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Borough of Darlington

Coordinates: 54°31′00″N 1°33′00″W / 54.5167°N 1.5500°W / 54.5167; -1.5500
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Borough of Darlington
Unitary authority area and borough
Darlington parish church
Darlington parish church
Coat of arms of Borough of Darlington
Coat of arms
Motto(s): 
Latin: Optima Petamus, lit. 'let us seek the best'
Darlington shown within County Durham
Darlington shown within County Durham
Coordinates: 54°31′00″N 1°33′00″W / 54.5167°N 1.5500°W / 54.5167; -1.5500
Sovereign stateUnited Kingdom
CountryEngland
RegionNorth East
Ceremonial countyCounty Durham
City regionTees Valley
Incorporated1 April 1974
Unitary authority1 April 1997
Named afterDarlington
Administrative HQDarlington Town Hall
Government
[1]
 • TypeUnitary authority
 • BodyDarlington Borough Council
 • ExecutiveLeader and cabinet
 • ControlNo overall control
 • MPs
2 MPs
Area
[2]
 • Total
76 sq mi (197 km2)
 • Rank145th
Population
 (2022)[3]
 • Total
109,469
 • Rank221st
 • Density1,430/sq mi (554/km2)
Ethnicity (2021)
[4]
 • Ethnic groups
List
Religion (2021)
[4]
 • Religion
List
Time zoneUTC+0 (GMT)
 • Summer (DST)UTC+1 (BST)
Postcode areas
DL
Dialling codes01325
ISO 3166 codeGB-DAL
GSS codeE06000005
Websitewww.darlington.gov.uk

The Borough of Darlington is a unitary authority area with borough status in County Durham, England. Since 1997 Darlington Borough Council has been a unitary authority; it is independent from Durham County Council. It is named after its largest settlement, the town of Darlington, where the council is based. The borough also includes a rural area surrounding the town which contains several villages. The population of the borough at the 2021 census was 107,800,[5] of which over 86% (93,015) lived in the built-up area of Darlington itself.[6]

Since 2016 the council has been a member of the Tees Valley Combined Authority, which has been led by the directly elected Tees Valley Mayor since 2017.

The neighbouring districts are the County Durham district to the north and west, Stockton-on-Tees to the east and North Yorkshire to the south, the River Tees forming the border for the latter.

History

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The town of Darlington was made a municipal borough in 1867. In 1915 it was elevated to become a county borough, taking over county-level functions from Durham County Council.[7]

The borough was reformed and enlarged on 1 April 1974 under the Local Government Act 1972. It absorbed nearly all of the surrounding Darlington Rural District, with the exception of the parish of Great Aycliffe (which covers the town of Newton Aycliffe) which went to Sedgefield district.[8][9] The enlarged borough was also reconstituted as a non-metropolitan district as part of the 1974 reforms, with Durham County Council once more providing county-level services to the town.[10]

The council was made a unitary authority on 1 April 1997, regaining its independence from the county council. The way this change was implemented was to create a new non-metropolitan county of Darlington covering the same area as the existing borough, but with no separate county council; instead the existing borough council took on county functions, making it a unitary authority.[11] The borough remains part of County Durham for ceremonial purposes, with whom it continues to share certain local services, such as the County Durham and Darlington Fire and Rescue Service and Durham Constabulary.[12]

Since 2016 the council has been a member of the Tees Valley Combined Authority along with Hartlepool, Middlesbrough, Redcar and Cleveland and Stockton-on-Tees. Unlike Darlington, the other four districts in the combined authority had all been part of the county of Cleveland between 1974 and 1996.[13]

Governance

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Darlington Borough Council
Type
Type
Leader & Cabinet
Leadership
Sonia Kane,
Labour
since 22 May 2025[14][15]
Steve Harker,
Labour
since 25 May 2023
Rose Rouse
since March 2025[16]
Structure
Seats50 councillors
Political groups
Administration (26)
  Labour (24)
  Liberal Democrats (2)
Other parties (24)
  Conservative (13)
  Green (6)
  Independent (5)
Joint committees
Tees Valley Combined Authority
Elections
First-past-the-post
Last election
4 May 2023
Next election
6 May 2027
Meeting place
Town Hall, Feethams, Darlington, DL1 5QT
Website
www.darlington.gov.uk

