Telford and Wrekin

Telford and Wrekin is a borough and unitary authority in Shropshire, England. In 1974, a non-metropolitan district of Shropshire was created called The Wrekin, named after a prominent hill to the west of Telford. In 1998, the district became a unitary authority and was renamed "Telford and Wrekin", which remains part of the Shropshire ceremonial county and shares institutions such as the Fire and Rescue Service and Community Health with the rest the county.

Telford and Wrekin
Unitary authority area and borough
Shown within Shropshire
Shown within Shropshire
Coordinates: 52°40′52″N 2°26′19″W
CountryUnited Kingdom
RegionWest Midlands
CountyShropshire
Admin HQTelford
Government
Area
 • Total112.09 sq mi (290.31 km2)
Population
 • Total185,600
 • Density1,700/sq mi (640/km2)
Time zoneGMT
ISO 3166 codeGB-TFW
Websitewww.telford.gov.uk

The borough's major settlement is Telford, which was designated a "new town" in the 1960s and incorporated the towns of Dawley, Madeley, Oakengates, and Wellington. After the Telford conurbation, which includes the aforementioned towns, the next-largest settlement is Newport which is located in the northeast of the borough and is not part of the original new town of Telford. The borough borders Staffordshire, but is surrounded by the unitary district of Shropshire which covers the area previously administered by Shropshire County Council.

History

The district was created on 1 April 1974 under the Local Government Act 1972 covering the area of five former districts, plus a small part of a sixth:[1]

The district was initially called "Wrekin", but during 1974 the council changed the name to "The Wrekin".[3][4] A significant part of the new district was within the designated area of the Telford New Town, which had been initially designated in 1963 as Dawley New Town before being enlarged and renamed to Telford in 1968. The Telford Development Corporation existed alongside the elected councils until it was wound up in 1991, running various functions such as town planning which would otherwise have been council responsibilities.[5]

On 1 April 1998, as a result of the Local Government Commission for England's review, the district became a unitary authority, independent from Shropshire County Council. On the same day the district's name was changed from "The Wrekin" to "Telford and Wrekin".[6]

All of the council houses previously owned by Wrekin District Council and the subsequent Telford and Wrekin Council were transferred to a newly created housing association, the Wrekin Housing Trust, in 1999 which now owns the majority of social housing in Telford.[7]

Telford and Wrekin applied unsuccessfully for city status in 2000. The district was granted borough status in 2002.

Towns, villages and other settlements
Telford and Wrekin (yellow) in the ceremonial and historic county of Shropshire.

Settlements in Telford and Wrekin -

Divisions

Parishes

The borough is divided into 29 civil parishes.

Wards

For the borough council itself there is a system of thirty wards to elect councillors.

1 – Admaston and Bratton

2 – Apley Castle

3 – Arleston

4 – Brookside

5 – Church Aston and Lilleshall

6 – College

7 – Dawley and Aqueduct

8 – Donnington

9 – Dothill

10 – Edgmond and Ercall Magna

11 – Ercall

12 – Hadley and Leegomery

13 – Haygate

14 – Horsehay and Lightmoor

15 – Ironbridge Gorge

 16 – Ketley and Overdale

17 – Madeley and Sutton Hill

18 – Malinslee and Dawley Bank

19 – Muxton

20 – Newport North and West

21 – Newport South and East

22 – Oakengates and Ketley Bank

23 – Park

24 – Priorslee

25 – Shawbirch

26 – St Georges

27 – The Nedge

28 – Woodside

29 – Wrockwardine

30 – Wrockwardine Wood and Trench

Election history

Borough elections are held every 4 years.

Governance
Main article: Telford and Wrekin Council

Telford and Wrekin operates a cabinet-style council. It has 54 elected councillors who appoint the seven cabinet members, including the leader, each year. The cabinet members make decisions as a whole and meet every two weeks.[8]

Telford and Wrekin is currently a Labour controlled council.

Policing

Telford and Wrekin is part of the West Mercia Police police area. The force is based in Worcester (outside Shropshire) and the borough's area is a Territorial Policing Unit in the force's organisation.

Economy
Telford Plaza in Telford Town Centre.
St Mary's Street in Newport

This is a chart of trend of regional gross value added of Telford and Wrekin at current basic prices published (pp. 240–253) by Office for National Statistics with figures in millions of British pounds sterling.

YearRegional gross value added[table 1]Agriculture[table 2]Industry[table 3]Services[table 4]
19951,76328865870
20002,072207731,279
20032,370218501,500
  1. Components may not sum to totals due to rounding
  2. includes hunting and forestry
  3. includes energy and construction
  4. includes financial intermediation services indirectly measured

Freedom of the Borough

The following People and Military Units and Organisations and Groups have received the Freedom of the Borough of Telford and Wrekin.

Individuals
  • Iris Butler: 2002.
  • Richie Woodhall: 2002
  • Lee Carter: 2005.
  • Elizabeth Holt: 2008.
  • Peter Gibbons: 2009.
  • George Whyle: 2011.
  • Corporal Ricky Fergusson: 2012.
  • Mickey Bushell: 2014.
  • Alan Olver: 2015.
  • John Alfred David Gill: 2017.
  • Liam Davies: 2023

Military Units

Organisations and Groups
  • Telford Crisis Support: 11 June 2022.[11]
  • The Wrekin Housing Group

See also

References
  1. "The English Non-metropolitan Districts (Definition) Order 1972", legislation.gov.uk, The National Archives, SI 1972/2039, retrieved 18 September 2022
  2. "The New Parishes Order 1973", legislation.gov.uk, The National Archives, SI 1973/688, retrieved 18 September 2022
  3. "The English Non-metropolitan districts (Names) Order 1973", legislation.gov.uk, The National Archives, SI 1973/551, retrieved 18 September 2022
  4. "Shropshire". Database of Local Government Orders. Local Government Boundary Commission for England. Retrieved 18 September 2022.
  5. "Business-led 'revolution' continues". Birmingham Post. 28 January 1992. p. 27. Retrieved 18 September 2022.
  6. "The Borough of Telford and Wrekin (Electoral Changes) Order 2002", legislation.gov.uk, The National Archives, SI 2002/2373, retrieved 18 September 2022, The name of the borough was changed from The Wrekin to Telford and Wrekin on 1st April 1998
  7. "About Us | the Wrekin Housing Group".
  8. "Cabinet". Telford and Wrekin Council. Retrieved 5 May 2010.
  9. "Honorary Freemen of the Borough". Telford and Wrekin Borough Council. Retrieved 14 June 2022.
  10. "Council to honour the Rifles Regiment with the Freedom of the Borough - Telford & Wrekin Council". Archived from the original on 17 November 2015. Retrieved 13 November 2015.
  11. Robertson, Dominic (11 June 2022). "Freedom of the borough for Telford charity". The Shropshire Star. Retrieved 14 June 2022.
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