| North Tyneside Council | |
| Logo Pic: | North Tyneside Council logo.svg |
| Logo Res: | 250px |
| House Type: | Metropolitan borough council |
| Foundation: | 1 April 1974 |
| Leader1 Type: | Chair |
| Leader1: | Steve Cox |
| Party1: | Labour |
| Election1: | 16 May 2024[1] |
| Leader2 Type: | Mayor |
| Leader2: | Norma Redfearn |
| Party2: | Labour |
| Election2: | 6 May 2013 |
| Leader3 Type: | Chief Executive |
| Leader3: | Paul Hanson |
| Election3: | August 2018[2] |
| Structure1: | North_Tyneside_Council_2024.svg |
| Structure1 Res: | 150 |
| Seats: | Elected mayor plus 60 councillors |
| Political Groups1: |
|
| Joint Committees: | North East Combined Authority |
| Voting System1: | First-past-the-post |
| Last Election1: | 2 May 2024 |
| Next Election1: | 7 May 2026 |
| Session Room: | Council HQ - Cobalt Business Park.jpg |
| Meeting Place: | Quadrant East, 16 The Silverlink North, Newcastle upon Tyne, NE270BY |
North Tyneside Council, or North Tyneside Metropolitan Borough Council, is the local authority for the metropolitan borough of North Tyneside in Tyne and Wear, England. It is a metropolitan borough council and provides the majority of local government services in the borough. The council has been a member of the North East Combined Authority since 2024.
The council has been under Labour majority control since 2011. It is based at Quadrant East in Cobalt Park, a large business park in the centre of the borough.
North Tyneside and its council were created in 1974 under the Local Government Act 1972 as one of five districts within the new metropolitan county of Tyne and Wear. The district covered the whole area of three former districts and parts of another two, which were all abolished at the same time:
The whole area had been in Northumberland prior to the reforms; as a county borough, Tynemouth had been independent from Northumberland County Council but had been part of Northumberland for ceremonial purposes.[3] The new district was granted borough status from its creation, allowing it to appoint a mayor.[4]
North Tyneside Council initially provided district-level functions, with county-level functions being provided by Tyne and Wear County Council. The county council was abolished in 1986, after only twelve years in existence, and its functions passed to the area's five district councils.[5]
In 2002 the council changed to having a directly elected mayor; prior to that the mayor had been a more ceremonial position.
Since 1986 the council has provided both district-level and county-level functions, with some services being provided through joint arrangements with the other Tyne and Wear councils. In 2024 a combined authority was established covering North Tyneside, County Durham, Gateshead, Newcastle upon Tyne, Northumberland, South Tyneside and Sunderland, called the North East Mayoral Combined Authority. It is chaired by the directly elected Mayor of the North East and oversees the delivery of certain strategic functions across the area.[6] [7]
The council has been under Labour majority control since 2011.
The first election to the council was held in 1973, initially operating as a shadow authority alongside the outgoing authorities until it came into its powers on 1 April 1974. Political control of the council since 1974 has been as follows:[8] [9]
| Party in control | Years | |
|---|---|---|
| 1974–1986 | ||
| 1986–1987 | ||
| 1987–2004 | ||
| 2004–2008 | ||
| 2008–2010 | ||
| 2010–2011 | ||
| 2011–present | ||
Prior to 2002, political leadership was provided by the leader of the council. In 2002 the council changed to having a directly elected mayor. There have been periods where the mayor is of one party but the majority of the councillors are of another party.
The leaders from 1974 to 2002 were:
| Councillor | Party | From | To | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jim Bamborough[10] | 1 Apr 1974 | 18 May 1984 | ||
| Brian Flood | 18 May 1984 | 5 May 1996 | ||
| Rita Stringfellow[11] | May 1996 | 5 May 2002 | ||
The mayors since 2002 have been:
| Mayor | Party | From | To | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 6 May 2002 | 18 Apr 2003 | |||
| 12 Jun 2003 | 8 May 2005 | |||
| 9 May 2005 | 7 Jun 2009 | |||
| 8 Jun 2009 | 5 May 2013 | |||
| 6 May 2013 | ||||
Following the 2024 election, the composition of the council (excluding the elected mayor's seat) was:[12] [13]
| Party | Councillors | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| 51 | |||
| 8 | |||
| 1 | |||
| Total | 60 | ||
Since the last boundary changes in 2024 the council has comprised 60 councillors representing 20 wards, with each ward electing three councillors. Elections are held three years out of every four, with a third of the council (one councillor for each ward) elected each time for a four-year term of office.[14]
Since 2008 the council has been based at Quadrant East, a modern office building at Cobalt Park, a large business park in the centre of the borough.[15] With an NE27 postcode, the building comes under the Newcastle upon Tyne post town, although the council itself quotes the address as "North Tyneside" (administratively accurate but not postally).[16] [17] The building is in the part of the borough which was the County Borough of Tynemouth prior to 1974.[18]
Prior to 2008 the council's offices were in several locations across the borough. Meetings were held at Wallsend Town Hall.[19]