Local government in Leeds
- This article discusses the metropolitan district of the City of Leeds. (For information on the city itself, see Leeds).
The City of Leeds is a metropolitan district with city status within the metropolitan county of West Yorkshire, England, with a population of (2022). It stretches from Otley and Wetherby in the north, on the border with North Yorkshire, to the border with the district of the City of Wakefield in the south, and from Pudsey on the border with the district of the City of Bradford in the west, to Garforth and Micklefield in the east. It is named after its major settlement, Leeds, which is also the administrative seat. To the south and west, the district covers mostly urban and suburban areas, with some woodland. To the east and north, the district includes urban and suburban areas. There are several distinct towns and villages within the district, in addition to the city of Leeds.
Leeds City Council
Leeds City Council is the local government of the City of Leeds metropolitan district. The council is composed of 99 councillors, three for each of the city's wards. It is currently under No Overall Control, and is run by a coalition of the Conservatives, Liberal Democrats and Morley Borough Independents. The leaders of the Conservatives (Andrew Carter) and Liberal Democrats (Richard Brett) take turns to hold the office of Leader.
It was under No Overall Control until 1976, when the Conservatives took control until 1979, when it returned to NOC. From 1980 to 2004 it was under Labour control. Elections are usually by thirds: 2004 saw all seats up for election due to boundary changes.
| Year | Labour | Liberal Democrats | Conservative | Others |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2007 | 43 | 24 | 22 | 10 |
| 2006 | 40 | 26 | 24 | 9 |
| 2004 | 40 | 26 | 24 | 9 |
| 2003 | 52 | 22 | 20 | 5 |
| 2002 | 57 | 20 | 18 | 4 |
| 2000 | 61 | 19 | 16 | 3 |
| 1999 | 71 | 14 | 12 | 2 |
| 1998 | 78? | 8? | 8? | 2 |
History and geography
Prior to 1974, the borough of Leeds was governed by Leeds Corporation or the Corporation of Leeds, established by the Municipal Corporations Act 1835. The municipal borough of Leeds became a county borough with the Local Government Act 1888.[1]
The City of Leeds was formed in 1974, under the Local Government Act 1972, from the areas of the former County Borough of Leeds and the nine surrounding boroughs and districts. The three rural districts of Wharfedale, Wetherby and Tadcaster in the north and east were split in the reform. The other former boroughs and districts that were merged into the City of Leeds were those of Rothwell and Morley in the south, Pudsey in the west, and Horsforth, Aireborough and Otley in the north-west. [2]
The area that now forms the metropolitan district was part of the historical West Riding of Yorkshire, although when the Local Government Act 1888 established the administrative counties, the County Borough of Leeds and other county boroughs were excluded. [citation needed]
Leeds (former county borough)
Apart from Leeds City Centre, the area of the former County Borough of Leeds includes the following areas north of the River Aire: Adel, Alwoodley, Austhorpe, Beckett Park, Beck Hill, Blenheim, Burmantofts, Burley, Chapel Allerton, Chapeltown, Colton, Cookridge, Cross Gates (or Crossgates), East End Park, Gipton, Gledhow, Halton, Halton Moor, Harehills, Hawksworth, Headingley, Holt Park, Hyde Park, Ireland Wood, Killingbeck, Kirkstall, Lawnswood, Little London, Lovell Park, Manston, Meanwood, Miles Hill, Moor Allerton, Moor Grange, Moortown, Oakwood, Osmondthorpe, Pendas Fields, Potternewton, Quarry Hill, Richmond Hill, Roundhay, Scott Hall, Seacroft, Shadwell, Sheepscar, Swarcliffe, Temple Newsam, Tinshill, Weetwood, West Park, Whinmoor, Whitkirk, Woodhouse, and Wykebeck.
The following areas on the southern side of the River Aire are also part of the former county borough: Rodley north-east of the city centre on the Leeds and Liverpool Canal. Swinnow, Bramley, Moorside, Armley and Wortley west of the city centre between Pudsey and the River Aire. Farnley (or Old Farnley) and New Farnley south-west of the city centre, between Pudsey and Beeston. Holbeck and Hunslet between the M621 motorway and the river, opposite the city centre. Cross Flatts, Beeston, Cottingley, Belle Isle and Middleton south of the city centre outside the M621.
Morley (former municipal borough)
Apart from the town of Morley, the Municipal Borough of Morley included East Ardsley (or Ardsley East), West Ardsley, Churwell, Drighlington and Gildersome.
Pudsey (former municipal borough)
The market town of Pudsey, which is situated approximately halfway between Leeds and Bradford, includes Stanningley and the Fulneck Moravian Settlement. From 1937 to the formation of the metropolitan district in 1974, Calverley and Farsley were also officially parts of the Municipal Borough of Pudsey.
Horsforth, Aireborough and Otley (former urban districts)
- The former Horsforth Urban District lies south-east of Yeadon. The town of Horsforth is now a north-western suburb, separated from the city by the railway line to Harrogate and a tributary of the River Aire.
