Waltham Forest London Borough Council is the local authority for the

London Borough of Waltham Forest The London Borough of Waltham Forest () is a London borough in north-east London, England. Its population is estimated to be 276,983 in 2019. It borders five other London boroughs: Enfield to the north-west, Haringey to the west, Hackney to th ...

London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...

, England which has existed since the

London Government Act 1963 The London Government Act 1963 (c. 33) is an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom, which created Greater London and a new local government structure within it. The Act significantly reduced the number of local government districts in the ...

was commenced in 1965, replacing three local authorities: Chingford Borough Council, Leyton Borough Council and Walthamstow Borough Council. It is one of

's 32 borough councils, divided into 20 wards and elects 60 councillors.

History

Waltham Forest London UK labelled ward map 2002

There have previously been a number of local authorities responsible for the area. The current local authority was first elected in 1964, a year before formally coming into its powers and prior to the creation of the London Borough of Waltham Forest on 1 April 1965. Waltham Forest replaced Chingford Borough Council, Leyton Borough Council and Walthamstow Borough Council. It was envisaged that through the

Waltham Forest as a London local authority would share power with the

Greater London Council The Greater London Council (GLC) was the top-tier local government administrative body for Greater London from 1965 to 1986. It replaced the earlier London County Council (LCC) which had covered a much smaller area. The GLC was dissolved in 198 ...

. The split of powers and functions meant that the Greater London Council was responsible for "wide area" services such as fire, ambulance, flood prevention, and refuse disposal; with the local authorities responsible for "personal" services such as social care, libraries, cemeteries and refuse collection. As an

outer London Outer London is the name for the group of London boroughs that form a ring around Inner London. Together, the inner and outer boroughs form London, the capital city of the United Kingdom. These were areas that were not part of the County of Londo ...

borough council it has been an

education authority The Education Authority ( ga, Údarás Oideachais) is a non-departmental body sponsored by the Department of Education (Northern Ireland), Department of Education in Northern Ireland. It was established under the Education Act (Northern Ireland) ...

since 1965. This arrangement lasted until 1986 when Waltham Forest London Borough Council gained responsibility for some services that had been provided by the Greater London Council, such as

waste disposal Waste management or waste disposal includes the processes and actions required to manage waste from its inception to its final disposal. This includes the collection, transport, treatment and disposal of waste, together with monitoring ...

. Since 2000 the

Greater London Authority The Greater London Authority (GLA), colloquially known by the metonym "City Hall", is the devolved regional governance body of Greater London. It consists of two political branches: the executive Mayoralty (currently led by Sadiq Khan) and the ...

has taken some responsibility for highways and planning control from the council, but within the English local government system the council remains a "most purpose" authority in terms of the available range of powers and functions.

Powers and functions

The local authority derives its powers and functions from the London Government Act 1963 and subsequent legislation, and has the powers and functions of a London borough council. It sets council tax and as a billing authority also collects precepts for

functions and business rates. It sets planning policies which complement Greater London Authority and national policies, and decides on almost all planning applications accordingly. It is a

local education authority Local education authorities (LEAs) were local councils in England that are responsible for education within their jurisdiction. The term was used to identify which council (district or county) is locally responsible for education in a system wit ...

and is also responsible for

council housing Public housing in the United Kingdom, also known as council estates, council housing, or social housing, provided the majority of rented accommodation until 2011 when the number of households in private rental housing surpassed the number in so ...

, social services, libraries, waste collection and disposal, traffic, and most roads and environmental health.

Political control

Since the first election to the council in 1964 political control of the council has been held by the following parties:

Summary results of elections

Summary of the council composition after each council election, click on the year for full details of each election.

By-election A by-election, also known as a special election in the United States and the Philippines, a bye-election in Ireland, a bypoll in India, or a Zimni election (Urdu: ضمنی انتخاب, supplementary election) in Pakistan, is an election used to f ...

s occur when seats become vacant between council elections. Below is a summary of recent by-elections.

Notes

References

External links

* {{Authority control Local authorities in London London borough councils Politics of the London Borough of Waltham Forest Leader and cabinet executives Local education authorities in England Billing authorities in England