rather than its full formal name of Rochdale Metropolitan Borough Council. From 1974 until 1986 the council was a lower-tier authority, with upper-tier functions provided by the Greater Manchester County Council . The county council
2128-537: The control that the provinces have over their municipal governments, terms that councillors serve vary from province to province. Unlike most provincial elections, municipal elections are usually held on a fixed date of 4 years. This is about honorary rank, not elected officials. In Finland councillor ( neuvos ) is the highest possible title of honour which can be granted by the President of Finland . There are several ranks of councillors and they have existed since
2184-400: 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 . Councillor A councillor , alternatively councilman , councilwoman , councilperson , or council member ,
2240-537: The developmental works of their elected wards and perform the functions of local government act and assist the City Mayor in all works under the City Corporation and carry out his orders. In Luxembourg , an échevin ( Luxembourgish : Schäffe , German : Schöffe ) is a member of the administration of a Luxembourgian commune . In Norway , a member of the municipal council, kommunestyret ,
2296-632: 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)
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2352-576: 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
2408-703: 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
2464-426: The new Lancashire County Council , whilst remaining part of the geographical county of Lancashire. The larger Metropolitan Borough of Rochdale and its council were created in 1974 under the Local Government Act 1972 as one of ten metropolitan districts within the new metropolitan county of Greater Manchester. The first election was held in 1973. For its first year the council acted as a shadow authority alongside
2520-592: The old borough council, with additional offices spread across numerous other buildings. The Town Hall is still used for certain ceremonial functions, including the annual council meeting when new mayors are appointed. 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
2576-523: 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
2632-773: 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
2688-478: 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
2744-527: 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
2800-513: 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
2856-407: The town was incorporated as a municipal borough , governed by a body formally called the 'mayor, aldermen and burgesses of the borough of Rochdale', generally known as the corporation, town council or borough council. When elected county councils were established in 1889, Rochdale was considered large enough to provide its own county-level services, and so it became a county borough , independent from
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#17327934743672912-578: The use of a fuller title such as "town councillor" or "county councillor". The title precedes the holder's rank or other title, as in Cllr Dr Jenny Smith or Cllr Sir Ricky Taing, and for women it precedes their title of marital status, as in Cllr Mrs Joan Smith. Councillors are typically elected as members of political parties or alternatively as independents. Councils may also co-opt unelected councillors to fill vacancies on
2968-411: 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
3024-560: 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
3080-430: 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
3136-692: Was abolished in 1986 and its functions passed to Greater Manchester's ten borough councils, including Rochdale, with some services provided through joint committees. Since 2011 the council has been a member of the Greater Manchester Combined Authority , which has been led by the directly elected Mayor of Greater Manchester since 2017. The combined authority provides strategic leadership and co-ordination for certain functions across Greater Manchester, notably regarding transport and town planning, but Rochdale Council continues to be responsible for most local government functions. Rochdale Borough Council provides metropolitan borough services. Some strategic functions in
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