| Borough of King's Lynn and West Norfolk | |
| Type: | Borough and non-metropolitan district |
| Blank Emblem Type: | Coat of Arms |
| Mapsize: | frameless |
| Subdivision Type: | Sovereign state |
| Subdivision Name: | United Kingdom |
| Subdivision Type1: | Constituent country |
| Subdivision Name1: | England |
| Subdivision Type2: | Region |
| Subdivision Name2: | East of England |
| Subdivision Type3: | Administrative county |
| Subdivision Name3: | Norfolk |
| Seat Type: | Admin. HQ |
| Seat: | King's Lynn |
| Government Type: | Borough Council |
| Leader Title2: | MPs |
| Established Title: | Founded |
| Area Rank: | |
| Population Rank: | Ranked |
| Population Density Km2: | auto |
| Timezone: | Greenwich Mean Time |
| Utc Offset: | +0 |
| Timezone Dst: | British Summer Time |
| Utc Offset Dst: | +1 |
| Postal Code Type: | Postcode |
| Blank Name: | ISO 3166-2 |
| Blank1 Name: | ONS code |
| Blank1 Info: | 33UE (ONS) E07000146 (GSS) |
| Blank2 Name: | OS grid reference |
| Blank3 Name: | NUTS 3 |
| Demographics Type1: | Ethnicity (2021) |
| Demographics1 Title1: | Ethnic groups |
| Demographics Type2: | Religion (2021) |
| Demographics2 Title1: | Religion |
King's Lynn and West Norfolk is a local government district with borough status in Norfolk, England. Its council is based in the town of King's Lynn. The district also includes the towns of Downham Market and Hunstanton, along with numerous villages and surrounding rural areas. The population of the district at the 2021 census was 154,325.[1]
Part of the borough lies within the Norfolk Coast Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty. The borough lies on the coast, facing both The Wash to the west and the North Sea to the north. The neighbouring districts are North Norfolk, Breckland, West Suffolk, East Cambridgeshire, Fenland and South Holland.
The district was created on 1 April 1974 under the Local Government Act 1972, covering seven former districts which were all abolished at the same time:[2]
The new district was initially named "West Norfolk" reflecting its position in the wider county.[3] The district was awarded borough status on 30 January 1981, allowing the chair of the council to take the title of mayor. The name of the borough was changed later that year, becoming "King's Lynn and West Norfolk" with effect from 14 May 1981.[4]
| Borough Council of King's Lynn and West Norfolk | |
| Logo Pic: | Borough Council of King's Lynn and West Norfolk logo.svg |
| Logo Res: | 220px |
| House Type: | Non-metropolitan district |
| Leader1: | Paul Bland |
| Election1: | 16 May 2024[5] |
| Leader2: | Alistair Beales |
| Election2: | 16 May 2024 |
| Leader3: | Lorraine Gore |
| Election3: | 1 September 2019[6] |
| Members: | 55 councillors |
| Structure1 Res: | 200px |
| Political Groups1: |
|
| Next Election2: | 6 May 2027 |
| Session Room: | Kings Lynn Guild Hall (geograph 4626827).jpg |
| Meeting Place: | Town Hall, Saturday Market Place, King's Lynn, PE305DQ |
The Borough Council of King's Lynn and West Norfolk provides district-level services. County-level services are provided by Norfolk County Council. Much of the borough is also covered by civil parishes, which form a third tier of local government.[7] [8]
The council has been under no overall control since the 2023 election, being run by a coalition of most of the independent councillors, the Liberal Democrats and the Greens with informal support from Labour.[9]
The first election to the council was held in 1973, initially operating as a shadow authority alongside the outgoing authorities until the new arrangements took effect on 1 April 1974. Political control of the council since 1974 has been as follows:[10] [11]
| Party in control | Years | |
|---|---|---|
| 1974–1976 | ||
| 1976–1991 | ||
| 1991–1995 | ||
| 1995–1999 | ||
| 1999–2003 | ||
| 2003–2023 | ||
| 2023–present | ||
The role of mayor is largely ceremonial in King's Lynn and West Norfolk, with political leadership instead provided by the leader of the council. The leaders since 2007 have been:[12]
| Councillor | Party | From | To | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Nick Daubney[13] | 2007 | 12 May 2016 | ||
| Brian Long[14] | 12 May 2016 | 20 May 2021 | ||
| Stuart Dark | 20 May 2021 | 18 May 2023 | ||
| Terry Parish | 18 May 2023 | 16 May 2024 | ||
| Alistair Beale | 16 May 2024 | |||
Following the 2023 election and subsequent changes of allegiance up to May 2024, the composition of the council was:[15] [16]
| Party | Councillors | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| 21 | |||
| 19 | |||
| 10 | |||
| 3 | |||
| 2 | |||
| Total | 55 | ||
Of the 19 independent councillors, 16 sit together as the 'Independent Partnership', which forms the council's administration with the Liberal Democrats and Greens. Another two form the 'Progressive Group', and the other does not belong to a group.[17] The next election is due in 2027.
Since the last boundary changes in 2019 the council has comprised 55 councillors representing 35 wards, with each ward electing one, two or three councillors. Elections are held every four years.[18]
Although the UK Youth Parliament is an apolitical organisation, the elections are run in a way similar to that of the Local Elections. The votes come from 11 to 18 year olds and are combined to make the decision of the next, 2 year Member of Youth Parliament. The elections are run at different times across the country with King's Lynn and West Norfolk's typically being in early Spring and bi-annually.
The council generally meets at the Town Hall on the Saturday Market Place in King's Lynn, parts of which date back to the 1420s, having replaced an earlier guildhall on the site which burnt down in 1421.[19] The council's main offices are at King's Court, on Chapel Street in King's Lynn, which had been built as speculative offices in 1975, initially being called Aspen House.[20] The council bought the building in 1981.[21]
The district comprises the urban area of King's Lynn itself, together with 102 surrounding parishes. At the time of the 2001 census, the district had an area of 1,473 km2, of which 28 km2 was in the urban area and 1,445 km2 in the surrounding parishes. The district had a population of 135,345 in 58,338 households, with 34,564 in 15,285 households living in the urban area, whilst 100,781 people in 43,053 households lived in the surrounding parishes.[22]
The main part of the urban area of King's Lynn (roughly corresponding to the pre-1974 borough of King's Lynn) is an unparished area.[8] The remainder of the district is covered by civil parishes. The parish councils for Downham Market and Hunstanton have declared their parishes to be towns, allowing them to take the style "town council". The parishes are:[23]
| King's Lynn and West Norfolk Borough Council | |
| Escutcheon: | Per chevron Azure and Or three dragons' heads erect and erased each transfixed through the mouth by a cross botonny fitchy all within a bordure per chevron counter-changed. |
| Crest: | Upon a wreath Or and Azure upon a bollard Sable roped Or a seagull Proper gorged with a coronet and holding in the dexter claw a cross botonny fitchy Or. |
| Supporters: | On either side a sea lion Or supporting with the exterior leg an ostrich feather Argent.[24] |
| Badge: | A sea lion Or within a garland of oakleaves fructed Proper. |