Kirklees Council
Kirklees Council | |
|---|---|
 | |
 | |
| Type | |
| Type | |
| History | |
| Founded | 1 April 1974 |
| Leadership | |
Steve Mawson[1] since 2023 | |
| Structure | |
| Seats | 69 councillors |
 | |
Political groups |
|
Joint committees | West Yorkshire Combined Authority |
| Elections | |
| Multiple member first-past-the-post | |
Last election | 2 May 2024 |
Next election | 7 May 2026 |
| Meeting place | |
 | |
| Town Hall,Ramsden Street, Huddersfield, HD12TA | |
| Website | |
| www | |
| Constitution | |
| Constitution | |
Kirklees Council,also known asKirklees Metropolitan Borough Council,is thelocal authorityfor themetropolitan boroughofKirkleesinWest Yorkshire,England. As a metropolitan borough council it provides the majority of local government services in the borough. Since 2014 the council has been a constituent members of theWest Yorkshire Combined Authority.
The council has been underno overall controlsince 2024. It meets atHuddersfield Town Halland has its main offices in the nearby Civic Centre.
History
[edit]Kirklees Council was established on 1 April 1974, when Kirklees and West Yorkshire were created under theLocal Government Act 1972.Theeleven former district councilswithin the area were abolished at the same time.[3][4]Kirklees was awardedborough status,allowing the chair of the council to take the title of mayor.[5]
The council was originally a district-level authority in a two-tier local government structure, alongsideWest Yorkshire County Councilproviding county-level services. However, themetropolitan countycouncils, including West Yorkshire County Council, were abolished in 1986 under theLocal Government Act 1985.Since 1986 Kirklees Council has therefore been responsible for most local government functions in the borough.[6]
Policing, fire services and public transport continued to be run on a county-wide basis by councillors from all five West Yorkshire boroughs. In 2012 responsibility for policing was transferred to the directly-electedWest Yorkshire Police and Crime Commissioner,and then to theMayor of West Yorkshirein 2021.
The council has been a constituent member of theWest Yorkshire Combined Authoritysince 2014. The members of Kirklees Council elect one member of the combined authority.
Following several years offunding cutsfrom national government, in 2016 the council started transitioning to a different service model which the cabinet called being aNew Council.The stated aim was to focus the reduced resources on services that only the council can provide, particularly those supporting vulnerable people, while encouraging communities to do more for themselves.[7]
After the2016 local electionsthe council was temporarily run without an elected leader. Labour councillors initially decided to replace incumbent leader David Sheard with Shabir Pandor,[8][9][10]however Pandor's nomination to become leader at the council'sAGMfell after Sheard and three other Labour councillors did not attend the meeting. With no leader, the council was run temporarily by the Chief Executive.[11][12]Sheard was eventually re-elected as leader and appointed Pandor as his deputy.[13]Pandor was subsequently elected leader of the council following the2018 local elections.[14]
In June 2016 theHuddersfield Daily Examinerexposed several councillors who had failed to pay theirCouncil Taxin what it called the 'Ratesgate scandal'. Five serving councillors, four Labour and one Conservative, had been issued with court claims after previously receiving reminder letters.[15]Two councillors who had denied the allegations, Deputy Leader Jean Calvert and Amanda Pinnock, were suspended by the Labour Party. All councillors subsequently paid their debts before facing the court.[16]
At the2021 local electionsJoshua Sheard became the youngest councillor to be elected to Kirklees Council, at the age of 19.[17]
In July 2023 Shabir Pandor resigned as council leader, reportedly before facing avote of no confidencefrom Labour councillors. At the time Pandor was facing accusations from opposition councillors of misleading the council in his handling of Labour councillor Fazila Loonat, who had been convicted ofperverting the course of justice.[18][19]
History nearly repeated itself the following year, when Leader Cathy Scott faced a no-confidence vote[20]following thelocal electionsin which Labour lost control of the council, due to both a large drop in Labour's share in the vote as well as several Labour councillors resigning in early 2024 over the Labour Party leaderSir Keir Starmer'sstance onGaza.[21]This group would go on to form a bloc on the council known as theKirklees Community Independents Group.[22]
In the weeks following the election, several more Labour councillors resigned from the party,[23][24]including Cllr Scott after she had been replaced as Labour Leader in the council.[25][26]Cllr Scott stated she would continue as Leader of the Council as an independent, subsequently forming a new council cabinet with positions taken up by the other now-independent councillors, now known as theCommunity Alliance.[20]However, on 18 July 2024 Scott was forced out of office by another vote of no-confidence, with Cllr Carole Pattison being named as the new Leader[27]and leaving no party with a majority on the council.
