The Borough of Chesterfield is a

non-metropolitan district Non-metropolitan districts, or colloquially "shire districts", are a type of Districts of England, local government district in England. As created, they are sub-divisions of non-metropolitan county, non-metropolitan counties (colloquially ''s ...

with borough status in

Derbyshire Derbyshire ( ) is a ceremonial county in the East Midlands of England. It borders Greater Manchester, West Yorkshire, and South Yorkshire to the north, Nottinghamshire to the east, Leicestershire to the south-east, Staffordshire to the south a ...

, England. It is named after the town of Chesterfield, its largest settlement, and also contains the town of Staveley and the large village of Brimington. In 2022 it had a population of 104,110. The borough borders the

North East Derbyshire North East Derbyshire is a Non-metropolitan district, local government district in Derbyshire, England. The council is based in the large village of Wingerworth. The district also includes the towns of Dronfield and Clay Cross as well as numerou ...

district to the north, west and south, and the Bolsover district to the east.

History

The town of Chesterfield had been 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 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 ...

, governed by a corporate body called "the mayor, aldermen and burgesses of the borough of Chesterfield", generally known as the corporation or town council. The modern district was formed on 1 April 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 nine

s within Derbyshire. The new district covered the area of two former districts and a single parish from a third, which were all abolished at the same time: * Brimington parish from Chesterfield Rural District * Chesterfield

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 ...

* Staveley Urban District The new district was named Chesterfield after its largest town. The new Chesterfield district was granted borough status from its creation, allowing the chair of the council to take the title of mayor, continuing Chesterfield's series of mayors dating back to 1598.

Governance

Chesterfield Borough Council provides district-level services. County-level services are provided by

Derbyshire County Council Derbyshire County Council is the upper-tier local authority for the non-metropolitan county of Derbyshire in England. The non-metropolitan county is smaller than the ceremonial county, which additionally includes Derby. The county council is ba ...

. The Staveley and Brimington parts of the borough are also covered by

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, which form a third tier of local government. Since 2014 the borough has been a non-constituent member of the

South Yorkshire Mayoral Combined Authority The South Yorkshire Mayoral Combined Authority (SYMCA) is the Combined authorities and combined county authorities, combined authority for South Yorkshire in England, with powers over transport (public transport and major trunk roads only), econ ...

(formerly known as the Sheffield City Region); the council sends representatives to meetings of the combined authority, but the electorate of Chesterfield do not vote in elections for the

Mayor of South Yorkshire The mayor of South Yorkshire is a combined authority Directly elected mayors in England and Wales, mayor, first 2018 Sheffield City Region mayoral election, elected in May 2018, who chairs the South Yorkshire Mayoral Combined Authority. The offi ...

Political control

The council has been under Labour majority control since 2011. The first election to the borough council as reformed under the Local Government Act 1972 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: (Put "Chesterfield" in search box to see specific results.)

Leadership

The role of mayor is largely ceremonial in Chesterfield. Political leadership is instead 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 1975 have been:

Composition

Following the 2023 election, and subsequent by-elections up to May 2025, the composition of the council was: The next election is due in 2027.

Elections

Since the last boundary changes in 2023, the council has comprised 40

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 16 wards, with each ward electing two or three councillors. Elections are held every four years.

Premises

The council is based at

Chesterfield Town Hall Chesterfield Town Hall is a municipal building on Rose Hill, Chesterfield, Derbyshire, Chesterfield, Derbyshire, England. It is a Grade II listed building. History An 18th century town hall was designed by a Mr. Carr of York and erected in the ...

on Rose Hill, which was purpose-built for the council in 1938.

Geography

The borough is situated around the town of Chesterfield and includes the villages of Old Whittington, Brimington (which also has a parish council), Sheepbridge and New Whittington, and the town of Staveley which maintains a town council. The borough's main two towns are Chesterfield and Staveley. With its geographical position, the borough offers convenient commuter links to the cities of

Sheffield Sheffield is a city in South Yorkshire, England, situated south of Leeds and east of Manchester. The city is the administrative centre of the City of Sheffield. It is historically part of the West Riding of Yorkshire and some of its so ...

Nottingham Nottingham ( , East Midlands English, locally ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, city and Unitary authorities of England, unitary authority area in Nottinghamshire, East Midlands, England. It is located south-east of Sheffield and nor ...

Derby Derby ( ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, city and Unitary authorities of England, unitary authority area on the River Derwent, Derbyshire, River Derwent in Derbyshire, England. Derbyshire is named after Derby, which was its original co ...

Bradford Bradford is a city status in the United Kingdom, city in West Yorkshire, England. It became a municipal borough in 1847, received a city charter in 1897 and, since the Local Government Act 1972, 1974 reform, the city status in the United Kingdo ...

Wakefield Wakefield is a cathedral city in West Yorkshire, England located on the River Calder. The city had a population of 109,766 in the 2021 census, up from 99,251 in the 2011 census. The city is the administrative centre of the wider Metropolit ...

Manchester Manchester () is a city and the metropolitan borough of Greater Manchester, England. It had an estimated population of in . Greater Manchester is the third-most populous metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, with a population of 2.92&nbs ...

