| West Dunbartonshire | |
| Native Name: | Scots: Wast Dunbairtonshire Gaelic; Scottish Gaelic: Siorrachd Dhùn Breatann an Iar |
| Image Blank Emblem: | West Dunbartonshire Council.svg |
| Blank Emblem Type: | Council logo |
| Coordinates: | 55.99°N -4.515°W |
| Seat Type: | Admin HQ |
| Seat: | Dumbarton |
| Governing Body: | West Dunbartonshire Council |
| Leader Title: | Control |
| Leader Title1: | MPs |
| Leader Name1: | |
| Subdivision Type: | Sovereign state |
| Subdivision Name: | United Kingdom |
| Subdivision Type2: | Council area |
| Subdivision Type3: | Lieutenancy area |
| Subdivision Name1: | Scotland |
| Subdivision Name3: | Dunbartonshire |
| Leader Title2: | MSPs |
| Leader Name2: | |
| Unit Pref: | Imperial |
| Area Rank: | Ranked |
| Population Rank: | Ranked |
| Population Density Km2: | auto |
| Area Code Type: | ONS code |
| Area Code: | S12000039 |
| Iso Code: | GB-WDU |
West Dunbartonshire (Scots: Wast Dunbairtonshire; Gaelic; Scottish Gaelic: Siorrachd Dhùn Breatann an Iar, in Gaelic; Scottish Gaelic pronounced as /ˈʃirˠəxk ɣum ˈpɾʲɛht̪ən̪ˠ əɲ ˈiəɾ/) is one of the 32 local government council areas of Scotland. The area lies to the north-west of the Glasgow City council area and contains many of Glasgow's commuter towns and villages. West Dunbartonshire also borders Argyll and Bute, East Dunbartonshire, Renfrewshire and Stirling.
The council area was formed in 1996 from the former Clydebank district and the eastern part of Dumbarton district, which had both been part of Strathclyde Region.
West Dunbartonshire has three main urban areas: Clydebank, Dumbarton and the Vale of Leven. The area also includes the intervening rural areas, including the Kilpatrick Hills and the south-eastern bank of Loch Lomond. The council is based at 16 Church Street in Dumbarton, although Clydebank is the largest town.
West Dunbartonshire was created in 1996 under the Local Government etc. (Scotland) Act 1994, which abolished the regions and districts which had been created in 1975, replacing them with unitary council areas. West Dunbartonshire covered the area of the abolished Clydebank district and the eastern part of Dumbarton district. In a referendum in 1994 the largely rural western part of the old Dumbarton district, including the town of Helensburgh, had voted to join Argyll and Bute rather than stay with Dumbarton.[1] [2]
The 1994 act originally named the new district "Dumbarton and Clydebank", but the shadow authority elected in 1995 requested a change of name to "West Dunbartonshire", which was agreed by the government before the new council area came into force.[3] [4]
The area is divided into 17 community council areas, 10 of which have community councils as at 2023 (being those with asterisks in the list below):[5]
| West Dunbartonshire | |
| Coa Pic: | West Dunbartonshire Council.svg |
| Coa Res: | 150px |
| Leader1 Type: | Provost |
| Party1: | Labour |
| Election1: | 18 May 2022[6] |
| Leader2 Type: | Leader |
| Leader2: | Martin Rooney |
| Party2: | Labour |
| Election2: | 18 May 2022 |
| Leader3 Type: | Chief Executive |
| Leader3: | Peter Hessett |
| Election3: | 2022[7] |
| Members: | 22 councillors |
| Structure1 Res: | 250px |
| Political Groups1: |
|
| Voting System1: | Single transferable vote |
| Last Election1: | 5 May 2022 |
| Next Election1: | 6 May 2027 |
| Session Room: | The Old Burgh Hall (geograph 5785538).jpg |
| Meeting Place: | Burgh Hall, 16 Church Street, Dumbarton, G821QL |
The council comprises 22 councillors elected from 6 wards.[8]
The first election was held in 1995, initially operating as a shadow authority alongside the outgoing authorities until the new system came into force on 1 April 1996. Political control of West Dunbartonshire Council since 1996 has been as follows:[9]
