Houses Unicameral Founded 1 April 1965 | Term limits None | |
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Type London borough council of the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea Preceded by Chelsea Borough Council
Kensington Borough Council New session started 22 May 2013 (Municipal year 2013/2014) | ||
Kensington and Chelsea London Borough Council is the local authority for the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea in Greater London, England. It is a London borough council, one of 32 in the United Kingdom capital of London. Kensington and Chelsea is divided into 18 wards, each electing three councillors. The council was created by the London Government Act 1963 and replaced two local authorities: Kensington Metropolitan Borough Council and Chelsea Metropolitan Borough Council. The borough council provides some shared services with Hammersmith and Fulham, and Westminster.
Contents
Map of Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea, UK
History
There have previously been a number of local authorities responsible for the Kensington and Chelsea area. The current local authority was first elected in 1964, a year before formally coming into its powers and prior to the creation of the London Borough of Kensington and Chelsea on 1 April 1965. Kensington and Chelsea London Borough Council replaced Kensington Metropolitan Borough Council and Chelsea Metropolitan Borough Council. Both were created in 1900 and replaced the Vestry of the Parish of Kensington and the Vestry of the Parish of Chelsea.
It was envisaged through the London Government Act 1963 that Kensington and Chelsea as a London local authority would share power with the Greater London Council. The split of powers and functions meant that the Greater London Council was responsible for "wide area" services such as fire, ambulance, flood prevention, and refuse disposal; with the local authorities responsible for "personal" services such as social care, libraries, cemeteries and refuse collection. This arrangement lasted until 1986 when Kensington and Chelsea London Borough Council gained responsibility for some services that had been provided by the Greater London Council, such as waste disposal. Kensington and Chelsea became an education authority in 1990. Since 2000 the Greater London Authority has taken some responsibility for highways and planning control from the council, but within the English local government system the council remains a "most purpose" authority in terms of the available range of powers and functions.
Summary results of elections
The council has been controlled by the Conservative Party since it was first elected in 1964.
However, in spite of the new boundaries imposed by the Boundary Commission, the Conservatives lost the Earl's Court Ward By-election in September 2010 to the Liberal Democrats and narrowly won the Cremorne Ward By-election by only 19 votes. Many commentors blamed the Tory Councillors led by Merrick Cockell for these poor results, stating that the Council did not take adequately into account residents' views on projects such as the proposed Thames Tideway Tunnel and the Earl's Court building works. The Conservatives in the Cremorne Ward ran on the promise to Save Cremorne Gardens yet these gardens are still under threat.