Gosport Borough Council is the local authority for the borough of

Gosport Gosport ( ) is a town and non-metropolitan district with Borough status in the United Kingdom, borough status in Hampshire, England. At the 2021 United Kingdom census, 2021 Census, the town had a population of 70,131 and the district had a pop ...

, in the county of

Hampshire Hampshire (, ; abbreviated to Hants.) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South East England. It is bordered by Berkshire to the north, Surrey and West Sussex to the east, the Isle of Wight across the Solent to the south, ...

, England. The council consists of 28 councillors, two or three for each of the 14

wards Ward may refer to: Division or unit * Hospital ward, a hospital division, floor, or room set aside for a particular class or group of patients, for example the psychiatric ward * Prison ward, a division of a penal institution such as a pris ...

in the town. It is currently controlled by the Liberal Democrats, led by Peter Chegwyn. The borough council is based at

Gosport Town Hall Gosport Town Hall is a municipal structure in the High Street, Gosport, Hampshire, England. The structure currently serves as the headquarters of Gosport Borough Council. History The first municipal building in Gosport was an ancient market ha ...

History

Gosport was historically part of the parish of

Alverstoke Alverstoke is a village in the borough of Gosport, on the south coast of Hampshire, England. It stretches east–west from Fort Blockhouse, Haslar to Browndown Battery, and is centred east of the shore of Stokes Bay and near the head of a cree ...

. Gosport's first form of local government was a body of

improvement commissioners Boards of improvement commissioners were ''ad hoc'' urban local government boards created during the 18th and 19th centuries in the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland and its predecessors the Kingdom of Great Britain and the Kingdom of Irel ...

known as the "Gosport Town Trustees", established in 1763. In 1874 the town trustees were replaced by a

Local Board A local board of health (or simply a ''local board'') was a local authority in urban areas of England and Wales from 1848 to 1894. They were formed in response to cholera epidemics and were given powers to control sewers, clean the streets, regulat ...

(also known as the Urban Sanitary Authority) and the local government district was enlarged to cover the whole parish of Alverstoke, and so the new body was called the "Alverstoke Local Board". The loss of the Gosport name from its governing body was a subject of ongoing debate in the area for some years afterwards, and in 1891 the local board was renamed the "Gosport and Alverstoke Local Board". Under the

Local Government Act 1894 The Local Government Act 1894 ( 56 & 57 Vict. c. 73) was an act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom that reformed local government in England and Wales outside the County of London. The act followed the reforms carried out at county leve ...

, such local government districts were reconstituted as urban districts, and so the council became the "Gosport and Alverstoke Urban District Council". On 9 November 1922 the urban district was made 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 ...

and the Alverstoke name was removed from its title. On 1 April 1974 the district became 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 ...

, altering its powers and responsibilities but keeping the same area and name.

Governance

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

Hampshire County Council Hampshire County Council (HCC) is the upper-tier local authority for the non-metropolitan county of Hampshire in England. The council was created in 1889. The county council provides county-level services to eleven of the thirteen districts geo ...

. 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 council has been under

Liberal Democrat Several political parties from around the world have been called the Liberal Democratic Party, Democratic Liberal Party or Liberal Democrats. These parties have usually followed liberalism as ideology, although they can vary widely from very progr ...

majority control since 2022. Political control of the council since the 1974 reforms has been as follows: (Put "Gosport" in search box to see specific results.)

Leadership

The role of mayor is largely ceremonial in Gosport. 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 ...

(formally the chair of the policy and organisation board). The leaders since 2007 have been:

Composition

Following the 2024 election and a subsequent by-elections in July and November 2024, the composition of the council was: The next election is due in May 2026.

Elections

Since the last boundary changes in 2022 the council has comprised 28

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 elected from 14

, with each ward electing two councillors. Elections are held in alternate years with half the council being elected each time (one councillor for each ward) for a four year term of office.

Premises

The council is based at

on the High Street. The building was purpose-built for the council and was completed in 1964. The previous town hall of 1812 had been destroyed in the

Portsmouth Blitz Portsmouth is an island port city situated on Portsea Island in the county of Hampshire, England. Its history has been influenced by its association with the sea, and its proximity to London, and mainland Europe. Roman Portus Adurni which l ...

in 1940.

References

External links

List of Borough Councillors on official website
* {{Local authorities in Hampshire Non-metropolitan district councils of England Local authorities in Hampshire

Borough Council A borough is an administrative division in various 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 In the Middle Ag ...