Rochford is a

local government district Local may refer to: Geography and transportation * Local (train), a train serving local traffic demand * Local, Missouri, a community in the United States Arts, entertainment, and media * ''Local'' (comics), a limited series comic book by Bria ...

Essex Essex ( ) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in the East of England, and one of the home counties. It is bordered by Cambridgeshire and Suffolk to the north, the North Sea to the east, Kent across the Thames Estuary to the ...

, England. It is named after one of its main settlements,

Rochford Rochford is a town and civil parish in the Rochford (district), Rochford District in Essex, England, north of Southend-on-Sea, from London and from Chelmsford. At the 2011 census, the Civil parishes in England, civil parish had a population ...

, where the council is based. The largest town in the district is

Rayleigh Rayleigh may refer to: Science *Rayleigh scattering *Rayleigh–Jeans law *Rayleigh waves *Rayleigh (unit), a unit of photon flux named after the 4th Baron Rayleigh *Rayl, rayl or Rayleigh, two units of specific acoustic impedance and characte ...

. Other places in the district include

Hockley Hockley is a large village and civil parish in Essex in the East of England located between Chelmsford and Southend-on-Sea, or, more specifically, between Rayleigh and Rochford. It came to prominence during the coming of the railway in the 189 ...

Ashingdon Ashingdon is a village and civil parish in Essex, England. It is located about north of Rochford and is southeast of Chelmsford. The village lies within Rochford District and the parliamentary constituency of Rayleigh. Ashingdon has a Pari ...

Great Wakering Great Wakering is a village in the Rochford District in Essex, England. It is approximately four miles east of Southend. Great Wakering consists mainly of two roads: the High Street, which runs from the junction of Star Lane, and New Road, whic ...

Canewdon Canewdon is a village and civil parish in the Rochford district of Essex, England. The village is located approximately northeast of the town of Rochford, while the parish extends for several miles on the southern side of the River Crouch. Ca ...

and

Hullbridge Hullbridge is a village and civil parish in the Rochford district of Essex in England. Bordered to the north by the River Crouch, as well a distance from Hockley and Rayleigh. Hullbridge had a population of 6,527 at the Census 2011. Prehistori ...

. The district borders

Maldon District Maldon District is a local government district in Essex, England. The district is managed by ''Maldon District Council'', which is based in Maldon, the largest town in the district. The district also includes the town of Burnham-on-Crouch and ...

to the north, the

City of Chelmsford The City of Chelmsford () is a local government district with borough and city status in Essex, England. It is named after its main settlement, Chelmsford, which is also the county town of Essex. As well as the settlement of Chelmsford itself, ...

to the north-west, the

Borough of Basildon The Borough of Basildon is a Non-metropolitan district, local government district with borough status in the United Kingdom, borough status in Essex, England. It is named after its largest town, Basildon, where the council is based. The borough ...

to the west, the Borough of

Castle Point Castle Point is a local government district with borough status in south Essex, England, lying around east of London. The borough comprises the towns of South Benfleet, Hadleigh and Thundersley (where the council is based) on the mainland, a ...

to the south-west, and the City of

Southend-on-Sea Southend-on-Sea (), commonly referred to as Southend (), is a coastal city and unitary authorities of England, unitary authority area with Borough status in the United Kingdom, borough status in south-eastern Essex, England. It lies on the nor ...

to the south. To the east, it has a stretch of coast at

Foulness Island Foulness Island () is a closed island on the east coast of Essex in England, which is separated from the mainland by narrow creeks. In the 2001 census, the usually resident population of the civil parish was 212, living in the settlements of ...

. Most of the built-up areas are in the western part of the district, along the railway line from to .

Southend Airport Southend-on-Sea (), commonly referred to as Southend (), is a coastal city and unitary authorities of England, unitary authority area with Borough status in the United Kingdom, borough status in south-eastern Essex, England. It lies on the nor ...

straddles the district's border with the City of Southend-on-Sea. The eastern part of the district is more sparsely populated.

History

The 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 ...

, covering the whole area of two former districts, which were abolished at the same time: *

Rayleigh Urban District Rayleigh is a market town and civil parish in the Rochford District in Essex, England; it is located between Chelmsford and Southend-on-Sea, east of central London. It had a population of 32,150 at the census in 2011. Toponymy The name ''Rayl ...

Rochford Rural District Rochford Rural District was a rural district with an area of 146.01 square kilometres in the county of Essex, England. It was created in 1894, in 1897 the parish of Leigh was removed to create the Leigh-on-Sea Urban District. In 1926 the parish ...

