Cotswold District

Cotswold is a local government district in Gloucestershire, England. It is named after the wider Cotswolds region. Its main town is Cirencester. Other notable towns include Tetbury, Moreton-in-Marsh, Stow-on-the-Wold and Chipping Campden. Notable villages in the district include Bourton-on-the-Water, Blockley, Kemble and Upper Rissington among other villages and hamlets in the district. Cotswold District Council is composed of 34 councillors elected from 32 wards.

Cotswold District
Non-metropolitan district
Cirencester, the administrative centre of the Cotswold District
Cirencester, the administrative centre of the Cotswold District
Cotswold shown within Gloucestershire
Cotswold shown within Gloucestershire
Sovereign stateUnited Kingdom
Constituent countryEngland
RegionSouth West England
Non-metropolitan countyGloucestershire
StatusNon-metropolitan district
Admin HQCirencester
Incorporated1 April 1974
Government
 • TypeNon-metropolitan district council
 • BodyCotswold District Council
 • LeadershipJoe Harris Leader & Cabinet (Liberal Democrats)
 • MPsGeoffrey Clifton-Brown
Area
 • Total449.6 sq mi (1,164.5 km2)
 • Rank23rd (of 309)
Population
 (2021)
 • Total90,832
 • Rank268th (of 309)
 • Density200/sq mi (78/km2)
 • Ethnicity
98.8% White
Time zoneUTC0 (GMT)
 • Summer (DST)UTC+1 (BST)
ONS code23UC (ONS)
E07000079 (GSS)
OS grid referenceSP0221002304
Websitewww.cotswold.gov.uk

It was formed on 1 April 1974 by the merger of the urban district of Cirencester with Cirencester Rural District, North Cotswold Rural District, Northleach Rural District, and Tetbury Rural District. The population of the Cotswold District in the 2011 Census was 83,000.[1]

Eighty per cent of the district lies within the River Thames catchment area, with the Thames itself and several tributaries including the River Windrush and River Leach running through the district. Lechlade is an important point on the river as the upstream limit of navigation. In the 2007 floods in the UK, rivers were the source of flooding of 53 per cent of the locations affected and the Thames at Lechlade reached record levels with over 100 reports of flooding.[2]

The District is spread over 450 square miles, with some 80% of the land located within the Cotswold Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty.[3][1] The much larger area referred to as the Cotswolds encompasses nearly 800 square miles,[4] over five counties: Gloucestershire, Oxfordshire, Warwickshire, Wiltshire, and Worcestershire.[5] This large Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty had a population of 139,000 in 2016.[6]

Cotswold District Council
Logo
Type
Type
Leadership
Joe Harris, Liberal Democrats
since 14 May 2019
Chief Executive
Robert Weaver
Structure
Seats34 councillors
18 / 34
14 / 34
1 / 34
1 / 34
Elections
First past the post
Last election
2 May 2019
Meeting place
Council Chamber, Cotswold District Council, Trinity Road, Cirencester
Website
www.cotswold.gov.uk

Political control

Since the first elections to the council in 1973 political control of the council has been held by the following parties:[7]

Party in controlYears
Independent1973–1999
No overall control1999–2003
Conservative2003–2019
Liberal Democrats2019–present

Leadership

The leaders of the council since the post was created in 2001 have been:[8]

CouncillorPartyFromTo
Les Brown Independent10 May 200120 May 2003
Julie Girling Conservative20 May 20039 May 2006
Lynden Stowe[9] Conservative9 May 200616 May 2017
Mark Annett[10] Conservative16 May 201711 December 2018
Tony Berry[10] Conservative11 Dec 201814 May 2019
Joe Harris Liberal Democrats14 May 2019Incumbent

Chairs of the Council
CouncillorPartyFromTo
D C Leadbeater Independent19731976
C Staite Independent19761977
J Clark Independent19771981
I Lamb Conservative19811983
H Groves Independent19831986
P Cutts Independent19861989
I Maitland Hume Independent19891991
D Godman Independent19911993
M Brown Independent19931995
Sue Herdman Independent19951998
P Pretty Independent19981999
B Evans Independent19992001
Tim Royle Conservative20012004
Sue Jepson Conservative20042007
Sheila Jeffery Conservative20072009
Ben Jeffrey Conservative20092010
Carolyn Nicolle Conservative20102012
Sir Edward Horsfall Conservative20122014
Clive Bennett Conservative20142015
Mark Annett Conservative20152017
Julian Beale Conservative20172019
Nigel Robbins Liberal Democrats20192021
Dr Dilys Neill Liberal Democrats2021Incumbent

Responsibilities

The law requires councils to provide some services. Councils decide the amount of resources given to these depending on the level of need or risk they present.

