Wakefield Council

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Wakefield Council
Third of council elected three years out of four
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Coat of arms
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Council logo
Type
Type
Leadership
Brian Moorhouse,
Reform UK
since 20 May 2026
Karl Johnson,
Reform UK
since 12 May 2026
John Thomas
since 12 May 2026
Structure
Seats63 councillors
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Political groups
Administration (57)
Page Template:Legend/styles.css has no content.  Reform UK (57)
Other parties (6)
Page Template:Legend/styles.css has no content.  Liberal Democrats (2)
Page Template:Legend/styles.css has no content.  Conservative (1)
Page Template:Legend/styles.css has no content.  Green Party (1)
Page Template:Legend/styles.css has no content.  Labour (1)
Page Template:Legend/styles.css has no content.  Independent (1)
Joint committees
West Yorkshire Combined Authority
Elections
Multiple member first-past-the-post voting
Last election
7 May 2026
Next election
6 May 2027
Motto
Persevere and prosper
Meeting place
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County Hall, Bond Street, Wakefield, WF1 2QW
Website
www.wakefield.gov.uk

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Wakefield Council, also known as the City of Wakefield Metropolitan District Council, is the local authority of the City of Wakefield in West Yorkshire, England. Wakefield has had a council since 1848, which has been reformed on several occasions. Since 1974 it has been a metropolitan borough council. It provides the majority of local government services in the city. The council has been a member of the West Yorkshire Combined Authority since 2014.

The council was under Labour majority control from the 1974 reforms until 2026, when Reform UK won an overwhelming majority.[1] It meets at County Hall and has its main offices at Wakefield One.

History

The town of Wakefield had been an ancient borough, with its earliest known charter granted c. 1190. It lost its borough status c. 1580, after which it was governed by its manorial courts and vestry.[2]

File:Wakefield Town Hall - geograph.org.uk - 5830579.jpg
Wakefield Town Hall, Wood Street, completed 1880

A Wakefield parliamentary borough (constituency) was created in 1832.[3] In 1848 the town was also incorporated as a municipal borough, after which it was governed by a body formally called the "mayor, aldermen and burgesses of the borough of Wakefield", generally known as the corporation or town council.[4]

Wakefield was awarded city status in 1888, after which the corporation was also known as the city council.[5] In 1915, Wakefield raised to the status of a county borough, taking on the county-level services previously provided in the city by West Riding County Council.[4]

The larger metropolitan district of Wakefield and its council were created on 1 April 1974 under the Local Government Act 1972. It covered the whole area of eleven former districts and parts of another two, which were all abolished at the same time:[6][7]

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The new Wakefield district was awarded borough status from its creation, allowing the chair of the council to take the title of mayor, continuing Wakefield's series of mayors dating back to 1848.[8] Wakefield's city status was extended to cover the whole of the new borough.[9] As such the council could call itself "Wakefield City Council", which name is sometimes used for it in official documents and the media.[10][11][12] The council now styles itself "Wakefield Council", having previously used the branding "City of Wakefield Metropolitan District Council".[13]

From 1974 until 1986 Wakefield was a district-level authority, with West Yorkshire County Council providing county-level services. The metropolitan county councils, including West Yorkshire County Council, were abolished in 1986 under the Local Government Act 1985. Since 1986 Wakefield Council has therefore been responsible for most local government functions.[14]

In 2004 the district's council housing was transferred to Wakefield and District Housing (WDH), a new independent housing association. Council houses account for around 30% of the district's housing. In April 2025, WDH rebranded to Vico Homes.[15]

The council has been a constituent member of the West Yorkshire Combined Authority since 2014, which has been led by the directly elected Mayor of West Yorkshire since 2021.[16]

Governance

File:WRCountyHallCouncilChamber.jpg
Inside the council chamber

The local authority derives its powers and functions from the Local Government Act 1972 and subsequent legislation. For the purposes of local government, Wakefield is within a metropolitan area of England. As a metropolitan district council, Wakefield Council provides most local government functions directly, including collecting Council Tax and business rates, town planning, housing, waste collection and environmental health, social services, libraries and waste disposal. It is also a local education authority. Wakefield Council is the billing authority for Council Tax, and collects precepts on behalf of the West Yorkshire Police and Crime Commissioner and the West Yorkshire Fire and Civil Defence Authority.