Failings in children's services
[edit]In late 2016Ofstedinspected Kirklees Council's services for vulnerable children and judged them to be inadequate.[28]In response, Education SecretaryJustine Greeningappointed Eleanor Brazil as Children's Services Commissioner to make recommendations for improvement.[29]
In her report published following the2017 general election,Ms Brazil found that Kirklees did not have the leadership or management capacity to achieve the required standard. She recommended that Kirklees enter a formal partnership withLeeds City Council,a good neighbouring local authority.[30]The Director of Children's Services in Leeds, Steve Walker, took overall responsibility for services in Kirklees.[31]
In June 2019Ofstedconducted another inspection and found all aspects of children's services still required improvement to be good.[32]
Governance
[edit]Political control
[edit]The first election to the council was held in 1973, initially operating as a shadow authority alongside the outgoing authorities until the new arrangements came into effect on 1 April 1974. Political control of the council since 1974 has been as follows:[33][34]
| Party in control | Years | |
|---|---|---|
| Labour | 1974–1975 | |
| No overall control | 1975–1976 | |
| Conservative | 1976–1979 | |
| No overall control | 1979–1980 | |
| Labour | 1980–1986 | |
| No overall control | 1986–1990 | |
| Labour | 1990–1994 | |
| No overall control | 1994–1995 | |
| Labour | 1995–1999 | |
| No overall control | 1999–2018 | |
| Labour | 2018–2020 | |
| No overall control | 2020–2022 | |
| Labour | 2022–2024 | |
| No overall control | 2024–present | |
Leadership
[edit]The role ofMayor of Kirkleesis largely ceremonial. Political leadership is provided by theleader of the council.The leaders since 2000 have been:[35]
| Councillor | Party | From | To | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Kath Pinnock | Liberal Democrats | 2000 | 24 May 2006 | |
| Robert Light | Conservative | 24 May 2006 | 21 Jan 2009 | |
| Mehboob Khan | Labour | 21 Jan 2009 | Feb 2014 | |
| David Sheard[36] | Labour | 26 Mar 2014 | 25 May 2016 | |
| Labour | 29 Jun 2016 | 23 May 2018 | ||
| Shabir Pandor[37][38] | Labour | 23 May 2018 | 26 Jul 2023 | |
| Cathy Scott | Labour | 13 Sep 2023 | 23 May 2024 | |
| Independent[24][39] | 23 May 2024 | 17 July 2024 | ||
| Carole Pattison[27] | Labour | 17 July 2024 | ||
Composition
[edit]Following the2024 election,subsequent changes of allegiance later in May 2024, and a by-election in October 2024[40]the composition of the council was:[41]
| Party | Councillors | |
|---|---|---|
| Labour | 23 | |
| Conservative | 16 | |
| Independent | 16 | |
| Liberal Democrats | 10 | |
| Green | 4 | |
| Total | 69 | |
Of the independent councillors, six sit together as the 'Community Alliance' group, six form the 'Kirklees Community Independent' group and the other four do not belong to a group. The next election is due in May 2026.
Premises
[edit]The council generally meets at theTown Hallon Ramsden Street in Huddersfield, which had been built in 1881 for the old Huddersfield Borough Council.[42]The council's main offices are at the Civic Centre, a complex of buildings lying to the west of the town hall between Albion Street and Market Street. The council also maintains a customer service centre on Town Hall Way in Dewsbury.[43]
Elections
[edit]Since the last boundary changes in 2004, the council has comprised 69councillorsrepresenting 23wards.Elections are held three years out of four, with one third of the councillors (one for each ward) elected each time for a four-year term.[44]
Mayor
[edit]Councillors appoint amayoreach year. The mayor represents the council at civic engagements and supports the work of their designated charity. They chair council meetings and are expected to be politically impartial whilst they hold the post, although they do get a casting vote in the event of a tie.
