Local Council Political Compositions

This page shows the composition of councils before the elections of May 2013. Refer to the live compositions page for links to other preserved historical files.

There are five tables for the different types of council in England: County Councils, Unitary Authorities, London Boroughs, Metropolitan Boroughs, and District Councils; followed by tables for Scottish Unitary Authorities, and Welsh Unitary Authorities

Two other bodies, the Corporation of the City of London (25 aldermen, 130 councillors), and the Scilly Islands Council (21 councillors), do not fit in any of these classes and have no political groups, so they are not listed.

Councils in Northern Ireland are composed almost entirely of members of Northern Irish or pan-Irish parties and are not included in this tabulation.

Keith Edkins - last updated and © 23/03/2013

Executive types shown for England (Local Government Act 2000):
LC = Leader & Cabinet   MC = Mayor & Cabinet
AA = Alternative Arrangements under Section 31 (option for councils with less than 85,000 population at 30 June 1999).

Parties shown in the Others column:
BNP = British National Pty, ED = English Democrats, ICHC = Independent Community & Health Concern, Lib = Liberal Pty, MK = Mebyon Kernow, RA = Residents Assns, Resp = RESPECT, SDP = Social Democratic Pty, SSP = Scottish Socialist Pty, UKIP = UK Independence Pty. If not marked, they are "Ind", i.e. Independents and very local "parties"

County Councils

 ExecControl  Con   Labour  LibDem Green  Others 
Buckinghamshire LC Con 46   11    
Cambridgeshire LC Con 41 3 21 1 UKIP 2, Ind 1
Cumbria LC Con + Lab + Ind 39 25 14   6
Derbyshire LC   32 23 7   2
Devon LC Con 41 6 13   2
Dorset LC Con 29 1 13   2
East Sussex LC Con 29 4 13   3
Essex LC Con 60 2 11   2
Gloucestershire LC Con 40 5 14 1 3
Hampshire LC Con 51 1 24 1 1
Hertfordshire LC Con 55 3 17 1 ED 1
Kent LC Con 73 3 7   1
Lancashire LC Con 51 17 9 2 BNP 1, Ind 4
Leicestershire LC Con 36 4 14   1
Lincolnshire LC Con 62 5 4   6
Norfolk LC Con 62 5 10 6 UKIP 1
North Yorkshire LC Con 46 1 11   Lib 2, Ind 11
Northamptonshire LC Con 54 6 10   3
Nottinghamshire LC Con 35 16 9   UKIP 1, Ind 6
Oxfordshire LC Con 52 9 10 2 1
Somerset LC Con 33 2 23    
Staffordshire LC Con 50 3 4   UKIP 3, Ind 2
Suffolk LC Con 55 4 11 2 UKIP 1, Ind 2
Surrey LC Con 56 1 13   RA 9, Ind 1
Warwickshire LC Con 38 11 11   RA 1, Ind 1
West Sussex LC Con 48 2 21    
Worcestershire LC Con 41 3 7 1 ICHC 2, Lib 1, Ind 2
County Totals  1255 165 332 17 89

Unitary Authorities

 ExecControl  Con   Labour  LibDem Green  Others 
Bath & N.E. Somerset LC LD (minority) 27 5 29   4
Bedford MC All party 12 12 12   4
Blackburn with Darwen LC Lab 14 45 5    
Blackpool LC Lab 13 28 1    
Bournemouth LC Con 46 3 2   3
Bracknell Forest LC Con 40 2      
Brighton & Hove LC Grn (minority) 18 13   23  
Bristol LC LD (minority) 14 22 32 2  
Central Bedfordshire LC Con 48 1 5   5
Cheshire East LC Con 52 17 2   11
Cheshire West & Chester LC Con 42 32 1    
Cornwall LC Con + Ind 48 1 37   Ind 31, MK 6
Darlington LC Lab 15 33 5    
Derby LC Lab 14 28 9    
Durham LC Lab 10 68 26   22
East Riding of Yorkshire LC Con 53 6 3   Ind 4, SDP 1
Halton LC Lab 2 50 4    
Hartlepool MC Lab 3 21     9
Herefordshire LC Con 30 1 3 1 23
Hull LC Lab 2 39 17   1
Isle of Wight LC Con 26 1 4   9
Leicester LC Lab 1 52 1    
Luton LC Lab 4 36 8    
Medway LC Con 35 15 3   2
Middlesbrough MC Lab + Ind 4 30 1 1 12
Milton Keynes LC   20 16 15    
North East Lincolnshire LC Lab 12 25 4   UKIP 1
North Lincolnshire LC Con 23 20      
North Somerset LC Con 42 5 6 1 7
Northumberland LC LD (minority) 17 17 26   7
Nottingham LC Lab 5 50      
Peterborough LC Con 33 11 4   Ind 6, Lib 3
Plymouth LC Lab 26 31      
Poole LC Con 20   18   4
Portsmouth LC LDm 12 5 25    
Reading LC Lab 12 26 4 3 1
Redcar & Cleveland LC Lab 6 33 15   5
Rutland LC Con 17 2     7
Shropshire LC Con 52 7 13   2
Slough LC Lab 5 35 1    
South Gloucestershire LC Con (minority) 34 15 21    
Southampton LC Lab 16 30 2    
Southend-on-Sea LC   25 6 10   10
Stockton-on-Tees LC Lab + Ind 12 27 4   13
Stoke-on-Trent LC Lab 2 33     9
Swindon LC Con 29 24 4    
Telford & Wrekin LC Lab 17 33 3   1
Thurrock LC Lab 20 26     Ind 2, UKIP 1
Torbay MC Con 21 1 10   UKIP 1, Ind 3
Warrington LC Lab 4 41 12    
West Berkshire LC Con 39   13    
Wiltshire LC Con 62 2 23   11
Windsor & Maidenhead LC Con 49   3   5
Wokingham LC Con 43   10   1
York LC Lab 10 26 8 2 1
Unitary Totals  1258 1108 464 33 248

London Borough Councils

 ExecControl  Con   Labour  LibDem Green  Others 
Barking & Dagenham LC Lab   51      
Barnet LC Con 38 22 3    
Bexley LC Con 52 11      
Brent LC Lab 6 41 16    
Bromley LC Con 53 3 4    
Camden LC Lab 10 30 13 1  
Croydon LC Con 37 33      
Ealing LC Lab 24 40 5    
Enfield LC Lab 27 36      
Greenwich LC Lab 11 40      
Hackney MC Lab 4 50 3    
Hammersmith & Fulham LC Con 31 15      
Haringey LC Lab   34 23    
Harrow LC Lab 27 34 1   1
Havering LC Con 32 5     RA 12, Ind 4, UKIP 1
Hillingdon LC Con 46 19      
Hounslow LC Lab 25 35      
Islington LC Lab   35 13    
Kensington & Chelsea LC Con 42 9 3    
Kingston upon Thames LC LDm 21   27    
Lambeth LC Lab 4 44 15    
Lewisham MC Lab 2 39 12 1  
Merton LC Lab (minority) 27 28 2   RA 3
Newham MC Lab   60      
Redbridge LC Con + LD 29 25 7   2
Richmond upon Thames LC Con 30   24    
Southwark LC Lab 3 34 25   1
Sutton LC LDm 11 1 42    
Tower Hamlets LC Lab 8 39 1   Resp 2, Ind 1
Waltham Forest LC Lab 18 37 5    
Wandsworth LC Con 47 13      
Westminster LC Con 48 12      
London Totals  713 875 244 2 27

Metropolitan Borough Councils

 ExecControl  Con   Labour  LibDem Green  Others 
Barnsley LC Lab 5 52     6
Birmingham LC Lab 28 77 15    
Bolton LC Lab 16 41 3    
Bradford LC   24 45 8 3 Ind 5, Resp 5
Bury LC Lab 12 36 2   1
Calderdale LC   17 21 11   2
Coventry LC Lab 11 43      
Doncaster MC Lab 9 50 3   1
Dudley LC Lab 29 42   1  
Gateshead LC Lab   55 11    
Kirklees LC   18 32 10 5 4
Knowsley LC Lab   63      
Leeds LC Lab 19 63 10 2 5
Liverpool MC Lab   74 10 2 Lib 3, Ind 1
Manchester LC Lab   87 9    
Newcastle upon Tyne LC Lab   51 26   1
North Tyneside MC Lab 12 43 4   1
Oldham LC Lab 2 43 14    
Rochdale LC Lab 13 42 5    
Rotherham LC Lab 4 58     1
St Helens LC Lab 3 40 5    
Salford LC Lab 8 52      
Sandwell LC Lab 2 68     2
Sefton LC Lab 8 36 20   2
Sheffield LC Lab   60 22 2  
Solihull LC Con 28 6 10 6 RA 1
South Tyneside LC Lab 1 48     Ind 4, UKIP 1
Stockport LC   10 21 28   4
Sunderland LC Lab 8 64     3
Tameside LC Lab 5 52      
Trafford LC Con 34 25 4    
Wakefield LC Lab 11 52      
Walsall LC   24 28 5   3
Wigan LC Lab 1 63 2   9
Wirral LC Lab 22 37 7    
Wolverhampton LC Lab 13 44 3    
Metropolitan Totals  397 1714 247 21 65

District Councils

 ExecControl  Con   Labour  LibDem Green  Others 
Adur LC Con 25 1 1   2
Allerdale LC Lab 12 28 1   15
Amber Valley LC Con 24 21      
Arun LC Con 47 3 5   1
Ashfield LC Lab   24 6   3
Ashford LC Con 25 4 5   9
Aylesbury Vale LC Con 38 2 17   UKIP 2
Babergh AA Con + LD + Ind 18 3 12   10
Barrow-in-Furness AA Lab 7 29      
Basildon LC Con 25 15 2    
Basingstoke & Deane LC Con 32 14 11   3
Bassetlaw LC Lab 11 34     3
Blaby LC Con 28 6 5    
Bolsover LC Lab   33   1 3
Boston LC Con 19 3     10
Braintree LC Con 45 11   2 2
Breckland LC Con 46 6     2
Brentwood AA Con 25 2 9   1
Broadland LC Con 34 1 12    
Bromsgrove LC Con 27 10     2
Broxbourne LC Con 27 3      
Broxtowe LC Lab + LD 18 17 9    
Burnley LC Lab 5 26 14    
Cambridge LC   1 19 21   1
Cannock Chase LC Lab 12 24 5    
Canterbury LC Con 36 3 11    
Carlisle LC Lab 20 27 2   2
Castle Point LC Con 25       16
Charnwood LC Con 34 15 1   BNP 1, Ind 1
Chelmsford LC Con 40 1 16    
Cheltenham LC LDm 11   25   4
Cherwell LC Con 41 6 3    
Chesterfield LC Lab   34 14    
Chichester LC Con 38   8   2
Chiltern LC Con 33   5   2
Chorley LC Lab 20 24 1   2
Christchurch AA Con 22       2
Colchester LC   23 8 26   3
Copeland LC Lab 15 34     2
Corby AA Lab 4 22 3    
Cotswold LC Con 27   12   5
Craven AA   15   4   11
Crawley LC Con 21 16      
Dacorum LC Con 43 1 7    
Dartford LC Con 31 9     4
Daventry AA Con 29 6 1    
Derbyshire Dales AA Con 28 5 4   2
Dover LC Con 26 19      
East Cambridgeshire AA Con 25   10   4
East Devon LC Con 43   10   6
East Dorset AA Con 30   6    
East Hampshire LC Con 39   5    
East Herts LC Con 46   2   2
East Lindsey LC Con 30 10 2   18
East Northamptonshire AA Con 35 2     3
East Staffordshire LC Con 22 16 1    
Eastbourne LC LDm 12   15    
Eastleigh LC LDm 4   40    
Eden LC Con + Ind 15   10   13
Elmbridge LC Con 31   6   RA 21, Ind 1
Epping Forest LC Con 39 1 4   RA 12, Ind 2
Epsom & Ewell AA Ind 3 3 6   26
Erewash LC Con 26 25      
Exeter LC Lab 11 24 5    
Fareham LC Con 24   6   1
Fenland LC Con 34   2   4
Forest Heath AA Con 23 1 2   1
Forest of Dean LC Con (minority) 19 17 1   11
Fylde LC Con 26   3   22
Gedling LC Lab 15 31 4    
Gloucester LC   18 9 9    
Gosport AA Con 24 5 5    
Gravesham LC Lab 19 25      
Great Yarmouth LC Lab 18 21      
Guildford LC Con 34 2 12    
Hambleton LC Con 39   2   3
Harborough LC Con 27   9   1
Harlow AA Lab 13 20      
Harrogate LC Con 31   19   Ind 3, Lib 1
Hart LC   16   10   RA 7, Ind 2
Hastings LC Lab 9 23      
Havant LC Con 34 3 1    
Hertsmere LC Con 34 5      
High Peak LC Lab (minority) 15 21 3   4
Hinckley & Bosworth LC LDm 15 1 18    
Horsham LC Con 34   8   2
Huntingdonshire LC Con 39 1 7   UKIP 3, Ind 2
Hyndburn LC Lab 9 23     3
Ipswich LC Lab 12 32 4    
Kettering LC Con 26 9     1
King's Lynn & W. Norfolk LC Con 42 13 3 1 3
Lancaster LC Lab + Grn 15 23   8 14
Lewes LC Con 22   18   1
Lichfield LC Con 46 10      
Lincoln LC Lab 8 24     1
Maidstone LC Con 30 1 19   5
Maldon LC Con 27 1     3
Malvern Hills LC Con 21   10 2 5
Mansfield MC Ind + Lab   25     11
Melton AA Con 19 6     3
Mendip LC Con 31   15   1
Mid Devon LC Con 24   6   Ind 11, Lib 1
Mid Suffolk LC Con 22 1 6 4 7
Mid Sussex LC Con 45 1 8    
Mole Valley LC   16   18   Ind 6, SDP 1
New Forest LC Con 54   6    
Newark & Sherwood LC Con (minority) 22 15 3   6
Newcastle-under-Lyme LC Lab 17 31 11    
North Devon LC LD + Ind 19   13   11
North Dorset LC Con 22   7   4
North East Derbyshire LC Lab 17 34     2
North Hertfordshire LC Con 33 10 6    
North Kesteven LC Con 27   3   13
North Norfolk LC Con 27   19   UKIP 1, Ind 1
North Warwickshire AA Lab 17 18      
North West Leicestershire LC Con 21 16 1    
Northampton LC Con 26 15 4    
Norwich LC Lab   21 3 15  
Nuneaton & Bedworth LC Lab 8 25   1  
Oadby & Wigston AA LDm 4   22    
Oxford LC Lab   29 13 5 1
Pendle LC   18 18 12   BNP 1
Preston LC Lab 19 31 5   2
Purbeck AA   12   10   2
Redditch LC Lab 14 15      
Reigate & Banstead LC Con 37   2 2 RA 7, Ind 2
Ribble Valley AA Con 34   5   1
Richmondshire AA Ind + LD 14   4   16
Rochford LC Con 31   4 2 RA 2
Rossendale LC Lab 9 24 1   2
Rother LC Con 27 2 5   4
Rugby LC Con 25 10 6   1
Runnymede AA Con 35       RA 6, UKIP 1
Rushcliffe LC Con 34 5 6 2 3
Rushmoor LC Con 25 11     UKIP 3
Ryedale AA Con 19   3   Lib 4, Ind 4
St Albans LC   29 8 19 1 1
St Edmundsbury LC Con 37 3   1 4
Scarborough LC Con + Ind + LD 26 6 3 1 14
Sedgemoor LC Con 31 13 2   2
Selby LC Con 29 10     2
Sevenoaks LC Con 47 5 2    
Shepway LC Con 43   1   2
South Bucks LC Con 38   1   1
South Cambridgeshire LC Con 34 1 14   8
South Derbyshire AA Con 19 17      
South Hams LC Con 30 1 5 3 1
South Holland LC Con 25       12
South Kesteven LC Con 38 6     14
South Lakeland LC LDm 14 3 34    
South Norfolk LC Con 38   8    
South Northamptonshire LC Con 32 1 3   6
South Oxfordshire LC Con 33 4 4   7
South Ribble LC Con 33 21 1    
South Somerset LC LDm 25   31   4
South Staffordshire LC Con 41 2     6
Spelthorne LC Con 32   6   1
Stafford LC Con 36 18 1 1 3
Staffordshire Moorlands LC Con + Ind 26 8 4    
Stevenage LC Lab 6 31 2    
Stratford-on-Avon LC Con 32 1 16   4
Stroud LC   23 16 5 5 2
Suffolk Coastal LC Con 44 4 5   2
Surrey Heath LC Con 35 2 1   2
Swale LC Con 32 13 1   1
Tamworth LC Con 18 11     1
Tandridge AA Con 34   6   2
Taunton Deane LC Con + LD 28 3 23   2
Teignbridge LC Con 25   13   8
Tendring LC Con 33 9 2   16
Test Valley LC Con 36   12    
Tewkesbury LC Con 24   11   3
Thanet LC Con (minority) 26 27     3
Three Rivers LC LDm 14 6 28    
Tonbridge & Malling LC Con 48 1 4    
Torridge AA Con 18   6   12
Tunbridge Wells LC Con 37 2 5   Ind 2, UKIP 2
Uttlesford LC Con 34   8   2
Vale of White Horse LC Con 29 1 21    
Warwick LC Con 25 8 9   4
Watford MC LDm 2 8 23 3  
Waveney LC Con (minority) 23 22   1 2
Waverley LC Con 56       1
Wealden LC Con 47   3   5
Wellingborough AA Con 27 9      
Welwyn Hatfield LC Con 34 11 2   1
West Devon AA Con 18   3   10
West Dorset LC Con 32   11   5
West Lancashire LC Con 28 26      
West Lindsey AA Con 22 2 10   3
West Oxfordshire LC Con 41 4 4    
West Somerset LC Con 19 2     7
Weymouth & Portland AA   14 11 8   3
Winchester LC Con 29 2 25   1
Woking LC Con 21   15    
Worcester LC   17 15 2 1  
Worthing LC Con 24   12   1
Wychavon LC Con 38 1 5   1
Wycombe LC Con 41 7 9   UKIP 1, Ind 2
Wyre LC Con 40 15      
Wyre Forest LC   20 8     ICHC 8, Ind 5, Lib 1
District Totals  5116 1739 1251 62 711

Scottish Unitary Authorities

 Control  Con   Labour  LibDem Green    SNP   Others 
Aberdeen   3 17 5   15 3
Aberdeenshire   14 2 12 1 28 11
Angus SNP 4 1 1   15 8
Argyll & Bute   4   4   12 13
Clackmannanshire   1 8     8 1
Dumfries & Galloway   15 14 1   10 7
Dundee SNP 1 10 1   16 1
East Ayrshire   2 14     15 1
East Dunbartonshire   2 8 3   8 3
East Lothian   3 10     9 1
East Renfrewshire   6 8     4 2
Edinburgh   11 20 3 6 18  
Eilean Siar Ind   3     6 22
Falkirk   2 14     13 3
Fife   3 35 10   26 4
Glasgow Lab 1 44 1 5 27 1
Highland     8 14   23 35
Inverclyde   1 10 2   6 1
Midlothian     8   1 8 1
Moray   3 3     9 11
North Ayrshire   1 11     12 6
North Lanarkshire Lab   41     26 3
Orkney Ind           21
Perth & Kinross   10 4 5   18 4
Renfrewshire Lab 1 22 1   15 1
Scottish Borders   10   6   9 9
Shetland Ind           22
South Ayrshire   10 9     9 2
South Lanarkshire Lab 3 34 1   27 2
Stirling   4 8   1 9  
West Dunbartonshire Lab   12     6 Ind 3, SSP 1
West Lothian   1 16     15 1
Scotland Totals  116 394 70 14 422 204

Welsh Unitary Authorities

 Control  Con   Labour  LibDem Green  Plaid  Others 
Blaenau Gwent Lab   33       9
Bridgend Lab 1 39 3   1 10
Caerphilly Lab   50     20 3
Cardiff Lab 7 46 16   2 4
Carmarthenshire     22     28 24
Ceredigion     1 7   19 15
Conwy   14 10 5   12 18
Denbighshire   9 18 1   7 12
Flintshire   8 30 7   1 24
Gwynedd     4 2   37 31
Isle of Anglesey Commissioners 2 5 2   8 23
Merthyr Tydfil Lab   24       Ind 8, UKIP 1
Monmouthshire   19 11 3     10
Neath Port Talbot Lab   52     8 4
Newport Lab 10 37 1     2
Pembrokeshire Ind 3 9 1   5 42
Powys Ind 10 7 8     48
Rhondda Cynon Taff Lab 1 60 1   9 4
Swansea Lab 4 49 11     8
Torfaen Lab 4 30     2 8
Vale of Glamorgan   11 21     7 Ind 7, UKIP 1
Wrexham   5 23 4   1 19
Wales Totals  108 581 72 0 167 335

England, Scotland & Wales Totals

 ConLabour LibDemGreen SNPPlaid Others
  8963 6576 2680 149 422 167 1679
Others comprise: Ind 1505, RA 81, UKIP 28, Lib 16, ICHC 10, Resp 7, MK 6, BNP 3, SDP 2, ED 1, SSP 1