Certain services are provided with the other local authorities in West Yorkshire. The council is represented on West Yorkshire Joint Services Committee (for trading standards, archives, archaeology and grants), West Yorkshire Fire and Civil Defence Authority, West Yorkshire Integrated Transport Authority and the West Yorkshire Police and Crime Panel.[17] Wakefield Council has been a constituent member of the West Yorkshire Combined Authority since 2014.

Political control

The first election to the reconstituted council was held in 1973, initially operating as a shadow authority alongside the outgoing authorities until the new arrangements came into effect on 1 April 1974. Labour held a majority of the seats on the council from its creation until 2026, when Reform UK took a majority.[18][19][20]

Party in control Years
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Script error: No such module "Party name with color". 2026–present

Leadership

The role of mayor is largely ceremonial in Wakefield. Political leadership is instead provided by the leader of the council. The leaders since 1998 have been:

Councillor Party From To
Colin Croxall[21] Script error: No such module "Party name with color". 24 Jul 1998
Peter Box[22][23] Script error: No such module "Party name with color". 1998 30 Nov 2019
Denise Jeffery[23] Script error: No such module "Party name with color". 1 Dec 2019 8 May 2026
Karl Johnson[24] Script error: No such module "Party name with color". 20 May 2026 -

Composition

Following the 2026 election, and subsequent changes of allegiance up to June 2025, the composition of the council was:[25]

Party Councillors
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Total 63

The next election is due in May 2027.[25]

Elections

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Premises

File:Wakefield One (geograph 5826687).jpg
Wakefield One, Burton Street

The council meets at County Hall on Bond Street in Wakefield. The building was completed in 1898 as the headquarters of the former West Riding County Council, and subsequently served as the headquarters of West Yorkshire County Council between 1974 and 1986. Following the abolition of West Yorkshire County Council in 1986 the building was acquired by Wakefield Council. County Hall is a Grade I listed building.[27]

The council has its main offices and customer services centre in the nearby Wakefield One building on Burton Street, which was completed in 2012 and also houses the city's main library.[28][29]

Wakefield Town Hall on Wood Street is also used for some meetings and offices.[30] It was completed in 1880 and served as the main headquarters of Wakefield's council through its various iterations until the modern council's acquisition of County Hall in 1987.[31][32]

