Babergh District

History

The district was created on 1 April 1974 under the Local Government Act 1972, covering five former districts which were all abolished at the same time:

• Cosford Rural District
• Hadleigh Urban District
• Melford Rural District
• Samford Rural District
• Sudbury Municipal Borough Samford Rural District had been in the administrative county of East Suffolk prior to the reforms; the other districts had all been in West Suffolk.

The new district was named Babergh after the medieval hundred of Babergh, which had covered part of the area. Babergh Hundred is referred to in the Domesday Book of 1086; the modern district covers a larger area than the historic hundred, also covering the hundreds of Cosford and Samford. The council's logo now says "Babergh District Council – South Suffolk".

Governance

Green Independent ;Administration (23) : : : ;Other parties (9) : : :

Babergh District Council provides district-level services. County-level services are provided by Suffolk County Council. The whole district is also covered by civil parishes, which form a third tier of local government.

In 2011, Babergh and Mid Suffolk District Councils began working together, with one, fully integrated staff structure.

Political control

The council has been under no overall control since the 2019 election. Following the 2023 election a coalition of the Greens, independents and Liberal Democrats formed to run the council.

The first elections were held in 1973, initially operating as a shadow authority alongside the outgoing authorities until the new arrangements came into effect on 1 April 1974. Political control of the council since 1974 has been as follows:

Leadership

Prior to 2014 there was no formal position of leader of the council at Babergh, with political leadership provided instead by the chair of the policy and resources committee, or its successor, the strategy committee. From 2014 onwards, the chair of the strategy committee was also given the title of leader. The council then moved from a committee system to a leader and cabinet model in 2017, giving the leader additional powers to make executive decisions. The leaders (or chairs of policy and resources / strategy committees) since 2005 have been:

Composition

Following the 2023 election, the composition of the council was:

The next election is due in 2027.

Elections

Since the last boundary changes in 2019 the council has comprised 32 councillors representing 24 wards, with each ward electing one, two or three councillors. Elections are held every four years.

Premises

Since 2017 Babergh and Mid Suffolk councils have their combined headquarters at Endeavour House in Ipswich, sharing the building with Suffolk County Council.

When the council was first created it inherited offices in Sudbury, Hadleigh and Ipswich from its predecessor councils. The council initially based itself at the former Cosford Rural District Council's offices at 32 High Street in Hadleigh. The council built itself a new headquarters on Corks Lane in Hadleigh, incorporating existing cottages and granaries into the new building. The new complex was formally opened on 4 June 1982.

Geography

The southern boundary of the district is marked almost exclusively by the River Stour, which also forms the border with Essex, and it is separated from East Suffolk by the River Orwell. The eastern part of the district forms a peninsula between the two tidal rivers, coming to a point at Shotley Gate.

'Constable Country' is cognate with a large tract of Babergh: drawing visitors to the Dedham Vale, a designated Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty, and the well-preserved villages of Long Melford, Lavenham and Kersey. The district also includes part of the built-up area of Ipswich at Pinewood.

Demography

Babergh's population size has increased by 5.2%, from around 87,700 in 2011 to 92,300 in 2021 and covers an area of approximately 230 sqmi.

Towns and parishes

The whole district is covered by civil parishes. The parish councils for Sudbury and Hadleigh have declared their parishes to be towns, allowing them to take the style "town council". Some of the smaller parishes have a parish meeting rather than a parish council.

References

References

1. "Babergh Local Authority".
2. "Babergh District Council – Summary".
3. [http://www.suffolk.gov.uk/NR/rdonlyres/38314C3E-02A0-4515-92FE-8909C6FDB3A3/0/Parishestimates01to05.pdf Estimates of Total Populations of Areas of Suffolk] {{webarchive. link. (19 December 2008 Suffolk County Council)
4. "Contact Us » Babergh Mid Suffolk".
5. "Babergh and Mid Suffolk councils set to move to Ipswich in September".
6. {{cite legislation UK. (1972)
7. {{cite legislation UK. (1973)
8. (26 October 2016). "New council chief hired". Suffolk News.
9. {{cite legislation UK. (1972)
10. "Election Maps". Ordnance Survey.
11. "One Council » Babergh Mid Suffolk".
12. (2 June 2023). "New coalition cabinet appointed at Babergh District Council". Suffolk News.
13. "Compositions Calculator". University of Exeter.
14. "England council elections". [[BBC News Online]].
15. (1 December 2003). "Council leader defends allowances rise". East Anglian Daily Times.
16. "Council minutes, 22 April 2014".
17. (20 June 2017). "Babergh District Council unveils new Cabinet and governance model". Suffolk News.
18. "Chairmen / Vice-Chairmen of Council and Committees".
19. "Council minutes, 19 April 2005".
20. (3 April 2020). "Tributes to Nick Ridley - Suffolk hospice founder and community leader". East Anglian Daily Times.
21. "Council minutes, 19 May 2011".
22. (27 April 2022). "Fresh cabinet unveiled after party rifts at Babergh District Council". East Anglian Daily Times.
23. (23 May 2023). "New leader for Babergh as coalition confirmed". Shotley Peninsula Nub News.
24. (21 May 2024). "Green Deborah Saw takes over leadership of Babergh". East Anglian Daily Times.
25. (20 May 2025). "Newly elected leader on ambitious plans and the need for innovative successor councils". Babergh District Council.
26. "Council minutes, 14 May 2025". Babergh District Council.
27. "Local elections 2023: live council results for England". The Guardian.
28. "Babergh". Thorncliffe.
29. {{cite legislation UK. (2018)
30. (7 August 2017). "Babergh and Mid Suffolk councils set to move to Ipswich in September". East Anglian Daily Times.
31. {{London Gazette. (6 December 1973)
32. (1976). "Municipal Year Book". Municipal Journal.
33. (3 June 1982). "This is Babergh". Suffolk Free Press.
34. "How the population changed in Babergh, Census 2021 – ONS".
35. "District population 2011". Office for National Statistics.
36. "Parish Council contacts".