East Cambridgeshire

History

The district was formed on 1 April 1974 under the Local Government Act 1972. The new district covered the area of three former districts, which were all abolished at the same time:

• Ely Rural District
• Ely Urban District
• Newmarket Rural District The new district was named East Cambridgeshire, reflecting its position within the wider county.

Governance

Conservative Conservative Conservative Conservative : Conservative (14) ;Opposition (14) : : Independent (1)

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

Political control

The Conservatives had been elected with a majority of the seats at the 2023 election. The council went under no overall control following a change in allegiance in August 2024, which left the Conservatives with exactly half the council's seats. The Conservatives continue to form the council's administration by virtue of holding the chair's casting vote.

The Liberal Democrats and the Independent councillor have sat together as the Liberal Democrat and Independent Group since November 2024.

The first election to the council was 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

The leaders of the council since 2011 have been:

Composition

Following the 2023 election, a by-election in April 2024, a change of allegiance in August 2024 and a by-election in May 2025, the composition of the council is:

The next election is due in 2027, subject to Local Government Reorganisation.

Elections

Since the last full review of boundaries in 2019 the council has comprised 28 councillors, representing 14 wards. Elections are held every four years.

Premises

The council is based at The Grange on Nutholt Lane in Ely. The building was originally a large Victorian house and it served as a maternity hospital from the 1940s until the 1970s. The building was acquired around the time East Cambridgeshire was created in 1974 and converted to offices. Several large extensions have since been added.

Archaeology

The Fenland Survey of archaeological finds carried out in the 1980s mentions an enumeration of findings made between 1884 and 1994 in the region to the north of Devil's Dyke and Cambridge, from the Stone Age, the Bronze Age and the Iron Age (the region south of Devil's Dyke is not yet included in the survey). By far the greatest quantities of bronze objects found in England were discovered in East Cambridgeshire.

The most important Bronze Age finds were discovered in Isleham (more than 6500 pieces), Stuntney, Soham, Wicken, Chippenham, Coveney, Mepal and Wilburton. These findings include swords, spear-heads, arrows, axes, palstaves, knives, daggers, rapiers, armour, decorative equipment (in particular for horses) and many fragments of sheet bronze. The greater part of these objects have been entrusted to the Moyse's Hall Museum in Bury St Edmunds while other items are in the University of Cambridge Museum of Archaeology and Anthropology in Cambridge. Other finds include traces of cremations and barrows, golden torques, an extensive ditch system and a wooden track-way between Fordey Farm (Barway) and Little Thetford. Bronze razors have also been found and it is well known that Celts shaved their cheeks.

Parishes

The whole district is divided into civil parishes. The parish of Ely holds city status, and the parish councils for Soham and Littleport take the style "town council".

Settlements in East Cambridgeshire

• Aldreth
• Ashley
• Barway
• Bottisham
• Brinkley
• Burwell
• Chettisham
• Cheveley
• Chippenham
• Coveney
• Dullingham
• Ely (City)
• Fordham
• Haddenham
• Isleham
• Little Downham
• Little Thetford
• Littleport
• Lode
• Longmeadow
• Mepal
• Prickwillow
• Pymoor
• Queen Adelaide
• Reach
• Soham (Town)
• Stetchworth
• Stretham
• Stuntney
• Sutton
• Swaffham Bulbeck
• Swaffham Prior
• Upware
• Wicken
• Wilburton
• Witcham
• Witchford
• Woodditton

References

References

1. {{United Kingdom district population citation. area
2. {{United Kingdom district population citation. England
3. "East Cambridgeshire Local Authority".
4. {{cite legislation UK. (2017)
5. {{cite legislation UK. (1972)
6. {{cite legislation UK. (1973)
7. "Council decisions, 22 May 2025".
8. {{cite legislation UK. (1972)
9. (28 August 2024). "Councillor quits Tories leaving balance of power finely poised at East Cambs Council". Cambs News.
10. "Compositions Calculator". University of Exeter.
11. "East Cambridgeshire". [[BBC News Online]].
12. (6 May 2011). "Tories hold onto East Cambridgeshire Council, but leader loses Littleport seat". Eastern Daily Press.
13. (10 May 2013). "New leader at district council after Cllr Peter Moakes steps aside". Ely Standard.
14. (5 May 2017). "James Palmer elected as first Mayor for Cambridgeshire and Peterborough". ITV News.
15. (4 March 2019). "East Cambs Council to face the challenge of finding a new leader - and Cambs Mayor James Palmer a new deputy - after Charles Roberts stands down". Ely Standard.
16. "Council minutes, 30 May 2019".
17. "Local elections 2023: live council results for England". The Guardian.
18. (30 August 2024). "Reeves value added to Wychavon". Thorcliffe.
19. "Stretham District by-election results 1 May 2025".
20. "East Cambridgeshire". Thorncliffe.
21. {{cite legislation UK. (2016)
22. "Ely".
23. Hall, David. (1994). "Fenland survey : an essay in landscape and persistence / David Hall and John Coles". London;English Heritage.
24. Hall, David. (1994). "Fenland survey : an essay in landscape and persistence / David Hall and John Coles". London;English Heritage.
25. "Parish Councils".