List of county councils in England

Two-tier non-metropolitan county councils in England (red).

There are currently 29 county councils in England, all of which serve areas known as non-metropolitan counties. Of these, 21 are upper-tier authorities in a two-tier arrangement; their areas are divided into a number of non-metropolitan districts, which each have a district council.[1] The other eight county councils are unitary authorities, having taken over district functions on the abolition of districts in those counties. (All other unitary authorities are legally district councils which also perform the functions of a county council.) The unitary county councils have been given the option to omit the word 'county' from their name, which option has been taken up by some but not others; whether they took that option or not, they remain legally county councils.[2]

The first county councils were created in 1889 under the Local Government Act 1888. There was a significant reform of the number, powers and jurisdictions of county councils in 1974. County councils were also established for the metropolitan counties created in 1974, but the metropolitan county councils were all abolished in 1986. From 1995 onwards numerous unitary authorities have been created.

Current

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Local authority Established District councils Administration Website Headquarters
Cambridgeshire County Council 1974Cambs 5 Coalition: Official website New Shire Hall, Alconbury Weald
Cornwall Council 1889 Unitary since 2009 Conservative (minority) Official website Lys Kernow, Truro
Derbyshire County Council 1889 8 Conservative Official website County Hall, Matlock
Devon County Council 1889 8 Conservative Official website County Hall, Exeter
Durham County Council 1889 Unitary since 2009 Coalition: Official website County Hall, Durham
East Sussex County Council 1889 5 Conservative Official website County Hall, Lewes
Essex County Council 1889 12 Conservative Official website County Hall, Chelmsford
Gloucestershire County Council 1889 6 Conservative Official website Shire Hall, Gloucester
Hampshire County Council 1889 11 Conservative Official website Castle Hill, Winchester
Hertfordshire County Council 1889 10 Conservative Official website County Hall, Hertford
Isle of Wight Council 1890 Unitary since 1995 Coalition: Official website County Hall, Newport
Kent County Council 1889 12 Conservative Official website County Hall, Maidstone
Lancashire County Council 1889 12 Conservative Official website County Hall, Preston
Leicestershire County Council 1889 7 Conservative Official website County Hall, Glenfield
Lincolnshire County Council 1974 7 Conservative Official website County Offices, Lincoln
Norfolk County Council 1889 7 Conservative Official website County Hall, Norwich
North Yorkshire Council 1974 Unitary since 2023 Coalition: Official website County Hall, Northallerton
Northumberland County Council 1889 Unitary since 2009 Conservative Official website County Hall, Morpeth
Nottinghamshire County Council 1889 7 Conservative Official website County Hall, West Bridgford
Oxfordshire County Council 1889 5 Coalition: Official website County Hall, Oxford
Shropshire Council 1889 Unitary since 2009 Conservative Official website Shirehall, Shrewsbury
Somerset Council 1889 Unitary since 2023 Liberal Democrats Official website County Hall, Taunton
Staffordshire County Council 1889 8 Conservative Official website County Buildings, Stafford
Suffolk County Council 1974 5 Conservative Official website Endeavour House, Ipswich
Surrey County Council 1889 11 Conservative Official website Woodhatch Place, Reigate
Warwickshire County Council 1889 5 Conservative Official website Shire Hall, Warwick
West Sussex County Council 1889 7 Conservative Official website County Hall, Chichester
Wiltshire Council 1889 Unitary since 2009 Conservative Official website County Hall, Trowbridge
Worcestershire County Council 1998Worcs 6 Conservative Official website County Hall, Worcester

The unitary authority which calls itself Rutland County Council is legally a district council which also performs county functions rather than a county council, despite its corporate branding.[3] The unitary authorities of Bristol City Council,[4] Buckinghamshire Council,[5] Dorset Council,[6] East Riding of Yorkshire Council,[7] and Herefordshire Council share their geographic name with a ceremonial county but are likewise legally district councils that also perform county functions.[8][9]

Former

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Local authority Established Abolished
Avon County Council 1974 1996
Bedfordshire County Council 1889 2009
Berkshire County Council 1889 1998
Buckinghamshire County Council 1889 2020
Cambridgeshire County Council 1889 1965Cambs
Cambridgeshire and Isle of Ely County Council 1965 1974
Cheshire County Council 1889 2009
Cleveland County Council 1974 1996
Cumberland County Council 1889 1974
Cumbria County Council 1974 2023
Dorset County Council 1889 2019
East Riding County Council 1889 1974
East Suffolk County Council 1889 1974
Greater Manchester County Council 1974 1986
Hereford and Worcester County Council 1974 1998
Herefordshire County Council 1889 1974
Holland County Council 1889 1974
Humberside County Council 1974 1996
Huntingdon and Peterborough County Council 1965 1974
Huntingdonshire County Council 1889 1965
Isle of Ely County Council 1889 1965
Kesteven County Council 1889 1974
Lindsey County Council 1889 1974
London County Council 1889 1965
Merseyside County Council 1974 1986
Middlesex County Council 1889 1965
Monmouthshire County Council 1889 1974Mon
North Riding County Council 1889 1974
Northamptonshire County Council 1889 2021
Rutland County Council 1889 1974
Soke of Peterborough County Council 1889 1965
South Yorkshire County Council 1974 1986
Tyne and Wear County Council 1974 1986
West Midlands County Council 1974 1986
Westmorland County Council 1889 1974
West Riding County Council 1889 1974
West Suffolk County Council 1889 1974
West Yorkshire County Council 1974 1986
Worcestershire County Council 1889 1974Worcs

Footnotes

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  • ^Cambs : 1st creation 1889—1965; 2nd creation 1974—present
  • ^Worcs : 1st creation 1889—1974; 2nd creation 1998—present
  • ^Mon : Monmouthshire considered part of Wales from 1974.

See also

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References

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  1. ^ Municipal Yearbook. 2009.
  2. ^ "Local Government Act 1972: Section 2", legislation.gov.uk, The National Archives, 1972 c. 70 (s. 2) sub-section (3) specifies that the authority's name should include "county council", but amendments in subsequent statutory instruments mean this section no longer applies to the county councils for Cornwall, Durham, Isle of Wight, North Yorkshire, Northumberland, Shropshire, Somerset, and Wiltshire.
  3. ^ "The Leicestershire (City of Leicester and District of Rutland) (Structural Change) Order 1996", legislation.gov.uk, The National Archives, SI 1996/507, retrieved 12 May 2024
  4. ^ "The Avon (Structural Change) Order 1995", legislation.gov.uk, The National Archives, SI 1995/493, retrieved 12 May 2024
  5. ^ "The Buckinghamshire (Structural Changes) Order 2019", legislation.gov.uk, The National Archives, SI 2019/957, retrieved 12 May 2024
  6. ^ "The Bournemouth, Dorset and Poole (Structural Changes) Order 2018", legislation.gov.uk, The National Archives, SI 2018/648, retrieved 12 May 2024
  7. ^ "The Humberside (Structural Change) Order 1995", legislation.gov.uk, The National Archives, SI 1995/600, retrieved 12 May 2024
  8. ^ "The Hereford and Worcester (Structural, Boundary and Electoral Changes) Order 1996", legislation.gov.uk, The National Archives, SI 1996/1867, retrieved 12 May 2024
  9. ^ "Lieutenancies Act 1997", legislation.gov.uk, The National Archives, 1997 c. 23, retrieved 12 May 2024

Further reading

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