- The area of the former Aireborough Urban District lies between Otley and Pudsey. It comprises the village of Rawdon and the towns of Yeadon and Guiseley. They are situated between Otley in the north and Pudsey in the south, on the north side of the River Aire. The three settlements lie on a straight line connecting Horsforth in a north-west direction with Menston and Burley in Wharfedale (in the City of Bradford metropolitan district, but close to the border with North Yorkshire). This line roughly coincides with the Leeds–Harrogate railway line. Leeds Bradford International Airport lies on the north-east side of that line and is part of Yeadon.
- Otley is a market town in the extreme north-west of the metropolitan district, north of the former Aireborough district. Although the ancient parish of Otley included many of the neighbouring villages, this was not the case for the former Otley Urban District at the time of the 1974 reform.
Wharfedale, Wetherby and Tadcaster (former rural districts)
When the City of Leeds metropolitan district was formed in 1974, each of the three rural districts to the northeast of Leeds was split.
- Arthington, Bramhope and Pool passed from Wharfedale Rural District to the City of Leeds.
- The market town of Wetherby and a large portion of the former Wetherby Rural District became part of the City of Leeds. This includes Bardsey cum Rigton, Boston Spa, Bramham, Clifford, Collingham, East Keswick, Harewood, Linton, Scarcroft, Thorner, Thorp Arch, Walton, and Wothersome.
- Much of Tadcaster Rural District, including Aberford, Allerton Bywater, Austhorpe, Barwick-in-Elmet, Garforth, Great Preston, Kippax, Little Preston, Ledsham, Ledston, Lotherton-cum-Aberford, Micklefield, Mickletown, Parlington, Scholes, Sturton Grange and Swillington, has been part of the metropolitan district since the 1974 reform, but not the market town of Tadcaster.
The remainder of the former districts passed to the borough of Harrogate (Wharfedale, Wetherby) or the district of Selby (Tadcaster), both in North Yorkshire.
Rothwell (former urban district)
The town of Rothwell lies to the south-east of Leeds and is separated from the city by the M1 motorway. Carlton, Lofthouse, Oulton, Robin Hood, Thorpe and Woodlesford are parts of the historic parish of Rothwell. Moreover, from 1937 to 1974, the Rothwell Urban District also contained Methley (3 miles east of Rothwell) and Hunslet (now an inner-city part of Leeds).
Economy
This is a chart of trend of regional gross value added of Leeds at current basic prices published (pp.240-253) by Office for National Statistics with figures in millions of British Pounds Sterling.
| Year | Regional Gross Value AddedTemplate:Fn | AgricultureTemplate:Fn | IndustryTemplate:Fn | ServicesTemplate:Fn |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1995 | 8,713 | 43 | 2,652 | 6,018 |
| 2000 | 11,681 | 32 | 2,771 | 8,878 |
| 2003 | 13,637 | 36 | 3,018 | 10,583 |
Template:Fnb includes hunting and forestry
Template:Fnb includes energy and construction
Template:Fnb includes financial intermediation services indirectly measured
Template:Fnb Components may not sum to totals due to rounding
Parliamentary constituencies
The eight parliamentary constituencies which represent Leeds as of 2007, and their MPs, are listed in the "Infobox" above.
After planned boundary changes Leeds will be represented by seven constituencies and three-fifths of one (which has 3 Leeds wards and 2 Wakefield wards):
- Elmet and Rothwell (new constituency)
- Leeds Central
- Leeds East
- Leeds North East
- Leeds North West
- Leeds West
- Morley and Outwood (new constituency: 3 Leeds wards and 2 Wakefield wards)
- Pudsey
The existing seats of Morley and Rothwell and Elmet will be abolished; the other six Leeds seats will all have changed boundaries.
Town twinning
The City of Leeds' town twins, or "partner cities" are:
The city also "has close ties or is undertaking projects with"[4]:
References
- ^ Vision of Britain - Leeds CB (historic map)
- ^ The exact allocation was the result of parliamentary debates. According to the original plans the City of Leeds would have included Harrogate and Knaresborough, and Rothwell would have been part of the Wakefield district.
- ^ Leeds City Council. "Leeds - Brno partnership". Retrieved 2007-10-23.
- ^ a b c Leeds City Council. "International Relations - town twinning". Retrieved 2007-10-23.
{{cite web}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter:|1=(help) - ^ Leeds City Council. "Leeds - Dortmund partnership". Retrieved 2007-10-23.
- ^ Leeds City Council. "Leeds - Durban partnership". Retrieved 2007-10-23.
- ^ Leeds City Council. "Leeds - Hangzhou partnership". Retrieved 2007-10-23.
- ^ Leeds City Council. "Leeds - Lille partnership". Retrieved 2007-10-23.
- ^ Leeds City Council. "Leeds - Louisville partnership". Retrieved 2007-10-23.
External links
| Metropolitan districts | |
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| Major settlements (cities in italics) |
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| Topics | |