Former logos

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References

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  1. ^ Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css has no content."Cllr Karl Johnson set to become new Leader of Wakefield Council - Wakefield Council". www.wakefield.gov.uk. Retrieved 21 May 2026.
  2. ^ Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css has no content.Goodchild, John (May 2011). "An outline history of Wakefield". Wakefield Historical Society. Retrieved 23 June 2024.
  3. ^ Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css has no content.Parliamentary Boundaries Act. 1832. p. 368. Retrieved 23 June 2024.
  4. ^ a b Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css has no content."Wakefield Municipal Borough / County Borough". A Vision of Britain through Time. GB Historical GIS / University of Portsmouth. Retrieved 23 June 2024.
  5. ^ Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css has no content.[Script error: No such module "London Gazette util". "No. 25837"]. The London Gazette (Script error: No such module "London Gazette util".). 13 July 1888. p. Script error: No such module "London Gazette util".. {{cite magazine}}: Check |url= value (help); More than one of |pages= and |page= specified (help)Script error: No such module "London Gazette util".
  6. ^ Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css has no content."Local Government Act 1972", legislation.gov.uk, The National Archives, 1972 c. 70, retrieved 18 June 2023
  7. ^ Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css has no content."The Metropolitan Districts (Names) Order 1973", legislation.gov.uk, The National Archives, SI 1973/137, retrieved 18 June 2023
  8. ^ Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css has no content."District Councils and Boroughs". Parliamentary Debates (Hansard). 28 March 1974. Retrieved 16 January 2012.
  9. ^ Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css has no content.[Script error: No such module "London Gazette util". "No. 46303"]. The London Gazette (Script error: No such module "London Gazette util".). 31 May 1974. p. Script error: No such module "London Gazette util".. {{cite magazine}}: Check |url= value (help); More than one of |pages= and |page= specified (help)Script error: No such module "London Gazette util".
  10. ^ Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css has no content."The Whole of Government Accounts (Designation of Bodies) Order 2023", legislation.gov.uk, The National Archives, SI 2023/1016, retrieved 23 June 2024
  11. ^ Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css has no content.[Script error: No such module "London Gazette util". "No. 48454"]. The London Gazette (Script error: No such module "London Gazette util".). 16 December 1980. p. Script error: No such module "London Gazette util".. {{cite magazine}}: Check |url= value (help); More than one of |pages= and |page= specified (help)Script error: No such module "London Gazette util".
  12. ^ Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css has no content."Council drops Wakefield shopping centre buyout over cash fears". BBC News. 13 December 2022. Retrieved 23 June 2024.
  13. ^ Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css has no content."City of Wakefield Metropolitan District Council". Archived from the original on 3 February 2003. Retrieved 23 June 2024.
  14. ^ Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css has no content."Local Government Act 1985", legislation.gov.uk, The National Archives, 1985 c. 51, retrieved 18 June 2023
  15. ^ Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css has no content."A new chapter for WDH as it rebrands to Vico Homes". Wakefield Express. 11 March 2025. Retrieved 19 May 2025.
  16. ^ Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css has no content."The West Yorkshire Combined Authority Order 2014". www.legislation.gov.uk.
  17. ^ Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css has no content."Constitution" (PDF).
  18. ^ Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css has no content."Compositions Calculator". The Elections Centre. University of Exeter. Retrieved 21 May 2025. (Put "Wakefield" in search box to see specific results.)
  19. ^ Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css has no content."Wakefield". BBC News Online. 19 April 2008. Retrieved 3 December 2009.
  20. ^ Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css has no content."Reform UK ousts Labour from Wakefield Council". BBC News. 8 May 2026.
  21. ^ Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css has no content."Leader resigns". Huddersfield Daily Examiner. 24 July 1998. p. 1. Retrieved 25 June 2025.
  22. ^ Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css has no content.Burn, Chris (14 October 2019). "Wakefield Council leader Peter Box quitting after 21 years - days after becoming Welcome to Yorkshire chair". Yorkshire Post. Retrieved 25 June 2025.
  23. ^ a b Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css has no content."Council minutes, 16 October 2019" (PDF). Wakefield Council. Retrieved 20 June 2023.
  24. ^ Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css has no content."New leaders sworn in for West Yorkshire councils". BBC News. 20 May 2026. Retrieved 24 May 2026.
  25. ^ a b Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css has no content."Wakefield". Local Councils. Thorncliffe. Retrieved 25 June 2025.
  26. ^ Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css has no content."The City of Wakefield (Electoral Changes) Order 2003", legislation.gov.uk, The National Archives, SI 2003/3087, retrieved 20 June 2023
  27. ^ Script error: No such module "Template wrapper".
  28. ^ Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css has no content."Contact us". Wakefield Council. Retrieved 20 June 2023.
  29. ^ Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css has no content.Spereall, David (15 October 2019). "Wakefield One council office could become 'smart' building with new sensors". Wakefield Express. Retrieved 20 June 2023.
  30. ^ Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css has no content."Calendar". Wakefield Council. Retrieved 23 June 2024.
  31. ^ Script error: No such module "Template wrapper".
  32. ^ Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css has no content.Gardner, Tony (5 October 2022). "Wakefield Council to shut historic County Hall headquarters blaming soaring energy costs". Wakefield Express. Retrieved 23 June 2024.

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