| South Lakeland District | |
| Type: | Non-metropolitan district |
| Image Blank Emblem: | South Lakeland DC logo.svg |
| Blank Emblem Size: | 200 |
| Mapsize: | frameless |
| Subdivision Type: | Sovereign state |
| Subdivision Name: | United Kingdom |
| Subdivision Type1: | Constituent country |
| Subdivision Name1: | England |
| Subdivision Type2: | Region |
| Subdivision Name2: | North West England |
| Subdivision Type3: | Ceremonial county |
| Subdivision Name3: | Cumbria |
| Subdivision Type4: | Historic county |
| Subdivision Name4: | Lancashire (part) Westmorland (part) Yorkshire (part) |
| Seat Type: | Admin. HQ |
| Seat: | Kendal |
| Government Type: | South Lakeland District Council |
| Leader Name: | Leader & Cabinet |
| Leader Title2: | MPs |
| Established Title: | Founded |
| Extinct Title: | Abolished |
| Population As Of: | 2021 |
| Population Total: | 104,676 |
| 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: | 16UG (ONS) E07000031 (GSS) |
| Blank2 Name: | OS grid reference |
| Blank3 Name: | NUTS 3 |
| Blank4 Name: | Ethnicity |
| Website: | southlakeland.gov.uk |
South Lakeland was a local government district in Cumbria, England, from 1974 to 2023. Its council was based in Kendal. The district covered the southern part of the Lake District region, as well as northwestern parts of the Yorkshire Dales. At the 2011 Census, the population of the district was 103,658, an increase from 102,301 at the 2001 Census.
The district was created on 1 April 1974 under the Local Government Act 1972. It was formed from the Kendal borough, Windermere urban district, most of Lakes urban district, South Westmorland Rural District, from Westmorland, Grange and Ulverston urban districts and North Lonsdale Rural District from Lancashire, and Sedbergh Rural District from the West Riding of Yorkshire.
In April 2023, Cumbria was reorganised into two unitary authorities.[1] South Lakeland District Council was abolished and its functions were transferred to the Westmorland and Furness unitary authority.
See also: South Lakeland local elections. Elections to the district council were held in three out of every four years, with one third of the 51 seats on the council being elected at each election. No political party held a majority on the council from the first election in 1973 to 2006. However, after winning a majority at the 2006 election the Liberal Democrats controlled the council. After a set of by-elections in 2021 the council was composed of the following councillors:-[2]
| Party | Councillors | ||
| Liberal Democrats | 33 | ||
| Conservative Party | 14 | ||
| Labour Party | 3 | ||
| Green | 1 | ||
The council was fined £120,000 in February 2015 after two women were killed in separate incidents by reversing rubbish lorries. An investigation by the Health and Safety Executive found they had failed to tackle the risks from reversing vehicles.[3]