Salford Salford ( ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, city in Greater Manchester, England, on the western bank of the River Irwell which forms its boundary with Manchester city centre. Landmarks include the former Salford Town Hall, town hall, ...

Leeds Leeds is a city in West Yorkshire, England. It is the largest settlement in Yorkshire and the administrative centre of the City of Leeds Metropolitan Borough, which is the second most populous district in the United Kingdom. It is built aro ...

and Lincoln, and via its mainline railway station at Chesterfield and the connections to the M1 motorway.

Travel to work areas

Chesterfield and its surrounding borough are situated around multiple

travel to work area A travel to work area (TTWA) is a statistical tool used by UK Government agencies and local authorities, especially by the Department for Work and Pensions and Jobcentres, to indicate an area where the population would generally commute to a ...

s which span from the counties of

Greater Manchester Greater Manchester is a ceremonial county in North West England. It borders Lancashire to the north, Derbyshire and West Yorkshire to the east, Cheshire to the south, and Merseyside to the west. Its largest settlement is the city of Manchester. ...

South Yorkshire South Yorkshire is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in the Yorkshire and the Humber region of England. It borders North Yorkshire and West Yorkshire to the north, the East Riding of Yorkshire to the north-east, Lincolnshire ...

West Yorkshire West Yorkshire is a Metropolitan counties of England, metropolitan and Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in the Yorkshire and the Humber region of England. It borders North Yorkshire to the north and east, South Yorkshire and De ...

and

Nottinghamshire Nottinghamshire (; abbreviated ''Notts.'') is a ceremonial county in the East Midlands of England. The county is bordered by South Yorkshire to the north-west, Lincolnshire to the east, Leicestershire to the south, and Derbyshire to the west. Th ...

as well as Derbyshire. The cities of

and

are the closest cities to Chesterfield and its surrounding borough.

Suburbs

Suburbs of Chesterfield include: * Birdholme * Boythorpe *

Brampton Brampton is a city in the Canadian Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Ontario, and the regional seat of the Regional Municipality of Peel. It is part of the Greater Toronto Area (GTA) and is a List of municipalities in Ontario#L ...

* Hasland * Newbold * Spital * Tapton *Whittington Moor

Landmarks

Tapton House Chesterfield Geograph-3363725-by-Stephen-Richards

Tapton House was once the home of engineer

George Stephenson George Stephenson (9 June 1781 – 12 August 1848) was an English civil engineer and Mechanical engineering, mechanical engineer during the Industrial Revolution. Renowned as the "Father of Railways", Stephenson was considered by the Victoria ...

, who built the first public railway line in the world to use

steam locomotives A steam locomotive is a locomotive that provides the force to move itself and other vehicles by means of the expansion of steam. It is fuelled by burning combustible material (usually coal, oil or, rarely, wood) to heat water in the locomot ...

. Church of St Mary and All Saints, also known as Chesterfield Parish Church, is an Anglican church dedicated to Saint Mary and All Saints. St Mary's is known for its twisted and leaning spire (known as the Crooked Spire). It is the largest

parish church A parish church (or parochial church) in Christianity is the Church (building), church which acts as the religious centre of a parish. In many parts of the world, especially in rural areas, the parish church may play a significant role in com ...

in the

Diocese of Derby The Diocese of Derby is a Church of England diocese in the Province of Canterbury, roughly covering the same area as the County of Derbyshire. Its diocesan bishop is the Bishop of Derby whose seat (cathedra) is at Derby Cathedral. The dioces ...

and forms part of the Archdeaconry of Chesterfield.

Places of interest

* Revolution House * Somersall Hall

Sport

Football

the biggest

football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kick (football), kicking a football (ball), ball to score a goal (sports), goal. Unqualified, football (word), the word ''football'' generally means the form of football t ...

club in the Borough of Chesterfield is Chesterfield Football Club, who play in

EFL League Two The English Football League Two, simply known as League Two and for sponsorship purposes as Sky Betting & Gaming, Sky Bet League Two, is a professional association football league in England. EFL League Two is the fourth division of the English ...

of the English football pyramid. They play in the SMH Group Stadium, which has a capacity of 10,600. They were originally founded on 19 October 1867, but its current form was founded on the 24 April 1919.http://www.chesterfield-fc.co.uk/page/History/0%2C%2C10435~897585%2C00.html

Rugby

The Borough of Chesterfield have a rugby club called the Chesterfield Panthers, who currently play in the Midlands 4 East (North) of the English rugby pyramid. They play in Duston Road Stadium, and they were founded in 2008.

References

Sources

Chesterfield Borough Council - HomeMap and Details for Chesterfield Borough Council Local Authoritychesterfield borough council ArchivesChesterfield Borough CouncilThe Borough of Chesterfield (Electoral Changes) Order 1999Your CouncillorsHistoryStory of ChesterfieldOur Town in HistoryChesterfield , England, United KingdomGenuki: Chesterfield, DerbyshireHistory of Chesterfield: Early and medieval ChesterfieldChesterfield - TownChesterfield (District, United Kingdom) - Population Statistics, Charts, Map and LocationChesterfield District – DDANew executive directors appointed at Chesterfield Borough CouncilChesterfield Borough CouncilThe Derbyshire (District Boundaries) Order 1988
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