Mayor Cllr Gurdial Bhamra Labour 36 / 63 | Seats 63 councillors Founded 1965 | |
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Type London borough council of the London Borough of Redbridge Leader Cllr Jas Athwal, Labour Joint committees East London Waste Authority | ||
Redbridge London Borough Council is the local authority for Redbridge in Greater London, England, and one of the capital's 32 borough councils. Redbridge is divided into 21 wards and elects 63 councillors. Redbridge Council comprises 35 Labour Party members, 25 Conservative Party members and three Liberal Democrat members. Alternating between Conservative administration and no overall control from 1965 to 2014, the council is now run by the Labour Party.
Contents
The council was created by the London Government Act 1963 and replaced four local authorities: Ilford Borough Council and Wanstead and Woodford Borough Council, with parts from Chigwell Urban District Council and Dagenham Borough Council.
History
There have previously been a number of local authorities responsible for the Redbridge 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 Redbridge on 1 April 1965. Redbridge replaced Ilford Borough Council and Wanstead and Woodford Borough Council entirely, and replaced Chigwell Urban District Council in Hainault and Dagenham Borough Council in the Hog Hill area.
It was envisaged through the London Government Act 1963 that Redbridge 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. As an outer London borough council it has been an education authority since 1965. This arrangement lasted until 1986 when Redbridge London Borough Council gained responsibility for some services that had been provided by the Greater London Council, such as waste disposal. 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
Since 1964 political control of the council has been held by the following parties: