In England and Wales, charter trustees are set up to maintain the continuity of a town charter or city charter after a district with the status of a borough or city has been abolished, until such time as a civil parish council or in larger settlements, a town council is established. Duties are limited to ceremonial activities such as the election of a mayor, and various other functions depending upon local customs and laws.
The charter trustees are made up of local councillors in the district representing wards within the boundaries of the town/city. If there are fewer than three district councillors for the former borough, then qualified local electors may be co-opted to make the number up to three.
Charter trustees must hold an annual meeting within twenty-one days of the annual meeting of the district council. The first item of business is the election of a town or city mayor and deputy mayor for the next year.
As of 2023, there are nineteen areas in England which continue to appoint charter trustees.
See main article: Local Government Act 1972.
The original bodies of charter trustees were set up in 1974, under section 246 of the Local Government Act 1972. The concept was introduced into the Bill by a government amendment in September 1972.[1]
Section 245(4) of the Local Government Act 1972 allowed the 'shadow' district councils to make a petition to the Queen for borough status, before their coming into effect on 1 April 1974. In this case, if "it is signified on behalf of Her Majesty before that date that She proposes to accede" to the request then, the style of borough could be used immediately from 1 April 1974, despite the fact that the charter would be presented only later.
For the new districts which made no such petition (or where it was refused), for each former municipal borough in the district which was to become an unparished area rather than a successor parish, a body corporate styled the charter trustees of the town or city, were established, under section 246(4) of the Act.
In the original legislation, charter trustees could also be formed in Welsh districts, but the Charter Trustees Order 1974, which provided for the establishment of the trustees, stated that the section "shall not apply to the area consisting of the counties established by section 20 of the Act (new local government areas in Wales)", and "there will be no charter trustees in Wales."[2]
| Short Title: | Charter Trustees Act 1985 |
| Type: | Act |
| Parliament: | Parliament of the United Kingdom |
| Long Title: | An Act to provide for the continuation of the charter trustees of any city or town and for the preservation of their powers and of the privileges and rights of the inhabitants of their area upon that area becoming comprised in a borough. |
| Year: | 1985 |
| Citation: | 1985 c. 45 |
| Territorial Extent: | England and Wales |
| Royal Assent: | 16 July 1985 |
| Commencement: | 16 July 1985 |
| Amends: | Local Government Act 1972 |
| Original Text: | https://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/1985/45/enacted |
| Use New Uk-Leg: | yes |
| Uk-Leg Title: | Charter Trustees Act 1985 |
Originally, under section 246(7), when the district in which a town for which charter trustees had been established gained the status of a borough, the trustees would be immediately dissolved. Some new district councils petitioned for borough status soon after 1 April 1974, quickly dissolving the charter trustees.
This was changed by the Charter Trustees Act 1985, which provided that charter trustees would cease to exist only when a parish council was formed for the area of the former borough.
See main article: Local Government Act 1992.
Legislation passed in 1992 led to the establishment of a Local Government Commission whose remit was to review the system created in 1974. As a result there was a partial reorganisation, with a number of districts with borough or city status being abolished. The mechanism of creating charter trustees to preserve civic traditions was again used. However, trustees were created only where an outgoing council requested their establishment. The failure of the extinguished City of Rochester-upon-Medway council to appoint charter trustees for Rochester or to apply for Rochester's city status to be transferred to the replacement unitary authority of Medway led to Rochester losing its city status.
Some abolished boroughs such as Beverley included a large rural area. In such cases, the charter trustees were not established for the entire area of the former borough, but were limited to that part of the new authority which was unparished: the area identifiable as the town.
See main article: Local Government and Public Involvement in Health Act 2007.
A further wave of reorganisations came into effect in some areas of England on 1 April 2009, under the terms of the Local Government and Public Involvement in Health Act 2007. The reforms saw the creation of new unitary authorities and the abolition of a number of districts with city or borough status. The Charter Trustees Regulations 2009 allow for the creation of trustees to preserve civic traditions in those areas where there is no obvious successor parish council. In the case of the cities of Chester and Durham the charter trustees area are identical to the entire abolished district, which includes not only the central unparished area but also the surrounding parishes.[3]
| Website | ||||||
| Barrow-in-Furness | The wards of Barrow Island, Central, Hawcoat, Hindpool, Newbarns, Ormsgill, Parkside, Risedale, Roosecote, Walney North and Walney South. | Westmorland and Furness | Cumbria | 2023[4] | ||
| City of Bath | City of Bath district (1974-1996) | Bath and North East Somerset | Somerset | 1996[5] | https://mayorofbath.co.uk/ | |
| Bournemouth | The wards of Boscombe East, Boscombe West, Central Bournemouth, East Cliff and Springbourne, East Southbourne and Tuckton, Kinson North, Kinson South, Littledown and Iford, Moordown, Queen’s Park, Redhill and Northbourne, Talbot and Branksome Woods, Throop and Muscliff, Wallisdown and Winton West, West Southbourne, Westbourne and West Cliff, Winton East and the unparished part of the ward of Strouden Park. | Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole | Dorset | 2019[6] | ||
| City of Carlisle | The wards of Belah and Kingmoor, Botcherby and Harraby North, Cathedral and Castle, Currock and Upperby, Denton Holme and Morton South, Harraby South and Parklands, Newtown and Morton North, Sandsfield and Morton West and Stanwix and Houghton. | Cumberland | Cumbria | 2023 | ||
| City of Chester | The wards of Blacon, Boughton Heath and Vicars Cross, Broxton, City, Gowy, Hoole and Newton, Mickle Trafford, Overleigh and Upton. | Cheshire West and Chester | Cheshire | 2009[7] | https://lordmayorchester.co.uk/ | |
| City of Durham | The electoral divisions of Belmont, Brandon, Coxhoe, Deerness Valley, Durham South, Elvet, Framwellgate Moor, Gilesgate, Neville’s Cross, Newton Hall and Sherburn | County Durham | County Durham | 2009 | ||
| Cleethorpes | Unparished area of the Borough of Cleethorpes | North East Lincolnshire | Lincolnshire | 1996 | ||
| East Retford | The Municipal Borough of East Retford | Bassetlaw | Nottinghamshire | 1974 | https://eastretfordchartertrustees.co.uk/ | |
| Ellesmere Port | The wards of Grange and Rossmore, Groves and Whitby, the unparished part of the Central and Westminster ward, and the parts of the wards of Ledsham and Willaston and Sutton and Manor comprised in the Ledsham, Sutton, Sutton Green and Manor and Willaston and Thornton wards of the former Ellesmere Port and Neston Borough Council. | Cheshire West and Chester | Cheshire | 2009 | ||
| Grantham | The Municipal Borough of Grantham | South Kesteven | Lincolnshire | 1974 | ||
| Great Grimsby | Borough of Great Grimsby | North East Lincolnshire | Lincolnshire | 1996 | ||
| Harrogate | The wards of Harrogate Bilton Grange, Harrogate Bilton Woodfield, Harrogate Central, Harrogate Coppice Valley, Harrogate Fairfax, Harrogate Harlow, Harrogate High Harrogate, Harrogate Hookstone, Harrogate Kingsley, Harrogate New Park, Harrogate Oatlands, Harrogate Old Bilton, Harrogate Starbeck, Harrogate Stray, Harrogate St Georges, Harrogate Valley Gardens, the unparished part of the ward of Harrogate Duchy, the unparished part of the ward of Harrogate Pannal and the unparished part of the ward of Harrogate Saltergate. | North Yorkshire | North Yorkshire | 2023[8] | ||
| High Wycombe | The Municipal Borough of High Wycombe | Wycombe | Buckinghamshire | 1974 | https://www.mayorofhighwycombe.co.uk/ | |
| Mansfield | The Municipal Borough of Mansfield | Mansfield district | Nottinghamshire | 1974 | ||
| Margate | The Municipal Borough of Margate | Thanet | Kent | 1974 | https://www.margate.org.uk/ | |
| Poole | The wards of Alderney, Branksome East, Branksome West, Broadstone, Canford Cliffs, Canford Heath East, Canford Heath West, Creekmoor, Hamworthy East, Hamworthy West, Merley and Bearwood, Newtown, Oakdale, Parkstone, Penn Hill and Poole Town. | Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole | Dorset | 2019 | ||
| Scarborough | The wards of Woodlands, Northstead, Castle, Weaponness and Ramshill, Falsgrave and Stepney and the unparished part of the ward of Eastfield. | North Yorkshire | North Yorkshire | 2023 | ||
| Scunthorpe | Borough of Scunthorpe | North Lincolnshire | Lincolnshire | 1996 | ||
| Worksop | The Municipal Borough of Worksop | Bassetlaw | Nottinghamshire | 1974 | https://www.worksopchartertrustees.co.uk/ |
| Former municipal borough | Successor district | County in 1974 | Created | Parished/abolished | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Andover | Test Valley District | Hampshire | 1974 | abolished 1976, successor the Borough of Test Valley,[9] parished in 2010 | |
| Aylesbury | Aylesbury Vale | Buckinghamshire | 1974 | parished 2000[10] | |
| Banbury | Cherwell | Oxfordshire | 1974 | parished 2000[11] | |
| Basingstoke | Basingstoke District | Hampshire | 1974 | abolished 1978, successor the Borough of Basingstoke and Deane | |
| Bedford | Bedford District | Bedfordshire | 1974 | abolished 1975, successor the Borough of North Bedfordshire | |
| Beverley | East Riding of Yorkshire | Humberside | 1996 | parished 1999[12] | |
| Bexhill-on-Sea | Rother | East Sussex | 1974 | parished 2021[13] | |
| Bootle | Sefton | Merseyside | 1974 | abolished c. 1975, successor the Borough of Sefton | |
| Bridgwater | Sedgemoor | Somerset | 1974 | parished 2003 | |
| Burton upon Trent | East Staffordshire | Staffordshire | 1974 | abolished 1992 when East Staffordshire became a borough[14] unparished area became various parishes in 2003 | |
| Chelmsford | Chelmsford District | Essex | 1974 | abolished 1977, successor the Borough of Chelmsford[15] | |
| Chippenham | North Wiltshire | Wiltshire | 1974 | parished 1984[16] | |
| Cleethorpes | Cleethorpes District | Humberside | 1974 | abolished 1975, successor the Borough of Cleethorpes | |
| Colne | Pendle district | Lancashire | 1974 | abolished 1976, successor the Borough of Pendle | |
| Crewe | Cheshire East | Cheshire | 2009 | parished 2013 | |
| Crosby | Sefton | Merseyside | 1974 | abolished c. 1975, successor the Borough of Sefton | |
| Dartford | Dartford district | Kent | 1974 | abolished 1977, successor the Borough of Dartford | |
| Daventry | Daventry district | Northamptonshire | 1974 | parished 2003 | |
| Deal | Dover district | Kent | 1974 | parished 1996 | |
| Dover | Dover district | Kent | 1974 | parished 1996 | |
| Dunstable | South Bedfordshire | Bedfordshire | 1974 | parished 1985 | |
| Folkestone | Shepway | Kent | 1974 | parished 2004 | |
| Goole | Boothferry | Humberside | 1974 | abolished 1978, successor the Borough of Boothferry. The area was parished in 1983.[17] | |
| Hemel Hempstead | Dacorum District | Hertfordshire | 1974 | Abolished 1984, successor the Borough of Dacorum[18] | |
| City of Hereford | Herefordshire | Herefordshire | 1998[19] | parished 2000 | |
| Ilkeston | Erewash | Derbyshire | 1974 | abolished 1975, successor the Borough of Erewash | |
| Kidderminster | Wyre Forest | Worcestershire | 1974 | parished 2016 | |
| King's Lynn | West Norfolk district | Norfolk | 1974 | Abolished 1981, successor the Borough of King's Lynn and West Norfolk | |
| City of Lichfield | Lichfield district | Staffordshire | 1974 | parished 1980 | |
| Lowestoft | Waveney | Suffolk | 1974 | parished 2017 | |
| Lymington | New Forest district | Hampshire | 1974 | parished (as four parishes) 1979 | |
| Macclesfield | Cheshire East | Cheshire | 2009 | parished 2015 | |
| Maldon | Maldon | Essex | 1974 | parished 1987 | |
| Nelson | Pendle district | Lancashire | 1974 | Abolished 1976, successor the Borough of Pendle | |
| Newark | Newark district | Nottinghamshire | 1974 | parished 1980 | |
| Newbury | West Berkshire | Berkshire | 1974 | parished 1997 | |
| Penzance | Penwith | Cornwall | 1974 | parished 1980 | |
| Queenborough-in-Sheppey | Swale district | Kent | 1974 | Parished (as four parishes) in 1982 | |
| Ramsgate | Thanet | Kent | 1974 | parished 2009[20] | |
| Royal Leamington Spa | Warwick district | Warwickshire | 1974 | parished 2002 | |
| Royal Tunbridge Wells | Tunbridge Wells district | Kent | 1974 | Abolished 1974, successor the Borough of Tunbridge Wells | |
| City of Salisbury (New Sarum) | Salisbury district | Wiltshire | 1974 | parished 2009 | |
| Southport | Sefton | Merseyside | 1974 | abolished c. 1975, successor the Borough of Sefton | |
| Taunton | Taunton Deane District | Somerset | 1974, re-established 2019 | abolished 1975, successor the Borough of Taunton Deane. Parished 1 April 2023 (Taunton Town Council) | |
| Weston-super-Mare | Woodspring (now North Somerset) | Avon | 1974 | parished 2000 | |
| Workington | Allerdale | Cumbria | 1974 | parished 1982 | |
| Yeovil | Yeovil district (now South Somerset) | Somerset | 1974 | parished 1984 |
The structural changes to local government in 2009 led to the formation of Charter Trustees for Crewe, Macclesfield, Chester and Ellsemere Port.[21] The Charter Trustees for Crewe and Macclesfield were subsequently abolished and replaced by parishes.
Charter trustees were established in April 2019 for Bournemouth, Poole and Taunton as a consequence of local government structural changes in Dorset and Somerset.
On 1 April 2023 the unitary authorities of Cumberland, Westmorland and Furness, and North Yorkshire were established. Charter trustees were established for Carlisle (which also preserved its city status[22] [23]), Barrow,[4] Harrogate and Scarborough.[24]