The statutory functions of Cotswold District Council include:

  • Organising local and national elections
  • Local plans and development management
  • Building control
  • Housing policy and homelessness prevention
  • Housing benefits
  • Environmental health
  • Council Tax and Non-Domestic Rates collection
  • Waste and recycling
  • Street cleansing
  • Street name plates (Street signs)
  • Food safety and water sampling
  • Health, safety and licensing

Cotswold District Council also provides a number of discretionary services:

  • Managing some car parks
  • Promoting economic development
  • Tourism, culture and events
  • Providing some leisure facilities
  • Providing some grants to voluntary organisations
Electoral Wards of Cotswold District Council

Cabinet

Joe Harris appointed the following Cabinet in May 2022.[11]

Office PartyName
Leader and Cabinet Member for Housing Liberal Democrats Joe Harris
Deputy Leader and Cabinet Member for Finance Liberal Democrats Mike Evemy
Cabinet Member for Climate Change and Forward Planning Liberal Democrats Rachel Coxcoon
Cabinet Member for Corporate Services Liberal Democrats Lisa Spivey
Cabinet Member for Waste and Recycling Liberal Democrats Andrew Doherty
Cabinet Member for the Economy and Council Transformation Liberal Democrats Tony Dale
Cabinet Member for Health and Wellbeing Liberal Democrats Jenny Forde
Cabinet Member for Regulatory Services Liberal Democrats Juliet Layton

Current councillors

There are 34 councillors. After the May 2019 election, there are 18 Liberal Democrats, 14 Conservatives, one independent and one Green.

Ward Councillor Party
Abbey Mark Harris Liberal Democrats
Blockley Sue Jepson Conservative
Bourton Vale Richard Keeling Conservative
Bourton Village Nick Maunder Liberal Democrats
Campden and Vale Gina Blomefield Conservative
Mark Annett Conservative
Chedworth and Churn Valley Jenny Forde Liberal Democrats
Chesterton Roly Hughes Liberal Democrats
Coln Valley Ray Theodoulou Conservative
Ermin Julia Judd Conservative
Fairford North Andrew Doherty Liberal Democrats
Fosseridge Julian Beale Conservative
Four Acres Ray Brassington Liberal Democrats
Grumbolds Ash with Avening Richard Morgan Conservative
Kemble Tony Berry Conservative
Lechlade, Kempsford and Fairford South Stephen Andrews Conservative
Steve Trotter Conservative
Moreton East Rachel Coxcoon Liberal Democrats
Moreton West Clive Webster Liberal Democrats
New Mills Claire Bloomer Liberal Democrats
Northleach Tony Dale Liberal Democrats
Sandywell Robin Hughes Conservative
Siddington and Cerney Rural Mike Evemy Liberal Democrats
South Cerney Village Juliet Layton Liberal Democrats
St Michael's Joe Harris Liberal Democrats
Stow Dilys Neill Liberal Democrats
Stratton Patrick Coleman Liberal Democrats
Tetbury East and Rural Nikki Ind Independent
Tetbury Central Stephen Hirst Conservative
Tetbury with Upton Richard Norris Conservative
The Ampneys and Hampton Lisa Spivey Liberal Democrats
The Beeches Nigel Robbins Liberal Democrats
The Rissingtons Andrew Maclean Green
Watermoor Gary Selwyn Liberal Democrats

May 2019 local elections result dispute

Nigel Adams, Cotswold District Council's returning officer and its "head of paid services" reportedly decided a tied result between two candidates in the Tetbury Town ward by allocating a spoiled ballot paper that had the word "BREXIT" written across it in favour of the Conservative candidate, Stephen Hirst. The hitherto tied candidate, Independent David Painter, described it as a "travesty of justice" and said "no wonder people are turned off voting". Painter sought to raise £2,500 to begin a legal challenge against the returning officer's decision.[12]

References
  1. "Archived copy" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 5 October 2015. Retrieved 14 July 2018.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  2. "Cotswold District Council - Review of the Summer 2007 floods in Cotswold District". Archived from the original on 22 July 2011.
  3. "About the Council - Cotswold District Council". cotswold.gov.uk.
  4. "Cotswolds.com - The Official Cotswolds Tourist Information Site". Cotswolds.
  5. "In Deep: Idyllic England in the Cotswolds | Butterfield & Robinson". 14 August 2017.
  6. https://www.cotswoldsaonb.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2017/07/NEW-FACT-SHEET-6-v1.pdf
  7. "Cotswold". BBC News Online. Retrieved 25 September 2009.
  8. "Council minutes". Cotswold District Council. Retrieved 25 June 2022.
  9. Al Rasheed, Tarik (21 February 2017). "Leader of Cotswold District Council, Cllr Lynden Stowe, to step down at annual meeting". Worcester News. Retrieved 25 June 2022.
  10. "Christmas message from Cllr Tony Berry, Leader Cotswold District Council". Loving the Cotswolds. 14 December 2018. Retrieved 25 June 2022. ...taking over from Cllr Mark Annett who stepped down in late September for health reasons...
  11. "Liberal Democrat Cabinet". BBC News Online. Retrieved 25 September 2009.
  12. Private Eye, Issue 1496, p.15

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