| Name | Party | Civic Year |
|---|---|---|
| Reginald Hartley, JP | Labour | 1974–75 |
| William Gregory | Labour | 1975–76 |
| Andrew Alastair Mason | Conservative | 1976–77 |
| Jack Brooke | Conservative | 1977–78 |
| MajorCharles Cyril Kenchington | Independent | 1978–79 |
| Donald White | Labour | 1979–80 |
| Marjorie Fisher | Labour | 1980–81 |
| Fred Pickles,J | Labour | 1981–82 |
| Jack Wood | Labour | 1982–83 |
| Alfred Ramsden | Labour | 1983–84 |
| Stanley Dawson | Labour | 1984–85 |
| Colin C. Walker, JP | Labour | 1985–86 |
| Mary Walsh | Labour | 1986–87 |
| George Speight, JP | Labour | 1987–88 |
| John Greaves Holt | Conservative | 1988–89 |
| Colin Watson | Labour | 1989–90 |
| Thomas Patrick O'Donovan | Labour | 1990–91 |
| Jack Brooke | Labour | 1991–92 |
| David A. Wright, JP | Labour | 1992–93 |
| John Mernagh, JP | Labour | 1993–94 |
| Harold Sheldon | Labour | 1994–95 |
| Kenneth Douglas Sims | Conservative | 1995–96 |
| Allison Harrison | Labour | 1996–97 |
| Rita Briggs | Labour | 1997–98 |
| Michael Bower | Liberal Democrats | 1998–99 |
| Harry Fox | Labour | 1999–00 |
| Ann Elspeth Denham | Conservative | 2000–01 |
| Mohan Singh Sokhal, JP | Labour | 2001–02 |
| Margaret R. Bates | Conservative | 2002–03 |
| Barbara Allonby | Liberal Democrats | 2003–04 |
| Mary Harkin | Labour | 2004–05 |
| Margaret Fearnley | Liberal Democrats | 2005–06 |
| Donald Firth | Conservative | 2006–07 |
| Jean Calvert | Labour | 2007–08 |
| Kamran Hussain | Liberal Democrats | 2008–09 |
| Julie Stewart-Turner | Green | 2009–10 |
| Andrew Palfreeman | Conservative | 2010–11 |
| Eric Firth | Labour | 2011–12 |
| David Ridgway | Liberal Democrats | 2012–13 |
| Martyn Bolt | Conservative | 2013–14 |
| Ken Smith | Labour | 2014–15 |
| Paul Kane | Labour | 2015–16 |
| Jim Dodds | Conservative | 2016–17 |
| Christine Iredale | Liberal Democrats | 2017–18 |
| Gwen Lowe | Labour | 2018–19 |
| Mumtaz Hussain | Labour | 2019–21 |
| Nigel Patrick | Conservative | 2021–22 |
| Masood Ahmed | Labour | 2022–23 |
| Cahal Burke | Liberal Democrats | 2023–24 |
| Nosheen Dad | Labour | 2024–present |
References
[edit]- ^Council, Kirklees (1 October 2023)."Chief Executive, strategic directors and service directors".kirklees.gov.uk.Retrieved1 October2023.
- ^Marlow, Abigail (14 May 2024)."History in the making as youngest Mayor of Kirklees set to take office".Yorkshire Live.Retrieved8 June2024.
- ^"Local Government Act 1972",legislation.gov.uk,The National Archives,1972 c. 70,retrieved18 June2023
- ^"The Metropolitan Districts (Names) Order 1973",legislation.gov.uk,The National Archives,SI 1973/137,retrieved18 June2023
- ^"District Councils and Boroughs".Parliamentary Debates (Hansard).28 March 1974.Retrieved16 January2012.
- ^"Local Government Act 1985",legislation.gov.uk,The National Archives,1985 c. 51,retrieved18 June2023
- ^"Our new council".It's time to talk.23 January 2017. Archived fromthe originalon 22 September 2017.Retrieved1 July2017.
- ^"Kirklees Council leader Clr David Sheard announces shock departure".The Huddersfield Daily Examiner.May 2016. Archived fromthe originalon 25 June 2016.Retrieved8 June2016.
- ^"Toppled Kirklees Council leader David Sheard takes to Twitter to vent anger".The Huddersfield Daily Examiner.May 2016. Archived fromthe originalon 22 May 2016.Retrieved8 June2016.
- ^"Ousted Kirklees Council leader speaks out over Labour coup against him".The Huddersfield Daily Examiner.May 2016. Archived fromthe originalon 22 May 2016.Retrieved8 June2016.
- ^"Put up or shut up!' Angry Kirklees Council leader-elect Shabir Pandor vows to fight on".The Huddersfield Daily Examiner.May 2016. Archived fromthe originalon 29 May 2016.Retrieved8 June2016.
- ^"Chaotic scenes as Kirklees Council struggles to find a new leader".The Huddersfield Daily Examiner.May 2016. Archived fromthe originalon 28 May 2016.Retrieved8 June2016.
- ^"Re-elected Kirklees Council leader David Sheard adds new faces to his top team Angry Kirklees Council leader-elect Shabir Pandor vows to fight on".The Huddersfield Daily Examiner.June 2016. Archived fromthe originalon 1 July 2016.Retrieved30 June2016.
- ^Earnshaw, Tony (23 May 2018)."New era for Kirklees Council as Shabir Pandor is elected leader".Huddersfield Examiner.Retrieved17 June2018.
- ^"Named: The Kirklees councillors summonsed over council tax arrears".The Huddersfield Daily Examiner.June 2016. Archived fromthe originalon 5 June 2016.Retrieved8 June2016.
- ^"Councillors suspended by the Labour party after council tax controversy".The Huddersfield Daily Examiner.June 2016. Archived fromthe originalon 7 June 2016.Retrieved8 June2016.
