Walsall Council, formally Walsall Metropolitan Borough Council, is the

local authority Local government is a generic term for the lowest tiers of governance or public administration within a particular sovereign state. Local governments typically constitute a subdivision of a higher-level political or administrative unit, such a ...

for the

Metropolitan Borough of Walsall The Metropolitan Borough of Walsall is a metropolitan borough in the West Midlands, England. It is named after its largest settlement, Walsall, but covers a larger area which also includes Aldridge, Bloxwich, Brownhills, Darlaston, Pelsal ...

in the West Midlands, England. The town of

Walsall Walsall (, or ; locally ) is a market town and administrative centre of the Metropolitan Borough of Walsall, in the West Midlands (county), West Midlands, England. Historic counties of England, Historically part of Staffordshire, it is located ...

had been a

borough A borough is an administrative division in various English language, English-speaking countries. In principle, the term ''borough'' designates a self-governing walled town, although in practice, official use of the term varies widely. History ...

from medieval times, which was reformed on numerous occasions. Since 1974 the council has been a

metropolitan borough council A metropolitan borough (or metropolitan district) is a type of local government district in England. Created in 1974 by the Local Government Act 1972, metropolitan boroughs are defined in English law as metropolitan districts within metropol ...

. It provides the majority of local government services in the borough. The council has been a member of the

West Midlands Combined Authority The West Midlands Combined Authority (WMCA) is the combined authority for the West Midlands metropolitan county in the United Kingdom. It was established on 17 June 2016 by statutory instrument under the Local Democracy, Economic Development ...

since 2016. The council has been under

Conservative Conservatism is a cultural, social, and political philosophy and ideology that seeks to promote and preserve traditional institutions, customs, and values. The central tenets of conservatism may vary in relation to the culture and civiliza ...

majority control since 2019. The council meets at

Walsall Council House Walsall Council House is a municipal building in Lichfield Street in Walsall, West Midlands (county), West Midlands, England. It is a Grade II listed building. History The St. John's Guildhall in the High Street, which had been built in 1416, w ...

and has its main offices at the adjoining Civic Centre.

History

The town of Walsall was an

ancient borough An ancient borough was a historic unit of lower-tier local government in England and Wales England and Wales () is one of the Law of the United Kingdom#Legal jurisdictions, three legal jurisdictions of the United Kingdom. It covers the co ...

. It also had a mayor from at least 1377. The town's claim to be a borough was not supported by a

charter A charter is the grant of authority or rights, stating that the granter formally recognizes the prerogative of the recipient to exercise the rights specified. It is implicit that the granter retains superiority (or sovereignty), and that the ...

, leading to disputes with the

lord of the manor Lord of the manor is a title that, in Anglo-Saxon England and Norman England, referred to the landholder of a historical rural estate. The titles date to the English Feudalism, feudal (specifically English feudal barony, baronial) system. The ...

. A formal charter was eventually issued in 1627. The borough was reformed to become a

municipal borough A municipal borough was a type of local government Local government is a generic term for the lowest tiers of governance or public administration within a particular sovereign state. Local governments typically constitute a subdivision of ...

in 1836 under the

Municipal Corporations Act 1835 The Municipal Corporations Act 1835 ( 5 & 6 Will. 4. c. 76), sometimes known as the Municipal Reform Act, was an act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom that reformed local government in the incorporated boroughs of England and Wales. The le ...

, which standardised how most boroughs operated across the country. It was then governed by a body formally called the 'mayor, aldermen and burgesses of the borough of Walsall', generally known as the corporation, town council or borough council. Walsall Guildhall

When elected county councils were established in 1889, Walsall was considered large enough to provide its own county-level services, and so it became a county borough, independent from the new

Staffordshire County Council Staffordshire County Council is the upper-tier Local government in England, local authority for the non-metropolitan county of Staffordshire, England. The non-metropolitan county is smaller than the ceremonial county, which additionally includ ...

, whilst remaining part of the geographical county of

Staffordshire Staffordshire (; postal abbreviation ''Staffs''.) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in the West Midlands (region), West Midlands of England. It borders Cheshire to the north-west, Derbyshire and Leicestershire to the east, ...

. The borough was enlarged in 1966 to take in

Darlaston Darlaston is an industrial town in the Metropolitan Borough of Walsall in the West Midlands of England. It is located near Bilston, Walsall, Wednesbury, Willenhall and Tipton. It was historically part of Staffordshire. Topography Darlaston i ...

and

Willenhall Willenhall is a market town in the Metropolitan Borough of Walsall, Walsall district, in the county of the West Midlands (county), West Midlands, England, with a population taken at the 2021 United Kingdom census, 2021 Census of 49,587. It is ...

