Borough of Havant

History

Havant itself was an ancient parish. Until 1852 it was governed by its vestry, in the same way as most rural areas. The parish was made a local board district in 1852, governed by an elected local board. Such districts were reconstituted as urban districts in 1894. The neighbouring parish of Warblington (which contained Emsworth) was made an urban district at the same time.

The Havant Urban District was substantially enlarged in 1932, taking in the urban district of Warblington and the parishes of Bedhampton, North Hayling, South Hayling and Waterloo, with some adjustments to the boundaries with other neighbouring areas. It was renamed the Havant and Waterloo Urban District, and the whole area was made a single urban parish called Havant.

The Havant and Waterloo Urban District was reconstituted as a non-metropolitan district named just "Havant" by the Local Government Act 1972 on 1 April 1974. The district was granted borough status as part of the 1974 reforms, allowing the chair of the council to take the title of mayor. No successor parish was created for the former urban district.

The Borough of Havant is twinned with Wesermarsch district in Germany and Yavoriv Raion in Western Ukraine.

Governance

Labour Labour : Labour (9) : Green (6) : ;Other parties (16) : Conservative (9) : Reform UK (4) : Independent (2)

Havant Borough Council provides district-level services. County-level services are provided by Hampshire County Council. There are no civil parishes in the borough.

Political control

The council has been under no overall control since the 2024 election, being run by a Labour, Liberal Democrat and Green coalition, led by Labour councillor Philip Munday.

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

Leadership

The role of mayor is largely ceremonial in Havant. Political leadership is instead provided by the leader of the council. The leaders since 2001 have been:

Composition

Following the 2024 election, and subsequent changes of allegiance up to December 2025, the composition of the council was:

The next election is due in May 2026.

Elections

Since the last boundary changes in 2024 the council has comprised 36 councillors representing 12 wards with each ward electing three councillors. Elections are held in three years out of every four, with a third of the council (one councillor for each ward) being elected each time for a four-year term of office. Hampshire County Council elections are held in the fourth year of the cycle when there are no borough council elections.

Premises

The council is based at the Public Service Plaza on Civic Centre Road in Havant. The building was previously called Civic Offices and had been built in 1977, replacing the old Town Hall on East Street in the centre of Havant, which subsequently became The Spring Arts & Heritage Centre. A large extension was added to the Civic Offices in 2011 to incorporate some Hampshire County Council offices and space for voluntary organisations as well, after which the building was renamed Public Service Plaza.

Members of Parliament

As of 2024, the boundaries of Havant borough mostly coincide with the parliamentary constituency of Havant, represented by Alan Mak, Shadow Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology. The northwestern Cowplain and Hart Plain wards lie in the constituency of Fareham and Waterlooville, represented by former attorney general and home secretary Suella Braverman.

References

References

1. "Havant Local Authority".
2. "Havant Ancient Parish / Civil Parish". GB Historical GIS / University of Portsmouth.
3. {{London Gazette. (16 April 1852)
4. [[Local Government Act 1894]]
5. (1895). "Annual Report of the Local Government Board". Her Majesty's Stationery Office.
6. "Relationships and changes Havant and Waterloo UD through time". A Vision of Britain through Time.
7. "The English Non-metropolitan Districts (Definition) Order 1972". [[legislation.gov.uk]].
8. "The English Non-metropolitan Districts (Names) Order 1973". Legislation.gov.uk.
9. (28 March 1974). "District Councils and Boroughs".
10. "Increased cultural links will be formed by new town twinning | Havant Borough Council".
11. "Havant Borough Council welcomes new Mayor at Annual Council Meeting".
12. (15 May 2023). "New Leader and Cabinet announced for Havant Borough Council".
13. (30 January 2023). "Job moves: New chiefs at Havant and Brent". Local Government Chronicle.
14. https://havant.moderngov.co.uk/mgMemberIndex.aspx?FN=PARTY&VW=LIST&PIC=0
15. {{cite legislation UK. (1972)
16. "Election Maps". Ordnance Survey.
17. (15 May 2023). "Havant Borough Council run by a new coalition following shock local election results". [[The News (Portsmouth)]].
18. "Compositions Calculator". University of Exeter.
19. "Havant". [[BBC News Online]].
20. "Council report, 28 May 2014".
21. (17 November 2022). "Long-standing Havant councillor Tony Briggs is made an alderman". The News.
22. "Council minutes, 28 May 2014".
23. "Council minutes, 9 May 2018".
24. (14 May 2021). "Council leader Michael Wilson steps down from top role at Havant Borough Council". The News.
25. "Council minutes, 19 May 2021".
26. (3 May 2024). "Local elections 2024: Huge shock as Conservatives lose Havant Borough Council - full list of results". The News.
27. "Council minutes, 15 May 2024".
28. (3 May 2024). "Local elections 2024: Huge shock as Conservatives lose Havant Borough Council - full list of results". The News.
29. "Havant". Thorncliffe.
30. {{cite legislation UK. (2023)
31. "Our History".
32. (2016). "A Brief History of Havant". The Spring Arts and Heritage Centre.