High Peak Borough Council

Last updated

High Peak Borough Council
Coat of arms of High Peak.svg
High Peak Borough Council.svg
Type
Type
Leadership
Stewart Gardner,
Labour
since 9 May 2024
Anthony McKeown,
Labour
since 15 May 2019
Andrew Stokes
since September 2020 [1]
Structure
Seats43 councillors
United Kingdom High Peak Borough Council 2023.svg
Political groups
Administration (29)
  Labour (29)
Other parties (14)
  Conservative (10)
  Green (2)
  Liberal Democrats (1)
  Independent (1)
Elections
First past the post
Last election
4 May 2023
Next election
6 May 2027
Meeting place
The Pavilion Gardens, St. John's Road, Buxton - geograph.org.uk - 377553.jpg
Pavilion Gardens, St John's Road, Buxton, SK17 6BE
Website
www.highpeak.gov.uk

High Peak Borough Council is the local authority for High Peak, a non-metropolitan district with borough status in Derbyshire, England. The administrative base of High Peak Borough Council is split between sites in the towns of Buxton and Glossop. Full council meetings are usually held at the Pavilion Gardens in Buxton. The council is elected every four years.

Contents

History

High Peak Borough Council was formed on 1 April 1974 under the Local Government Act 1972. The new council replaced the councils of six former districts, which were all abolished at the same time: [2]

The new district was named "High Peak" after the medieval hundred of High Peak, which had covered much of the area. [3] The district was granted borough status from its creation, allowing the chair of the council to take the title of mayor. [4]

In February 2008, the council formed a strategic alliance with the neighbouring Staffordshire Moorlands District Council to share a number of services and staff as a way of reducing costs, including a shared chief executive and senior management team. [5] [6]

Governance

High Peak Borough Council provides district-level services. County-level services are provided by Derbyshire County Council. [7] Much of the borough is also covered by civil parishes, which form a third tier of local government. The towns of Buxton and Glossop are unparished areas, with High Peak Borough Council performing functions in those towns that would otherwise be the responsibility of parish councils. [8]

Large parts of the borough are within the Peak District National Park. In those areas, town planning is the responsibility of the Peak District National Park Authority. [9] The borough council appoints two of its councillors to serve on the 30-person National Park Authority. [10]

Political control

The council has been under Labour majority control since the 2023 election. [11]

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: [12] [13]

Party in controlYears
No overall control 1974–1976
Conservative 1976–1979
No overall control 1979–1995
Labour 1995–2003
No overall control 2003–2007
Conservative 2007–2011
No overall control 2011–2015
Conservative 2015–2019
Labour 2019–2022
No overall control 2022–2023
Labour 2023–present

Leadership

The role of Mayor of High Peak is largely ceremonial. Political leadership is instead provided by the leader of the council. The leaders since 2003 have been: [14]

CouncillorPartyFromTo
David Lomax Liberal Democrats 20032007
John Faulkner Conservative 20072008
Tony Ashton Conservative 2008May 2011
Caitlin Bisknell [15] Labour May 201110 May 2015
Tony Ashton Conservative 19 May 201515 May 2019
Anthony McKeown Labour 15 May 2019

The council is run using the leader and cabinet model. The leader is appointed by the council, and is usually the group leader of the largest party. The leader then chooses other members to form a cabinet, which is known as the executive at High Peak Borough Council. As of July 2023 the executive comprised: [16]

RoleCouncillor
Leader of the CouncilAnthony McKeown
Deputy Leader of the Council and Executive Member for Regeneration, Tourism and LeisureDamien Greenhalgh
Executive Member for Housing and LicensingFiona Sloman
Executive Member for Corporate Services and FinanceAlan Barrow
Executive Member for Climate Change and EnvironmentJean Todd
Executive Member for Community Safety and PlanningGodfrey Claff

Composition

Following the 2023 election, the composition of the council was: [17]

PartyCouncillors
Labour 29
Conservative 10
Green 2
Liberal Democrats 1
Independent 1
Total43

The next election is due in 2027.