Darlington Borough Council provides both county-level and district-level services. Parts of the borough are covered by civil parishes, which form a second tier of local government for their areas.[17]

Since 2016 the council has been a member of the Tees Valley Combined Authority.[18]

Political control

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The council has been under no overall control since 2019. Following the 2023 election a coalition of Labour and the Liberal Democrats formed to run the council, led by Labour councillor Steve Harker.[19]

Political control of the council since the 1974 reforms has been as follows:[20]

Lower-tier non-metropolitan district

Party in control Years
Labour 1974–1976
Conservative 1976–1979
Labour 1979–1987
No overall control 1987–1991
Labour 1991–1997

Unitary authority

Party in control Years
Labour 1997–2019
No overall control 2019–present

Leadership

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The role of mayor is largely ceremonial. Political leadership is instead provided by the leader of the council. An attempt to secure a referendum on having a directly elected mayor in 2006 was unsuccessful.[21]

The leaders since 1991 have been:

Councillor Party From To
John Williams[22] Labour 1991 8 May 2011
Bill Dixon[23][24] Labour 19 May 2011 19 Jul 2018
Steve Harker[25] Labour 19 Jul 2018 May 2019
Heather Scott[26][27] Conservative 23 May 2019 19 May 2022
Jonathan Dulston[28][29] Conservative 19 May 2022 May 2023
Steve Harker[30] Labour 25 May 2023

Composition

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Following the 2023 election,[31] and subsequent changes of allegiance up to June 2025, the composition of the council was:[32][33]

Party Councillors
Labour 24
Conservative 13
Green 6
Liberal Democrats 2
Independent 5
Total 50

The next election is due in 2027.[34]

Elections

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See also: Darlington Borough Council elections

Since the last boundary changes in 2015 the council has comprised 50 councillors, representing 20 wards, each of which elects two or three councillors. Elections are held every four years.[35]

Premises

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The council is based at Darlington Town Hall on Feethams in the centre of Darlington.[36] The building was purpose-built for the old county borough council and was completed in 1970.[37]

Settlements

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See also: List of civil parishes in County Durham

As well as Darlington itself the borough includes the surrounding villages of:

It is home to Teesside International Airport (previously known as Durham Tees Valley Airport).

Demographics

[edit]
Main article: Demographics of Tees Valley

Freedom of the Borough

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The following people and military units have received the Freedom of the Borough of Darlington.

Individuals

[edit]
  • John Williams: 24 November 2011.
  • Alasdair MacConachie: 24 November 2011.[38]

Military Units

[edit]