- ^Earnshaw, Tony (16 May 2021)."The 19 year old biscuit factory worker now sitting on Kirklees Council".Yorkshire Live.Retrieved30 July2023.
- ^Marlow, Abigail (27 July 2023)."Kirklees Council leader Shabir Pandor was set to face vote of no confidence before shock resignation".Yorkshire Live.Retrieved30 July2023.
- ^Marlow, Abigail (14 July 2023)."Kirklees council leader urged to resign after allegations of 'wilfully misleading' the council".Yorkshire Live.Retrieved30 July2023.
- ^abShaw, Martin (1 June 2024)."Council Leader Cathy Scott Says It's" Business As Usual "For Kirklees Council Despite Upheaval And Mass Resignations".Huddersfield Hub.Retrieved31 May2024.
- ^Shaw, Martin (13 February 2024)."Kirklees Council Labour Group Hit By Resignation Of Four Councillors In Protest Over Gaza And Local Leadership".Huddersfield Hub.Retrieved1 June2024.
- ^Marlow, Abigail (20 February 2024)."Ex-Labour members form new group on Kirklees Council after 'toxic swamp' resignations".Yorkshire Live.Retrieved1 June2024.
- ^Dillon, Gemma (13 May 2024)."Kirklees councillor Musarrat Khan quits Labour over party's 'moral direction'".BBC News.Retrieved1 June2024.
- ^abMcCormick, Sebastian (23 May 2024)."Kirklees Council leader leaves Labour Party as other councillors resign".Yorkshire Live.Retrieved1 June2024.
- ^Shaw, Martin (14 May 2024)."Kirlees Council To Get New Leader After Cathy Scott Is Ousted By Labour Group".Huddersfield Hub.Retrieved1 June2024.
- ^Dillon, Gemma (14 May 2024)."Rebuilding trust a priority for new Labour leader".BBC News.Retrieved1 June2024.
- ^abMoss, Alex (17 July 2024)."Council leader ousted after vote of no confidence".BBC News.Retrieved18 July2024.
- ^"Inspection of services for children in need of help and protection, children looked after and care leavers and Review of the effectiveness of the Local Safeguarding Children Board"(PDF).Ofsted.25 November 2016.Retrieved21 September2017.
- ^"Statutory direction to Kirklees Council in relation to children's services under Section 497A(4B) of the Education Act 1996"(PDF).Department for Education.25 November 2016.Retrieved21 September2017.
- ^Brazil, Eleanor (14 September 2017)."Kirklees Children's Services: report to the Secretary of State"(PDF).Department for Education.Retrieved21 September2017.
- ^Shaw, Martin (15 September 2017)."MPs vow to hold Kirklees to account after Leeds City Council brought in to sort out failing children's services".The Huddersfield Daily Examiner.Retrieved21 September2017.
- ^"Kirklees Children's Services: Inspection of children's social care services".Ofsted.10 June 2019.Retrieved10 June2019.
- ^"Compositions calculator".The Elections Centre.Retrieved10 August2022.
- ^"Previous Local elections summary".Kirklees Council. March 2016.Retrieved4 May2019.
- ^"Council minutes".Kirklees Council.Retrieved12 August2022.
- ^"Sheard is re-elected as Kirklees Labour councillors put differences aside".Dewsbury Reporter.1 July 2016.Retrieved12 August2022.
- ^Shaw, Martin (27 July 2023)."Shabir Pandor quits as leader of Kirklees Council amid controversy over councillor jailed for lying".Huddersfield Hub.Retrieved14 February2024.
- ^Marlow, Abigail (27 July 2023)."Kirklees Council leader Shabir Pandor was set to face vote of no confidence before shock resignation".Yorkshire Live.Retrieved30 July2023.
- ^Brown, Dominic (24 May 2024)."Leader of Kirklees Council resigns from the Labour Party amid 'deep-seated concerns over its direction' and sets out her goal to lead a 'fresh start' in the district".Dewsbury Reporter.Retrieved1 June2024.
- ^Marlow, Abigail (18 October 2024)."Kirklees Council has a new member after by-election in Holme Valley".Yorkshire Live.Retrieved19 October2024.
- ^"Kirklees".Local Councils.Thorncliffe.Retrieved21 June2024.
- ^Historic England."Huddersfield Town Hall including wall and railings to area (1231723)".National Heritage List for England.Retrieved21 April2020.
- ^"Customer Service Centres".Kirklees Council.Retrieved18 June2023.
- ^"The Borough of Kirklees (Electoral Changes) Order 2003",legislation.gov.uk,The National Archives,SI 2003/3091,retrieved18 June2023
- ^"Former mayors".Kirklees Council.January 2017.Retrieved28 June2017.
