Stockton-on-Tees Borough Council

History

The town of Stockton-on-Tees was an ancient borough. The borough's date of creation is unknown, but Stockton was being described as a borough by 1283. The original borough had a very tightly drawn boundary; by 1835 it was said that the borough only covered a quarter of the urban area. The borough was reformed to become a municipal borough in 1836 under the Municipal Corporations Act 1835, which standardised how many boroughs operated across the country. The borough was then administered by a body formally called the "mayor, aldermen and burgesses of the borough of Stockton", generally known as the corporation, town council or borough council. The boundaries were extended on several occasions, notably in 1852, 1889 and 1913 (in which year it gained Norton and Hartburn).

That council was abolished in 1968 and replaced by the short-lived County Borough of Teesside from 1968 to 1974. Under the Local Government Act 1972 a new non-metropolitan district called Stockton-on-Tees was established, with a larger territory than the pre-1968 borough. County-level services were provided by Cleveland County Council until its abolition in 1996, when Stockton-on-Tees became a unitary authority. The way this change was implemented was to create a new non-metropolitan county of Stockton-on-Tees covering the same area as the existing borough, but with no separate county council; instead the existing borough council took on county functions, making it a unitary authority. At the same time, the borough was declared to straddle County Durham (north of the River Tees) and North Yorkshire (south of the river) for ceremonial purposes.

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Governance

The local authority derives its powers and functions from the Local Government Act 1972 and subsequent legislation. For the purposes of local government, Stockton-on-Tees is within a non-metropolitan area of England. As a unitary authority, Stockton-on-Tees Borough Council has the powers and functions of both a non-metropolitan county and district council combined. In its capacity as a district council it is a billing authority collecting Council Tax and business rates, it processes local planning applications, it is responsible for housing, waste collection and environmental health. In its capacity as a county council it is a local education authority, responsible for social services, libraries and waste disposal.

Since 2016 the council has been a member of the Tees Valley Combined Authority.

Political control

The council has been under no overall control since 2019. Following the 2023 election the Conservatives were the largest party, but a minority Labour administration was able to retain control with the informal support of the two smaller parties, the Thornaby Independent Association and the Ingleby Barwick Independent Society.

Political control of the council since its re-establishment in 1974 has been as follows:

Non-metropolitan district

Unitary authority

Leadership

The role of mayor is largely ceremonial in Stockton-on-Tees, with political leadership instead provided by the leader of the council. The leaders since 1990 have been:

Composition

Following the 2023 election the composition of the council was:

The next election is due in 2027.

Elections

Since the last boundary changes in 2023 the council has comprised 56 councillors representing 27 wards, with each ward election one, two or three councillors. Elections are held every four years.

Premises

The council has its main offices at the Municipal Buildings on Church Road in Stockton, which was purpose-built for the old borough council and opened in 1961. Until 2020 full council meetings were generally held at Stockton Town Hall in the High Street, which was built in 1735. Following the resumption of in-person meetings in 2021 following the COVID-19 pandemic, meetings have been held instead in the Baptist Church or the conference suite at the town's library, both of which adjoin the Municipal Buildings.

In 2021 the council purchased an office building called Dunedin House on Columbia Drive on the south bank of the River Tees in Thornaby, which had been completed in 1992. Conversion works to turn it into a new headquarters for the council are underway with a view to it opening during 2024.