Redditch Borough Council

Redditch Borough Council
Logo
Leadership
Susan Eacock,
Reform UK
since May 2026[1]
Matt Dormer,
Conservative Party
since May 2026[2]
John Leach
since 2025[3]
Structure
Seats27 seats
Graph of the party split among 27 seats.
Political groups
Administration (7)
    Conservative (4)
    Independent (3)
Confidence and supply (7)
    Reform (7)
Other parties (13)
    Labour (13)
Elections
Last election
7 May 2026
Motto
REDDITE DEO (Render to God/Redditch for God)
Meeting place
Town Hall, Walter Stranz Square, Redditch, B98 8AH
Website
www.redditchbc.gov.uk

Redditch Borough Council is the local authority for Redditch, a non-metropolitan district with borough status in Worcestershire, England.

2024 local election results in Redditch

History

The town of Redditch was made a local government district in 1858, governed by a local board. Such districts were renamed urban districts in 1894.[4] The urban district in turn was abolished in 1974 and replaced by a non-metropolitan district covering the same area as the former urban district, but with different powers and responsibilities.[5]

Redditch district was awarded borough status on 15 May 1980, changing the council's name to Redditch Borough Council and allowing the chair of the council to take the title of mayor.[6]

Governance

Redditch Borough Council provides district-level services. County-level services are provided by Worcestershire County Council.[7] Feckenham is a civil parish, which forms a third tier of local government for that part of the borough; the rest of the borough is an unparished area.[8]

Since 2008, the council has developed shared working arrangements with neighbouring Bromsgrove District Council, with the two organisations sharing a chief executive, management team and other staff.[9]

Political control

The council has been under a Conservative Party minority administration with confidence and supply support from Reform UK.[2]

Political control of the council since the 1974 reforms has been as follows:[10]

Party in controlYears
Labour1974–1976
Conservative1976–1983
Labour1983–2002
No overall control2002–2004
Labour2004–2006
No overall control2006–2008
Conservative2008–2012
Labour2012–2018
Conservative2018–2024
Labour2024–2026
No overall control2026–present

Leadership

The role of mayor is largely ceremonial in Redditch. Political leadership is instead provided by the leader of the council. The leaders since 2008 have been:

CouncillorPartyFromTo
Carole Gandy[11][12]ConservativeMay 200821 May 2012
Bill Hartnett[12][13][14]Labour21 May 201221 May 2018
Matthew Dormer[14][15][16]Conservative21 May 201820 May 2024
Joe Baker[16][17]Labour20 May 202411 April 2025
Sharon Harvey[18]Labour19 May 2025May 2026
Matthew Dormer[2]ConservativeMay 2026

Composition

Following the 2026 election, and subsequent changes of allegiance up to June 2026 the composition of the council was:[19]

Party Councillors
Labour13
Reform7
Conservative4
Independent3
Total 27

The next election is scheduled for 2027.[19]

Premises

The council is based at Redditch Town Hall on Walter Stranz Square.[20] The foundation stone was laid in 1981.[21] It cost £7.5 million to build and it was opened in 1982.[22]

Elections

Since the last boundary changes in 2024, the council has comprised 27 councillors representing 9 wards, with each ward electing three councillors.[23] Elections are held three years out of every four, with a third of the council elected each time for a four-year term of office. Worcestershire County Council elections are held in the fourth year of the cycle when there are no borough council elections.