. The modern

metropolitan borough A metropolitan borough (or metropolitan district) is a type of districts of England, local government district in England. Created in 1974 by the Local Government Act 1972, metropolitan boroughs are defined in English law as metropolitan distr ...

and its council were established in 1974 under the

Local Government Act 1972 The Local Government Act 1972 (c. 70) is an act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom that reformed local government in England and Wales on 1 April 1974. It was one of the most significant acts of Parliament to be passed by the Heath Gov ...

, as one of seven boroughs in the new

metropolitan county Metropolitan counties are a Subdivisions of England, subdivision of England which were originally used for Local government in England, local government. There are six metropolitan counties: Greater Manchester, Merseyside, South Yorkshire, Tyn ...

of the West Midlands. The new borough covered the combined area of the old county borough of Walsall plus the neighbouring

Aldridge-Brownhills Urban District Aldridge-Brownhills was an urban district in Staffordshire, England from 1966 to 1974. The district was formed in accordance with a recommendation of the Local Government Commission for England on 1 April 1966. It was created by the amalgamati ...

. The metropolitan district was awarded

borough status Borough status is granted by royal charter to local government districts in England, Wales and Northern Ireland. The status is purely honorary, and does not give any additional powers to the council or inhabitants of the district. In Scotland, si ...

from its creation, allowing the chair of the council to take the title of mayor, continuing Walsall's series of mayors dating back to the fourteenth century. The council styles itself Walsall Council rather than its full formal name of Walsall Metropolitan Borough Council. From 1974 until 1986 the council was a lower-tier authority, with upper-tier functions provided by the

West Midlands County Council West Midlands County Council (WMCC) was, from 1974 to 1986, the upper-tier administrative body for the West Midlands county, a metropolitan county in England. History The WMCC existed for a total of twelve years. It was established on 1 April 1 ...

. The county council was abolished in 1986 and its functions passed to the county's seven borough councils, including Walsall, with some services provided through joint committees. Since 2016 the council has been a member of the

, which has been led by the directly elected

Mayor of the West Midlands The mayor of the West Midlands is a directly elected political post who chairs the West Midlands Combined Authority, covering the local authorities serving Birmingham, Coventry, Dudley, Sandwell, Solihull, Walsall and Wolverhampton. The most ...

since 2017. The combined authority provides strategic leadership and co-ordination for certain functions across the county, but Walsall Council continues to be responsible for most local government functions.

Governance

Walsall Council provides

services. Some strategic functions in the area are provided by the West Midlands Combined Authority; the council appoints two of its councillors to sit on the board of the combined authority as Walsall's representatives. There are no

civil parish In England, a civil parish is a type of administrative parish used for local government. It is a territorial designation which is the lowest tier of local government. Civil parishes can trace their origin to the ancient system of parishes, w ...

es in the borough.

Political control

The Conservatives have held a majority of the seats on the council since 2019. Political control of the council since 1974 has been as follows:

Leadership

The role of mayor is largely ceremonial in Walsall. Political leadership is provided by the

leader of the council Leadership, is defined as the ability of an individual, group, or organization to "", influence, or guide other individuals, teams, or organizations. "Leadership" is a contested term. Specialist literature debates various viewpoints on the co ...

. The leaders since 2004 have been:

Composition

Following the 2024 election and subsequent changes of allegiance later in May 2024, the composition of the council was: Eight of the independent councillors sit together as a group. The next election is due in May 2026.

Premises

The council meets at the

Council House A council house, corporation house or council flat is a form of British Public housing in the United Kingdom, public housing built by Local government in the United Kingdom, local authorities. A council estate is a building complex containing ...

on Lichfield Street, which had been completed in 1905 for the old borough council. It replaced the earlier Guildhall on High Street, which had been built in 1867 on a site which had been occupied by the town's guildhall from the fifteenth century. The council's main offices are in the Civic Centre on Darwall Street, which is linked to the Council House by a bridge over Darwall Street.

Elections

Since the last boundary changes in 2004, the council has comprised 60

councillor A councillor, alternatively councilman, councilwoman, councilperson, or council member, is someone who sits on, votes in, or is a member of, a council. This is typically an elected representative of an electoral district in a municipal or re ...

s representing 20 wards, with each ward electing three councillors. Elections are held three years out of every four, with a third of the council (one councillor for each ward) being elected each time for a four-year term of office.

Wards

The wards are:

Notelist

References

External links

Walsall Council
{{Metropolitan districts of England Metropolitan Borough of Walsall Metropolitan district councils of England Local authorities in the West Midlands (county) Local education authorities in England Billing authorities in England Leader and cabinet executives