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Borough of Swindon

Coordinates: 51°33′47″N 1°45′47″W / 51.563°N 1.763°W / 51.563; -1.763
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"Thamesdown" redirects here. For the municipal bus company, see Thamesdown Transport.

Borough of Swindon
Unitary authority, Borough
Shown within Wiltshire
Shown within Wiltshire
Coordinates: 51°33′47″N 1°45′47″W / 51.563°N 1.763°W / 51.563; -1.763
Sovereign stateUnited Kingdom
Constituent countryEngland
RegionSouth West England
Ceremonial countyWiltshire
StatusUnitary authority
Admin HQSwindon
Government
 • TypeUnitary authority
 • BodySwindon Borough Council
 • LeadershipLeader & Cabinet (Labour)
 • MPsRobert Buckland (C)
Justin Tomlinson (C)
Area
 • Total
88.84 sq mi (230.10 km2)
 • Rank137th (of 296)
Population
 (2022)
 • Total
235,657
 • Rank79th (of 296)
 • Density2,700/sq mi (1,000/km2)
 • Ethnicity
85.6% White British
5.4% Other White
3.9% Asian
1.71% Black British
2.0% Mixed Race
0.6% Other[1]
Time zoneUTC0 (GMT)
 • Summer (DST)UTC+1 (BST)
ONS code00HX (ONS) E06000030 (GSS)
OS grid referenceSU164849
WebsiteOfficial website Edit this at Wikidata

The Borough of Swindon is a local government authority in South West England, centred on the urban area and town of Swindon and forming part of the ceremonial county of Wiltshire.

History

See also: History of local government in Swindon

The first borough of Swindon was a municipal borough, created in 1900 as a merger of the two urban districts of Old Swindon and New Swindon.[2]

In 1974 the borough of Thamesdown was created under the Local Government Act 1972. Thamesdown covered the areas of the municipal borough of Swindon and the neighbouring Highworth Rural District (which had been created in 1894), which were both abolished at the same time.[3][4] Thamesdown was a lower-tier non-metropolitan district, with Wiltshire County Council being the higher-tier authority for the area. Thamesdown was given borough status from its creation, allowing the chair of the council to take the title of mayor.[5]

On 1 April 1997 Thamesdown was made a unitary authority, making it administratively independent from Wiltshire County Council.[6] In June 1996, during the transition period to becoming a unitary authority, the council passed an order that the area would be renamed Swindon with effect from 1 April 1997 as well.[7] The former Thamesdown name and logo continued to be used by the municipal bus operator, Thamesdown Transport, until 2017 when it was sold and renamed to "Swindon's Bus Company".[8] Swindon remains part of the ceremonial county of Wiltshire for the purposes of lieutenancy.[9]

Geography

The borough of Swindon occupies an area forming the north east corner of Wiltshire and is bordered by two other counties, Gloucestershire (to the north) and Oxfordshire (to the east). West Berkshire is also only a short distance from the borough's south eastern tip. The generally hilly landscape is sculpted by the upper Thames guiding the northern border, small tributaries draining into the Thames, and the Marlborough Downs rising toward the south.

Map of the Borough of Swindon and major settlements

The borough encompasses the Swindon urban area and surrounding countryside to the north, east and south, including the town of Highworth. It comprises the former Swindon Municipal Borough and a further 18 civil parishes:[10][11]

Since 1 April 2017 the entire Borough has been parished, following the establishment of West Swindon parish and the creation of Central Swindon North and Central Swindon South[11] (styled by its parish council as South Swindon).[12][13] The two Central parishes fall within the boundaries of the town and former municipal borough, the Great Western Main Line railway forming the boundary between them.

At the same time:

  • the part of Chiseldon parish north of the M4, including the former hamlet of Coate, was transferred to Central Swindon South;
  • the parish of Blunsdon St Andrew was divided into St Andrews and Blunsdon, the A419 forming the boundary between them;
  • the parish of Nythe was expanded to form Nythe, Eldene and Liden.

Swindon Borough Council

Main article: Swindon Borough Council

The council follows a leader and cabinet model[14] and has 57 members elected by 20 wards.[15] Elections are held in three out of every four years, with one-third of the seats being elected at each election.[15] From the first election in 1996 to the 2000 election, Labour had a majority on the council. Following a period where no party had a majority, the Conservatives gained a majority at the 2003 election and had control until the 2023 election, when Labour took control.

Other elections

The borough is divided into two Parliamentary constituencies: North Swindon and South Swindon.[16] Both are seen as key marginal seats at general elections, having been bellwether seats since 1997 when they were created. Currently both seats are held by the Conservative Party.

The borough was one of the first areas to declare in the 2016 European Union membership referendum. 61,745 (54.3%) voters supported leaving the European Union, whilst 51,220 (45.7%) wished to remain.[citation needed]

See also

References

  1. ^ "Ethnic breakdown of England and Wales mapped". TheGuardian.com. 18 May 2011.
  2. ^ "Swindon Municipal Borough". A Vision of Britain through Time. GB Historical GIS / University of Portsmouth. Retrieved 27 April 2023.
  3. ^ "The English Non-metropolitan Districts (Definition) Order 1972", legislation.gov.uk, The National Archives, SI 1972/2039, retrieved 27 April 2023
  4. ^ "The English Non-metropolitan Districts (Names) Order 1973", legislation.gov.uk, The National Archives, SI 1973/551, retrieved 27 April 2023
  5. ^ "District Councils and Boroughs". Parliamentary Debates (Hansard). 28 March 1974. Retrieved 16 January 2012.
  6. ^ "The Wiltshire (Borough of Thamesdown)(Structural Change) Order 1995", legislation.gov.uk, The National Archives, SI 1995/1774, retrieved 27 April 2023
  7. ^ "Historical information from 1973 onwards". Boundary-Line support. Ordnance Survey. Retrieved 17 February 2023.
  8. ^ "Thamesdown Transport". Archived from the original on 5 February 2017.
  9. ^ "Lieutenancies Act 1997", legislation.gov.uk, The National Archives, 1997 c. 23, retrieved 26 April 2023
  10. ^ "Community governance review - next steps". swindon.gov.uk. Swindon Borough Council. March 2017. Archived from the original on 6 April 2017.
  11. ^ a b "The Swindon Borough (Reorganisation of Community Governance) No. 1 Order 2017" (PDF). Local Government Boundary Commission for England. 19 January 2017. p. 4. Archived from the original (PDF) on 25 January 2018.
  12. ^ "South Swindon Parish Council". southswindon-pc.gov.uk. Retrieved 14 September 2018.
  13. ^ Seaward, Tom (1 November 2017). "South Swindon Parish Council responds to name change block". Swindon Advertiser. Retrieved 14 September 2018.
  14. ^ "Cabinet and administration". Swindon Borough Council. Retrieved 25 June 2022.
  15. ^ a b "How to become a councillor". Swindon Borough Council. Retrieved 25 June 2022.
  16. ^ "Election Maps: Great Britain". Ordnance Survey. Retrieved 25 June 2022.
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