| Party in control | Years | |
|---|---|---|
| 1996–2007 | ||
| 2007–2012 | ||
| 2012–2017 | ||
| 2017–2022 | ||
| 2022–2022 | ||
| 2022–2024 | ||
| 2024–present | ||
The leaders of the council since 1996 have been:[10]
| Councillor | Party | From | To | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mary Campbell | 1 Apr 1996 | Jun 1997 | ||
| Andy White | Jun 1997 | 20 Dec 2006 | ||
| Martin Rooney | 20 Dec 2006 | 12 Mar 2007 | ||
| Denis Agnew | 12 Mar 2007 | May 2007 | ||
| Iain Robertson | 16 May 2007 | 26 May 2010 | ||
| Ronnie McColl | 26 May 2010 | 3 May 2012 | ||
| Martin Rooney | 16 May 2012 | May 2017 | ||
| Jonathan McColl | 17 May 2017 | May 2022 | ||
| Martin Rooney | 18 May 2022 | |||
Following the 2022 election and subsequent by-elections and changes of allegiance up to June 2024, the composition of the council was:[11] [12] [13]
| Party | Councillors | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| 12 | |||
| 8 | |||
| 1 | |||
| 1 | |||
| Total | 22 | ||
The next election is due in 2027.
The council is based at the former Burgh Hall at 16 Church Street in Dumbarton. It also has an area office in the main shopping centre in Clydebank.[14]
When the council was created in 1996, it inherited several buildings from its predecessors, including Municipal Buildings and Crosslet House from Dumbarton District Council, Clydebank Town Hall and the nearby Council Offices on Rosebery Place from Clydebank District Council, and the County Buildings, Dumbarton from Strathclyde Regional Council.
The council gradually consolidated its offices, with Crosslet House being demolished in 2015,[15] the Rosebery Place offices being demolished in 2017,[16] and the County Buildings being demolished in 2019.[17]
In 2018 the council consolidated most of its offices to Burgh Hall, which had been vacant for some years. The front part of the 1866 building was retained and a modern office complex built to the rear.[18] The Municipal Buildings in Dumbarton are still used by the council as a register office, whilst Clydebank Town Hall is now primarily an events venue.
Since 2007 elections have been held every five years under the single transferable vote system, introduced by the Local Governance (Scotland) Act 2004. Election results since 1995 have been as follows:[9]
| Year | Seats | Labour | SNP | Conservative | Independent / Other | Notes | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 22 | 14 | 7 | 0 | 1 | |||
| 22 | 14 | 7 | 0 | 1 | New ward boundaries.[19] | ||
| 22 | 17 | 3 | 0 | 2 | |||
| 22 | 10 | 9 | 0 | 3 | New ward boundaries.[20] | ||
| 22 | 12 | 6 | 0 | 4 | |||
| 22 | 8 | 10 | 2 | 2 | New ward boundaries.[21] | ||
| 22 | 12 | 9 | 0 | 1 | [22] | ||
Six multi-member wards were created for the 2007 election, replacing 22 single-member wards which had been in place since the creation of the council in 1995:[23]
| Ward number | Ward | Location | Largest settlement | Additional settlements | Seats |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Lomond | Balloch | Gartocharn, Jamestown, Levenvale, Mill of Haldane | 3 | |
| 2 | Leven | Alexandria | Bonhill, Dalmonach, Renton, Dumbarton (northern parts) | 4 | |
| 3 | Dumbarton | Dumbarton | Milton, Bowling | 4 | |
| 4 | Kilpatrick | Duntocher | Faifley, Hardgate | 3 | |
| 5 | Clydebank Central | Clydebank | 4 | ||
| 6 | Clydebank | Old Kilpatrick | 4 | ||
On 18 September 2014, West Dunbartonshire was one of the four council areas which had a majority "Yes" vote in the Scottish Independence Referendum at 54% with an 87.9% turnout rate.[24]
Largest settlements by population:
| Clydebank | |
| Dumbarton | |
| Bonhill | |
| Alexandria | |
| Duntocher | |
| Balloch | |
| Faifley | |
| Old Kilpatrick | |
| Renton | |
| Bowling | |