| Borough of North Warwickshire | |
| Type: | Borough and non-metropolitan district |
| Mapsize: | frameless |
| Subdivision Type: | Sovereign state |
| Subdivision Name: | United Kingdom |
| Subdivision Type1: | Constituent country |
| Subdivision Name1: | England |
| Subdivision Type2: | Region |
| Subdivision Name2: | West Midlands |
| Subdivision Type3: | Administrative county |
| Subdivision Name3: | Warwickshire |
| Seat Type: | Admin. HQ |
| Seat: | Atherstone |
| Government Type: | Non-metropolitan district |
| Leader Title2: | MPs |
| Leader Name2: | Craig Tracey Marcus Jones |
| Established Title: | Founded |
| Established Date: | 1 April 1974 |
| 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 |
| Postal Code: | B46,B79,B78, CV7, CV9, CV10 |
| Blank Name: | ISO 3166-2 |
| Blank1 Name: | ONS code |
| Blank1 Info: | 44UB (ONS) E07000218 (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 |
North Warwickshire is a local government district with borough status in Warwickshire, England. The borough includes the two towns of Atherstone (where the council is based) and Coleshill, and the large villages of Hartshill, Kingsbury, Mancetter, Polesworth and Water Orton along with smaller villages and surrounding rural areas.
The area historically had a large coal mining industry, but the last coal mine in the area, Daw Mill at Arley, closed in 2013.[1] The borough's landscape is primarily of the mildly undulating agricultural variety, with the North Warwickshire plateau rising to 177 m (581 ft) above sea-level at Bentley Common, 2.5 miles southwest of Atherstone. The most significant bodies of water within North Warwickshire are Kingsbury Water Park, Shustoke Reservoir, the River Blythe and the mid-section of the Coventry Canal.
The neighbouring districts are Nuneaton and Bedworth, Coventry, Solihull, Birmingham, Lichfield, Tamworth, North West Leicestershire and Hinckley and Bosworth.
The district was created on 1 April 1974 under the Local Government Act 1972, by a merger of one previous district with part of another, these were:[2]
The new district was named North Warwickshire, reflecting its position in the wider county.[3] The district was awarded borough status from its creation, allowing the chair of the council to take the title of mayor.[4]
| North Warwickshire Borough Council | |
| Logo Pic: | North Warwickshire Borough Council logo.png |
| Logo Res: | 250px |
| House Type: | Non-metropolitan district |
| Leader1 Type: | Mayor |
| Leader1: | Colin Hayfield |
| Party1: | Conservative |
| Election1: | 9 May 2024[5] |
| Leader2 Type: | Leader |
| Leader2: | David Wright |
| Party2: | Conservative |
| Election2: | 20 May 2020 |
| Leader3 Type: | Chief Executive |
| Leader3: | Steve Maxey |
| Election3: | March 2019[6] |
| Seats: | 35 councillors |
| Structure1: | North Warwickshire Borough Council 2023.svg |
| Structure1 Res: | 200px |
| Political Groups1: |
|
| Term Length: | 4 years |
| Voting System1: | First past the post |
| Last Election1: | 4 May 2023 |
| Next Election1: | 6 May 2027 |
| Session Room: | North Warwickshire Borough Council Offices - geograph.org.uk - 609517.jpg |
| Meeting Place: | Council House, South Street, Atherstone, CV91DE |
North Warwickshire Borough Council provides district-level services. County-level services are provided by Warwickshire County Council.[7] The whole borough is also covered by civil parish, which form a third tier of local government.[8]
The council has been under no overall control since the 2023 election, being led by a Conservative minority administration with informal support from two of the three independent councillors.[9]
The first elections to the council were held in 1973, initially operating as a shadow authority alongside the outgoing authorities until the new arrangements came into effect on 1 April 1974. Political control of the council since 1974 has been as follows:[10]
| Party in control | Years | |
|---|---|---|
| 1974–1976 | ||
| 1976–1979 | ||
| 1979–2003 | ||
| 2003–2007 | ||
| 2007–2011 | ||
| 2011–2015 | ||
| 2015–2023 | ||
| 2023–present | ||
The role of mayor is largely ceremonial in North Warwickshire. Political leadership is instead provided by the leader of the council. The leaders since 2009 have been:[11]
| Councillor | Party | From | To | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Colin Hayfield | pre-2009 | 18 May 2011 | ||
| Mick Stanley | 18 May 2011 | 20 May 2015 | ||
| David Humphreys | 20 May 2015 | 20 May 2020 | ||
| David Wright | 20 May 2020 | |||
Following the 2023 election the composition of the council was:[12]
| Party | Councillors | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| 17 | |||
| 15 | |||
| 3 | |||
| Total | 35 | ||
Since the last boundary changes in 2003 the council has comprised 35 councillors representing 17 wards with each ward electing two councillors except the Arley and Whitacre ward, which elects three. Elections are held every four years.[13]
The boundaries of North Warwickshire are similar to those of the North Warwickshire parliamentary constituency. The constituency also includes the town of Bedworth, but does not include the villages of Hartshill and Arley.[8] The local MP is Craig Tracey.
The council is based at the Council House on South Street in Atherstone.[14] The building was purpose-built for the council and opened in 1979.[15]
The whole district is covered by 33 civil parishes. The parish councils for Atherstone and Coleshill have declared their parishes to be towns, allowing them to take the style "town council". Some of the parishes share a grouped parish council. The parishes are:[16]
North Warwickshire is served by BBC West Midlands and ITV Central with television signals received from the Sutton Coldfield TV transmitter.[17]
Radio stations for the area are:
The council was granted a coat of arms in 1976.[18]