Governance

Rochford District Council provides district-level services. County-level services are provided by

Essex County Council Essex County Council is the county council that governs the non-metropolitan county of Essex in England. The non-metropolitan county is smaller than the ceremonial county; the non-metropolitan county excludes Southend-on-Sea and Thurrock which ...

. The district is also entirely 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. Rayleigh Windmill - geograph

Political control

The council has been under

no overall control In the context of local authorities in the United Kingdom no overall control (NOC; ) is a situation in which no single political group achieves a majority of seats, comparable to a hung parliament. Of the 248 councils who had members up for elec ...

since 2023. A coalition of the

Conservatives 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 civilizati ...

, Rochford District Residents and the Rochford and Foulness Wakering Independents group formed in May 2025 to run the council, with Conservative councillor Danielle Belton serving as

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 ...

. Between the 2024 election and the new coalition forming in 2025, the council had been run by a coalition of the Liberal Democrats,

Green Party A green party is a formally organized political party based on the principles of green politics, such as environmentalism and social justice. Green party platforms typically embrace Social democracy, social democratic economic policies and fo ...

and independents. 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: (Put "Rochford" in search box to see specific results.)

Leadership

The leaders of the council since 2004 have been:

Composition

Following the 2024 election, and subsequent changes of allegiance up to May 2025, the composition of the council was: Three of the independent councillors sit together as the Rochford and Foulness Wakering Independents group, which forms the council's administration with the Conservatives and local party the Rochford District Residents. The Green councillor and five of the independents form the Non-Aligned group. The other four independents form the Associated Independents group. The next election is due in May 2026.

Elections

Since the last boundary changes in 2016 the council has comprised 39

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 13

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 ...

, with each ward electing three councillors. Elections are held three years out of every four for a third of the council at a time. Elections to Essex County Council are held in the fourth year of the cycle when there are no district council elections.

Premises

Rochford District Council offices - geograph

The council has its main offices on South Street in Rochford. When the council was created it inherited the former Rochford Rural District Council's offices at Roche House, 7 South Street, Rochford and the former Rayleigh Urban District Council's offices at Barringtons, 2 Hockley Road, Rayleigh. Both buildings were converted houses. The council acquired other properties along South Street in Rochford and combined them with Roche House to form the council's headquarters. The civic suite wing of Barringtons in Rayleigh, including the council chamber, was retained by the council and serves as the council's main meeting place. It closed in 2020 but reopened in 2024 after a period of uncertainty about its future.

Parishes

The district is divided into 14

es. The parish council for Rayleigh takes the style "town council". *

Barling Magna Barling could refer to one of the following places: * Barling, Essex, England *Barling, Arkansas Barling is a city in Sebastian County, Arkansas, United States. It is part of the Fort Smith, Arkansas-Oklahoma Metropolitan Statistical Area. As ...

Foulness Foulness Island () is a closed island on the east coast of Essex in England, which is separated from the mainland by narrow creeks. In the 2001 census, the usually resident population of the civil parish was 212, living in the settlements of ...

Hawkwell Hawkwell is a village and civil parish in the Rochford district of Essex, England. The 2011 Census gave a population for the parish of 11,730, an increase from 11,231 at the 2001 Census. History Name Over the course of history Hawkwell has b ...

Paglesham Paglesham ( ) is a village and civil parish in the north east of the Rochford Rural District, Essex. The parish includes two hamlets of Eastend and Churchend, which are situated near the River Crouch and ''Paglesham Creek''. It is part of the ...

Rawreth Rawreth is a village and civil parish in the District of Rochford, Essex, England. It is situated between Wickford and Rayleigh. The place-name 'Rawreth' is first attested in the Pipe Rolls for 1177, where it appears as ''Raggerea''. It appears ...

(town) *

Stambridge Stambridge is a civil parish in the Rochford district in Essex, England. It is located north of the River Roach between Rochford and Paglesham. The parish includes the village of Great Stambridge. The name "Stambridge" means "stone bridge". ...

Sutton Sutton (''south settlement'' or ''south town'' in Old English) may refer to: Places United Kingdom England In alphabetical order by county: * Sutton, Bedfordshire * Sutton, Berkshire, a List of United Kingdom locations: Stu-Sz#Su, location * S ...

Arms

References

{{coord, 51.5817, 0.7082, type:adm3rd_dim:25000_region:GB-ESS, display=title Non-metropolitan districts of Essex