Councillors

Redditch Borough Councillors 2025[24]
Party Ward Councillor
Conservative Astwood Bank & Feckenham Brandon Clayton
Conservative Astwood Bank & Feckenham Christopher Holz
Conservative Astwood Bank & Feckenham Craig Warhurst
Independent Batchley & Brockhill Joe Baker
Independent Batchley & Brockhill Wanda King
Labour Batchley & Brockhill Sachin Mathur
Labour Central William Boyd
Labour Central Sharon Harvey
Labour Central Gary Slim
Labour Greenlands & Lakeside Juma Begum
Labour Greenlands & Lakeside Andrew Fry
Labour Greenlands & Lakeside Joanna Kane
Labour Headless Cross & Oakenshaw Juliet Barker Smith
Labour Headless Cross & Oakenshaw Ian Woodall
Labour Headless Cross & Oakenshaw David Munro
Labour Matchborough & Woodrow James Fardoe
Labour Matchborough & Woodrow Jane Spilsbury
Labour Matchborough & Woodrow Paul Wren
Labour North Bill Hartnett
Independent North Sid Khan
Labour North Monica Stringfellow
Green Webheath & Callow Hill Claire Davies
Conservative Webheath & Callow Hill Matthew Dormer
Conservative Webheath & Callow Hill Gemma Monaco
Labour Winyates Alan Mason
Labour Winyates Rita Rogers
Labour Winyates Jen Snape

References

  1. ↑ "Labour bid to force out Reform UK Redditch mayor". BBC News. 5 June 2026.
  2. 1 2 3 "Tories take over Redditch Borough Council after deal with Reform UK". BBC News. 27 May 2026.
  3. ↑ "Agenda item - Statutory Officer Appointments - nominations to the positions of Chief Executive and Head of Paid Service and Deputy Chief Executive and Section 151 Officer". Redditch Borough Council. 27 January 2025. Retrieved 9 May 2025.
  4. ↑ Kelly's Directory of Worcestershire. London. 1912. p. 223. Retrieved 21 September 2022.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link)
  5. ↑ "The English Non-metropolitan Districts (Definition) Order 1972", legislation.gov.uk, The National Archives, SI 1972/2039, retrieved 21 September 2022
  6. ↑ Bulletins of Change of Local Authority Status, Names and Areas, 1980–1982 (PDF). London: Department for the Environment. 1982. p. 17. Retrieved 11 February 2024.
  7. ↑ "Local Government Act 1972", legislation.gov.uk, The National Archives, 1972 c. 70, retrieved 31 May 2023
  8. ↑ "Election Maps". Ordnance Survey. Retrieved 9 January 2023.
  9. ↑ Corporate Peer Challenge: Bromsgrove DC and Redditch BC (PDF). Local Government Association. 2018. p. 1. Retrieved 10 February 2024.
  10. ↑ "Compositions Calculator". The Elections Centre. University of Exeter. Retrieved 21 May 2025. (Put "Redditch" in search box to see specific results.)
  11. ↑ Townley, Alex (7 May 2008). "Tories take control after 26-year wait". Redditch Advertiser. Retrieved 4 July 2025.
  12. 1 2 "Council minutes, 21 May 2012". Redditch Borough Council. Retrieved 4 July 2025.
  13. ↑ "Conservatives have taken over leadership of Redditch Borough Council". Redditch Advertiser. 4 May 2018. Retrieved 4 July 2025.
  14. 1 2 "Council minutes, 21 May 2018". Redditch Borough Council. Retrieved 4 July 2025.
  15. ↑ "Local Elections 2024: What are the results for the Midlands?". ITV News. 3 May 2024. Retrieved 4 July 2025.
  16. 1 2 "Council minutes, 20 May 2024". Redditch Borough Council. Retrieved 4 July 2025.
  17. ↑ Pearson, James (14 April 2025). "Redditch council leader suspended by Labour and steps down". BBC News. Retrieved 9 May 2025.
  18. ↑ "Council minutes, 19 May 2025". Redditch Borough Council. Retrieved 4 July 2025.
  19. 1 2 "Redditch". Local Councils. Thorncliffe. Retrieved 4 July 2025.
  20. ↑ "Main council details". Redditch Borough Council. Retrieved 11 February 2024.
  21. ↑ "Facts and history of Redditch" (PDF). Retrieved 8 February 2021.
  22. ↑ "New Town Development Events". Retrieved 8 February 2021.
  23. ↑ "The Redditch (Electoral Changes) Order 2023", legislation.gov.uk, The National Archives, SI 2023/654, retrieved 11 February 2024
  24. ↑ "Your Councillors". Redditch Borough Council. Retrieved 9 May 2025.
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