Knutsford Town Council is the town council for the

Cheshire Cheshire ( ) is a ceremonial and historic county in North West England, bordered by Wales to the west, Merseyside and Greater Manchester to the north, Derbyshire to the east, and Staffordshire and Shropshire to the south. Cheshire's county t ...

Market Town of

Knutsford Knutsford () is a market town in the borough of Cheshire East, in Cheshire, England. Knutsford is south-west of Manchester, north-west of Macclesfield and 12.5 miles (20 km) south-east of Warrington. The population at the 2011 Census wa ...

. It was established in 1974 as a successor council to the

Knutsford Urban District Council Knutsford Town Council is the town council for the Cheshire Market Town of Knutsford. It was established in 1974 as a successor council to the Knutsford Urban District Council. The last full council elections were held in May 2023, four wards ...

. The last full council elections were held in May 2023, four wards were uncontested whilst a poll was held in the fifth. The elections saw the Conservatives lose control of the council with 10 Independent councillors elected and five Conservatives. The council is split into five wards, Nether (3), Norbury Booths (3), St John's Wood (3), Cross Town (3) and Bexton and Town Centre (3). In 2021, Town Clerk to Knutsford Town Council, Adam Keppel-Green, was named Clerk of the Year in the NALC Star Council Awards.

Precursor

The Knutsford Urban District Council was an

Urban District Council In England and Wales, Northern Ireland, and the Republic of Ireland, an urban district was a type of local government district that covered an urbanised area. Urban districts had an elected urban district council (UDC), which shared local gove ...

for the town of

from 1895 to 1974. It was established in 1895 following the establishment and dissolution of parish councils created under the

Local Government Act 1894 The Local Government Act 1894 (56 & 57 Vict. c. 73) was an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom that reformed local government in England and Wales outside the County of London. The Act followed the reforms carried out at county level un ...

for Nether Knutsford and Over Knutsford. The Urban District Council was dissolved in 1974 upon the creation of the Knutsford Town Council.

Powers and functions

The Town Council derives the bulk of its powers from the

Local Government Act 1972 The Local Government Act 1972 (c. 70) is an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom that reformed local government in England and Wales on 1 April 1974. It was one of the most significant Acts of Parliament to be passed by the Heath Gov ...

and subsequent legislation. The Council adopted the General Power of Competence in 2013 giving it a greater range of powers in line with the

Localism Act 2011 The Localism Act 2011 (c. 20) is an Acts of Parliament in the United Kingdom, Act of Parliament that changes the powers of local government in England. The aim of the act is to facilitate the devolution of decision-making powers from central gov ...

. The Town Council is a Market Authority, operating an Indoor Market Hall and licensing other markets within its boundary, including a monthly Makers' Market of artisan and local producers. The Town Council operates public toilets, a cemetery and chapel, and Allotments and is seeking to take ownership of the Council Offices and certain open spaces from

Cheshire East Council Cheshire East Council is the local authority of the Borough of Cheshire East, Cheshire, England. It is a unitary authority, having the powers of a non-metropolitan county and district council combined. It provides a full range of local government ...

. The Town Council delivers a programme of community events and undertakes a range of initiatives to support the town centre.

Town Mayor

At its inception the newly formed Town Council resolved that the Chairman be styled Town Mayor. The Mayor is elected annually at the Annual Council Meeting in May. The incumbent is Cllr Mike Houghton who took office in May 2022. The Mayor acts a Leader/Chairman of the Town Council and also undertakes an important ambassadorial role, attending community events, opening shops and businesses and acting as a representative of the town in neighbouring areas. The Mayor also hosts a number of fundraising events throughout the year raising money for chosen charities.

Elections

2023 Election

Elections are due to be held on 4 May 2023 for the four wards of the Town Council on the same day as elections to

. These are the first elections following a community governance review which changes the town boundary and modifies the number of wards. Four wards were uncontested returning councillors unopposed, Cross Town ward is contested and a poll will be held on 4 May 2023. The election sees the end of a Conservative majority.

By-Elections 2019-2023

Two by-elections were held in May 2021. A by-election for Nether Ward was triggered in April 2020 following the resignation of

Katherine Fletcher Katherine Fletcher (born 18 February 1976) is a British Conservative Party (UK), Conservative Party politician who serves as the Member of Parliament (United Kingdom), Member of Parliament (MP) for South Ribble (UK Parliament constituency), Sou ...

who had been elected as an MP in December 2019 whilst a by-election for Bexton Ward was triggered following the death of Cllr Barbara Hamilton Coan in November 2020. Both elections had been on hold until May 2021 due to the moratorium on elections under the

Coronavirus Act 2020 The Coronavirus Act 2020 (c. 7) is an act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom that grants the government emergency powers to handle the COVID-19 pandemic. The act allows the government the discretionary power to limit or suspend public ga ...

. In February 2023, Cllr Jan Nicholson resigned as Deputy Town Mayor and councillor, the vacancy was left unfilled until the May 2023 elections.

2019 Election

Elections were held for all four wards in May 2019. All elections were uncontested and one vacancy was left on Over Ward which was filled by co-option with Conservative Elizabeth Beswick.

By-Elections 2015-2019

A by-election was held for Norbury Booths ward on 5 April 2018 following the resignation of incumbent Independent Councillor Charlotte Greenstein A by-election was held for Over ward on 4 May 2017 following the resignation of incumbent Independent Councillor Yvonne Bancroft

2015 Election

Elections were held on 7 May 2015 for the four wards of the Town Council on the same day as elections to

and

Tatton (UK Parliament constituency) Tatton is a constituency in Cheshire represented in the House of Commons of the UK Parliament since 2017 by Esther McVey, a Conservative. Constituency profile Tatton comprises the north-western part of the Cheshire East unitary authority, in ...

Parliamentary seat. Bexton Ward was not contested with the three candidates being elected unopposed. Nether Ward ended in a dead heat between two candidates, settled by the drawing of lots.

By-Elections 2011-2015

A by-election was held for Nether Ward on 13 November 2014 following the death of incumbent Conservative Councillor, Clive Nicholson. A by-election was held for Over Ward on 7 February following the resignation of incumbent Conservative Councillor Bernadette Emmett.

2011 Election

Elections were held on 5 May 2011. Both Norbury Booths and Nether Wards were uncontested, returning three Conservative councillors each.

References

{{Town Councils in Cheshire Knutsford Town Councils in Cheshire Local precepting authorities in England