References

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  1. ^ "Elected Members". Darlington Borough Council. Retrieved 14 July 2024.
  2. ^ "Mid-Year Population Estimates, UK, June 2022". Office for National Statistics. 26 March 2024. Retrieved 3 May 2024.
  3. ^ "Mid-Year Population Estimates, UK, June 2022". Office for National Statistics. 26 March 2024. Retrieved 3 May 2024.
  4. ^ a b UK Census (2021). "2021 Census Area Profile – Darlington Local Authority (E06000005)". Nomis. Office for National Statistics. Retrieved 14 July 2024.
  5. ^ "Population and household estimates, England and Wales: Census 2021". Office for National Statistics. Retrieved 3 March 2024.
  6. ^ "Towns and cities, characteristics of built-up areas, England and Wales: Census 2021". Census 2021. Office for National Statistics. Retrieved 3 March 2024.
  7. ^ "Darlington Municipal Borough / County Borough". A Vision of Britain through Time. GB Historical GIS / University of Portsmouth. Retrieved 3 March 2024.
  8. ^ "The English Non-metropolitan Districts (Definition) Order 1972", legislation.gov.uk, The National Archives, SI 1972/2039, retrieved 3 March 2024
  9. ^ "The New Parishes Order 1973", legislation.gov.uk, The National Archives, SI 1973/688, retrieved 3 March 2024
  10. ^ "The English Non-metropolitan Districts (Definition) Order 1972", legislation.gov.uk, The National Archives, SI 1972/2039, retrieved 3 March 2024
  11. ^ "The Durham (Borough of Darlington) (Structural Change) Order 1995", legislation.gov.uk, The National Archives, SI 1995/1772, retrieved 3 March 2024
  12. ^ "Lieutenancies Act 1997". legislation.gov.uk. Retrieved 14 February 2020.
  13. ^ "The Tees Valley Combined Authority Order 2016". legislation.gov.uk. The National Archives. SI 2016/449. Retrieved 25 February 2024.
  14. ^ Edgar, Bill (28 May 2025). "Councillor Sonia Kane elected as 2025 Mayor of Darlington". Northern Echo. Retrieved 30 June 2025.
  15. ^ "Mayoral and Civic". Darlington Borough Council. Retrieved 30 June 2025.
  16. ^ "Council minutes, 27 March 2025" (PDF). Darlington Borough Council. Retrieved 30 June 2025.
  17. ^ "Election Maps". Ordnance Survey. Retrieved 25 February 2024.
  18. ^ "The Tees Valley Combined Authority Order 2016". legislation.gov.uk. The National Archives. SI 2016/449. Retrieved 25 February 2024.
  19. ^ Edgar, Bill (26 May 2023). "Cllr Steve Harker elected as new Darlington Council Leader". Northern Echo. Retrieved 15 June 2023.
  20. ^ "Compositions Calculator". The Elections Centre. University of Exeter. Retrieved 21 May 2025. (Put "Darlington" in search box to see specific results.)
  21. ^ "Pro-mayor group halfway to securing a referendum". The Northern Echo. 29 August 2006. Retrieved 29 August 2007.
  22. ^ "Ex-Darlington Council leader John Williams dies at 65". BBC News. 12 July 2013. Retrieved 13 August 2022.
  23. ^ "Council minutes, 19 May 2011" (PDF). Darlington Borough Council. Retrieved 30 June 2025.
  24. ^ Minting, Stuart (21 July 2018). "Standing ovation for retiring Darlington council leader". Darlington and Stockton Times. Retrieved 30 June 2025.
  25. ^ "Council minutes, 19 July 2018" (PDF). Darlington Borough Council. Retrieved 30 June 2025.
  26. ^ "Council minutes, 23 May 2019" (PDF). Darlington Borough Council. Retrieved 30 June 2025.
  27. ^ Gullon, Nick (11 May 2022). "Darlington Council leader Heather Scott to quit after three years". Darlington and Stockton Times. Retrieved 30 June 2025.
  28. ^ "Council minutes, 19 May 2022" (PDF). Darlington Borough Council. Retrieved 30 June 2025.
  29. ^ Edgar, Bill (5 May 2023). "The full Darlington Local Election results ward by ward". Northern Echo. Retrieved 30 June 2025.
  30. ^ "Council minutes, 25 May 2023" (PDF). Darlington Borough Council. Retrieved 30 June 2025.
  31. ^ "Local elections 2023: live council results for England". The Guardian.
  32. ^ Edgar, Bill (4 October 2023). "Darlington Tory councillor Yvonne Renton becomes Independent". Northern Echo. Retrieved 3 March 2024.
  33. ^ Edgar, Bill (30 May 2024). "Darlington councillor Colin Pease quits Conservative Party". Northern Echo. Retrieved 3 June 2024.
  34. ^ "Darlington". Local Councils. Thorncliffe. Retrieved 30 June 2025.
  35. ^ "The Darlington (Electoral Changes) Order 2014", legislation.gov.uk, The National Archives, SI 2014/3338, retrieved 3 March 2024
  36. ^ "Opening times". Darlington Borough Council. Retrieved 3 March 2024.
  37. ^ Lloyd, Chris (2017). Darlington in 50 Buildings. Amberley Publishing. ISBN 978-1445666822.
  38. ^ "Darlington Borough Council" (PDF). www.darlington.gov.uk.
  39. ^ Live, Teesside (17 September 2010). "Thousands of people flocked to Darlington to honouring our heroes".
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Video clips

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