Luton Borough Council

Luton Borough Council (also known as LBC,[5][6] or Luton Council[7][8]) is the local authority of Luton, in the ceremonial county of Bedfordshire, England. Luton is a unitary authority, having the powers of a county and district council combined. It is a member of the East of England Local Government Association.

Luton Borough Council
Luton Council's logo
Luton Borough Council's logo since 2016[1]
Type
Type
Leadership
Yaqub Hanif,
Labour
since 23 May 2023[2]
Hazel Simmons,
Labour
since 22 May 2007
Robin Porter
since 6 May 2019[3]
Structure
Seats48 councillors[4]
Political groups
Administration (30)
  Labour (30)
Other parties (18)
  Liberal Democrats (15)
  Conservative (3)
Length of term
4 years
Elections
Last election
4 May 2023
Next election
2027
Meeting place
Luton Town Hall
Town Hall, George Street, Luton, LU1 2BQ
Website
www.luton.gov.uk

It is made up of 48 councillors representing 20 wards. The council has been under Labour majority control since 2007, with Hazel Simmons being leader of the council since then.[9]

History

Luton's first elected council was a local board of health established in 1850, prior to which the town had been administered by the parish vestry.[10] The town became a municipal borough in 1876 governed by a corporation, also known as a town council.[11] In 1964 the borough was elevated to county borough status, making it independent from Bedfordshire County Council.[12]

On 1 April 1974, under the Local Government Act 1972, the county borough was reconstituted as a non-metropolitan district.[13][14] Between 1974 and 1997 Luton was a lower-tier district council, with Bedfordshire County Council again providing county-level services to the town. On 1 April 1997 Luton became a unitary authority, once more taking over the county-level services.[15]

Governance

Political control

The first elections to the borough council as reformed under the Local Government Act 1972 were held in 1973, initially acting as a shadow authority until the new arrangements took effect on 1 April 1974. Political control of the council since 1974 has been as follows:[16][17]

Non-metropolitan district

Party in controlYears
Labour1974–1976
Conservative1976–1991
Labour1991–1997

Unitary authority

Party in controlYears
Labour1997–2003
No overall control2003–2007
Labour2007–present

Leadership

The role of mayor is largely ceremonial in Luton, with political leadership instead provided by the leader of the council. The leaders since 1999 have been:[18]

CouncillorPartyFromTo
Roy Davis Labour20 May 1999
Bill McKenzie Labour20 May 199922 May 2003
David Franks Liberal Democrats22 May 200322 May 2007
Hazel Simmons Labour22 May 2007

Composition

Following the 2023 election, the composition of the council was:[19]

Party Councillors
Labour30
Liberal Democrats15
Conservative3
Total: 48

The next election is due in 2027.

Premises

The council is based at Luton Town Hall at the head of George Street, the town centre's main street. The current building was completed in 1936, replacing an earlier town hall of 1847 on the same site. The earlier building had been destroyed in a fire in 1919 in the town's "Peace Riot" which followed the formal proclamation of peace at the end of the First World War.[20]

Elections
Main article: Luton Borough Council elections

Elections are held every four years. Since the last boundary changes in 2023 there have been 48 councillors elected from 20 wards.[21]

Wards

NHS

In July 2017 it decided to merge its health commissioning budget with the local Clinical Commissioning Group, establishing an integrated commissioning committee. It is one of the first areas which the NHS has designated an Accountable care system.[22]

Arms
Coat of arms of Luton Borough Council
Notes
Originally granted on 25 July 1876, transferred by order in council on 21 May 1974.
Crest
On a wreath of the colours upon a mount Vert a cubit Arm in bend vested Azure cuff Argent the hand proper holding seven ears of wheat Or.[23]
Escutcheon
Quarterly Gules and Azure on a cross Argent between a garb in the first quarter a bee-hive in the second a rose slipped and leaved in the third and a thistle also slipped and leaved in the fourth all Prroper a bee volant of the last.

See also

References
  1. "A fresh and modern brand for Luton" (PDF). luton.gov.uk. Luton Council.
  2. "Council meeting, 23 May 2023". Luton Borough Council. Retrieved 24 May 2023.
  3. "Meet Luton's chief executive and corporate directors". Luton Borough Council. Retrieved 6 May 2023.
  4. "Open Council Data UK - compositions councillors parties wards elections".
  5. "London Luton Airport - Ownership Profiles". www.london-luton.co.uk. Retrieved 9 August 2020.
  6. "Luton Borough Council - Log in". myaccount.luton.gov.uk. Retrieved 9 August 2020.
  7. "@lutoncouncil". Twitter. Retrieved 9 August 2020.
  8. "Luton Borough Council - Luton Council". www.luton.gov.uk. 22 March 2012. Retrieved 9 August 2020.
  9. "CMIS > Councillors". democracy.luton.gov.uk. Retrieved 22 March 2019.
  10. "No. 21106". The London Gazette. 21 June 1850. p. 1745.
  11. "The incorporation of Luton". Bedfordshire and Hertfordshire News. Luton. 4 March 1876. p. 8. Retrieved 6 May 2023.
  12. "Luton Municipal Borough / County Borough". A Vision of Britain through Time. GB Historical GIS / University of Portsmouth. Retrieved 6 May 2023.
  13. "The English Non-metropolitan Districts (Definition) Order 1972". Legislation.gov.uk. Retrieved 22 April 2022.
  14. "The English Non-metropolitan Districts (Names) Order 1973". Legislation.gov.uk. Retrieved 22 April 2022.
  15. "The Bedfordshire (Borough of Luton) (Structural Change) Order 1995". Legislation.gov.uk. Retrieved 22 April 2022.
  16. "Compositions calculator". The Elections Centre. 4 March 2016. Retrieved 22 September 2022.
  17. "Luton". BBC News Online. 10 May 2011. Retrieved 9 April 2013.
  18. "Council minutes". Luton Borough Council. Retrieved 26 May 2022.
  19. "Luton election result". BBC News. Retrieved 11 May 2023.
  20. Historic England. "Luton Town Hall (1376193)". National Heritage List for England. Retrieved 10 April 2020.
  21. "The Luton (Electoral Changes) Order 2022", legislation.gov.uk, The National Archives, SI 2022/824, retrieved 6 May 2023
  22. "CCG and council to merge commissioning budgets". Health Service Journal. 13 July 2017. Retrieved 14 July 2017.
  23. "East of England Region". Civic Heraldry of England. Retrieved 9 March 2021.
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