Premises

Full council meetings are generally held at the Pavilion Gardens in Buxton. [18] The council's office functions are split between Buxton Town Hall and the Municipal Buildings in Glossop, both buildings having been inherited from the council's predecessor authorities. [19]

The council also inherited offices at Chinley from Chapel-en-le-Frith Rural District Council. The Chinley complex had been built in 1902 as an isolation hospital and had been bought by the rural district council in 1953 and converted to become its offices. [20] [21] High Peak Borough Council used the Chinley buildings as its main offices and meeting place with the other buildings serving as additional offices until 2010, when the Chinley site was closed and subsequently sold as a cost-saving measure. [22]

Mayor of High Peak

The mayor presides at meetings of the council and acts as first citizen of the borough. [23] The role is usually held by a different councillor each year. They are expected to be politically impartial during their term of office as mayor, although they do get an additional casting vote in the event of a tie. [24] The current mayor is Peter Inman, who was elected as Mayor of High Peak for 2023/24. The current Deputy Mayor is Stewart Gardner. [25]

Former Mayors of the Borough of High Peak include: [26]

Elections

Since the last boundary changes in 2015 the council has comprised 43 councillors elected from 28 wards, with each ward electing one, two or three councillors. Elections are held every four years. [27]

Wards and councillors

Map of electoral wards in High Peak High Peak UK ward map 2015 (blank).svg
Map of electoral wards in High Peak

As of June 2023 the 43 councillors were: [28]

WardPolitical PartyCouncillor
BarmsLabourRachel QUINN
BlackbrookIndependentDan CAPPER
LabourAngela BENHAM
BurbageLabourChris PAYNE
Buxton CentralLabourPayge HACKING
Jean TODD
Chapel EastConservativeNigel GOURLAY
Chapel WestConservativeCath SIZELAND
LabourSally DE PEE
CorbarLabour and Co-operativeMadeline HALL
ConservativeChris MORTEN
Cote HeathConservativeLinda GROOBY
ConservativeKev KIRKHAM
DintingConservativeDom ELLIOT-STARKEY
GamesleyLabour and Co-operativeAnthony McKEOWN
Hadfield NorthLabourGillian CROSS
Hadfield SouthLabourRobert McKEOWN
Edward SIDDALL
HayfieldLabourGillian SCOTT
Hope ValleyGreenJoanna COLLINS
Charlotte FARRELL
Howard TownLabourGodfrey CLAFF
Labour and Co-operativeDamien GREENHALGH
Limestone PeakConservativePeter ROBERTS
New Mills EastLabourAlan BARROW
Ian HUDDLESTONE
New Mills WestLabourSimon EVANS
LabourJennifer BENZER
Old GlossopConservativeAdrian HOPKINSON
Paul HARDY
PadfieldLabourOllie CROSS
SettLabourPeter INMAN
SimmondleyLabourStewart GARDNER
LabourPamela MACKIE
St John'sLabourPauline BELL
Stone BenchLabourMatt TAYLOR
Fiona SLOMAN
TempleConservativePam REDDY
TintwistleLabourRob BAKER
Whaley BridgeLabourNeville CLARKE
Jo TAYLOR
Liberal DemocratsDavid LOMAX
WhitfieldLabourBarbara HASTINGS-ASATOURIAN

Arms

Coat of arms of High Peak Borough Council
Notes
Granted 1976 [29]
Crest
On a wreath Or and Vert a piece of Blue john stone Proper within a chevron Sable.
Escutcheon
Sable three piles Or on a base enarched Vert fimbrated Or a fountain.
Supporters
On either side a stag Or attired and unguled Sable gorged with a mural crown Vert and resting the interior hind leg on a piece of Blue John Stone Proper.
Motto
Consilio Semper Publico (Ever in the Public Interest)
Badge
A fountain within a triangle Sable.

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