West Suffolk District

West Suffolk
Countryside at Elveden
Countryside at Elveden
Coat of arms of West Suffolk
West Suffolk district within Suffolk
West Suffolk district within Suffolk
Sovereign stateUnited Kingdom
Constituent countryEngland
RegionEast of England
Non-metropolitan countySuffolk
StatusNon-metropolitan district
Admin HQBury St Edmunds
Incorporated1 April 2019
Government
 • TypeNon-metropolitan district council
 • BodyWest Suffolk Council
Area
 • Total400 sq mi (1,035 km2)
 • Rank24th of 296
Population
 (2022)
 • Total182,228
 • Rank114th of 296
 • Density460/sq mi (180/km2)
  • Rank253rd of 296
Ethnicity (2021)
 • Ethnic groups
List
Religion (2021)
 • Religion
List
Time zoneUTC0 (GMT)
 • Summer (DST)UTC+1 (BST)

West Suffolk District is a local government district in Suffolk, England. It was established in 2019 as a merger of the previous Forest Heath District with the Borough of St Edmundsbury. The council is based in Bury St Edmunds, the district's largest town. The district also contains the towns of Brandon, Clare, Haverhill, Mildenhall and Newmarket, along with numerous villages and surrounding rural areas. In 2021 it had a population of 180,820.

The neighbouring districts are Mid Suffolk, Babergh, Braintree, South Cambridgeshire, East Cambridgeshire, King's Lynn and West Norfolk and Breckland.

History

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Prior to West Suffolk's creation, its predecessors Forest Heath District Council and St Edmundsbury Borough Council had been working together for a number of years, having shared a joint chief executive since 2011. The two districts were formally merged into a new district of West Suffolk with effect from 1 April 2019.[2][3]

The new district has the same name as the former administrative county of West Suffolk, which was abolished in 1974 under the Local Government Act 1972, but the new district covers a slightly smaller area than the pre-1974 county, which had also included areas now in the Babergh and Mid Suffolk districts.[4]

Governance

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West Suffolk Council
Type
Type
History
Founded1 April 2019 (2019-04-01)
Preceded bySt Edmundsbury
Forest Heath
Leadership
Pat Hanlon,
Labour
since 14 May 2024[5]
Cliff Waterman,
Labour
since 23 May 2023
Ian Gallin
since 1 April 2019
Structure
Seats64 councillors
Political groups
Administration (38)
  Labour (16)
  Independent (11)
  West Suffolk Ind. (9)
  Green (1)
  Liberal Democrats (1)
Opposition (26)
  Conservative (26)
Elections
Plurality block voting
Last election
4 May 2023
Next election
6 May 2027
Meeting place
West Suffolk House, Western Way, Bury St Edmunds, IP33 3YU
Website
www.westsuffolk.gov.uk

West Suffolk Council provides district-level services.[6] County-level services are provided by Suffolk County Council. The whole district is also covered by civil parishes, which form a third tier of local government.[7]

Political control

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The council has been under no overall control since the 2023 election. A coalition of Labour, the West Suffolk Independents, Liberal Democrats, Greens and independent councillors formed after the election, led by Labour councillor Cliff Waterman.[8]

A shadow authority comprising the councillors of both outgoing councils was established to oversee the transition to the new authority. The first elections to the new council were held on 2 May 2019, a few weeks after the new district had been created. Political control of the council since 2019 has been as follows:

Party in control Years
Conservative 2019–2023
No overall control 2023–present

Leadership

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During the shadow period leading up to the council's creation in 2019, the shadow authority was led by James Waters, leader of the outgoing Forest Heath District Council. He was unsuccessful in securing a seat on the new council at its first elections in May 2019. The first leader of the council appointed after the 2019 election was John Griffiths, who was the last leader of St Edmundsbury Borough Council. The leaders since 2019 have been:[9]

Councillor Party From To
John Griffiths Conservative 22 May 2019 23 May 2023
Cliff Waterman Labour 23 May 2023

Composition

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Following the 2023 election and subsequent changes of allegiance up to July 2024, the composition of the council was:[10]

Party Councillors
Conservative 26
Labour 16
Independent 11
West Suffolk Independents 9
Green 1
Liberal Democrats 1
Total 64

The Labour, Liberal Democrat, Green Party and one of the independent councillors sit together as the "Progressive Alliance" group, and the West Suffolk Independents and the other ten independent councillors sit together as the "Independents Group". These two groups together form the council's administration.[11] The next election is due in 2027.[12]

Premises

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The council is based at West Suffolk House on Western Road in Bury St Edmunds. The building had been completed in 2009 for the former St Edmundsbury Borough Council, also incorporating offices for Suffolk County Council.[13]

Elections

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The council comprises 64 councillors representing 43 wards, with each ward electing one, two or three councillors. Elections are held every four years.[14][15]

Towns and parishes

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St Edmundsbury Cathedral in Bury St Edmunds, the district's largest town.
Market Square in Haverhill, the district's second largest town.
Newmarket is the district's third largest town and is known as a major centre of horse racing.

The whole district is covered by civil parishes. The parish councils of Brandon, Bury St Edmunds, Clare, Haverhill, Mildenhall and Newmarket all take the style "town council".

See also

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References

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  1. ^ a b UK Census (2021). "2021 Census Area Profile – West Suffolk Local Authority (E07000245)". Nomis. Office for National Statistics. Retrieved 5 January 2024.
  2. ^ Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government (24 May 2018). "The West Suffolk (Local Government Changes) Order 2018". legislation.gov.uk. Retrieved 12 August 2018.
  3. ^ "West Suffolk: Councils to merge workforces in move to save cash". East Anglian Daily Times. 27 October 2011. Retrieved 12 August 2018.
  4. ^ "The English Non-metropolitan Districts (Definition) Order 1972", legislation.gov.uk, The National Archives, SI 1972/2039, retrieved 4 July 2023
  5. ^ "Council meeting, 14 May 2024". West Suffolk Council. Retrieved 16 May 2024.
  6. ^ "How your council works". www.westsuffolk.gov.uk. Retrieved 3 March 2022.
  7. ^ "Local Government Act 1972", legislation.gov.uk, The National Archives, 1972 c. 70, retrieved 31 May 2023
  8. ^ Green, Tamika (25 May 2023). "Bury St Edmunds councillor Cliff Waterman on 'exciting' new era for West Suffolk Council after being elected coalition leader". Suffolk News. Retrieved 4 July 2023.
  9. ^ "Council minutes". West Suffolk Council. Retrieved 21 June 2022.
  10. ^ "Local elections 2023: live council results for England". The Guardian.
  11. ^ "Your councillors". West Suffolk Council. Retrieved 4 July 2023.
  12. ^ "West Suffolk". Local Councils. Thorncliffe. Retrieved 21 July 2024.
  13. ^ Bunn, Roderic. "West Suffolk House" (PDF). Usable Buildings. Retrieved 4 July 2023.
  14. ^ "The West Suffolk (Electoral Changes) Order 2018", legislation.gov.uk, The National Archives, SI 2018/1375, retrieved 4 July 2023
  15. ^ "Your Councillors". democracy.westsuffolk.gov.uk. West Suffolk District Council. Retrieved 3 March 2022.
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