Newham London Borough Council

History

The London Borough of Newham and its council were created under the London Government Act 1963, with the first election held in 1964. For its first year the council acted as a shadow authority alongside the area's outgoing authorities, principally being the two councils of the county boroughs of East Ham and West Ham, but also the borough councils of Woolwich (in respect of the North Woolwich area) and Barking (in respect of the Gallions Reach area). The new council formally came into its powers on 1 April 1965, at which point the old boroughs and their councils were abolished.

The council's full legal name is "The Mayor and Burgesses of the London Borough of Newham", but it styles itself Newham Council.

From 1965 until 1986 the council was a lower-tier authority, with upper-tier functions provided by the Greater London Council. The split of powers and functions meant that the Greater London Council was responsible for "wide area" services such as fire, ambulance, flood prevention, and refuse disposal; with the boroughs (including Newham) responsible for "personal" services such as social care, libraries, cemeteries and refuse collection. As an outer London borough council Newham has been a local education authority since 1965. The Greater London Council was abolished in 1986 and its functions passed to the London Boroughs, with some services provided through joint committees.

Since 2000 the Greater London Authority has taken some responsibility for highways and planning control from the council, but within the English local government system the council remains a "most purpose" authority in terms of the available range of powers and functions.

Powers and functions

The local authority derives its powers and functions from the London Government Act 1963 and subsequent legislation, and has the powers and functions of a London borough council. It sets council tax and as a billing authority also collects precepts for Greater London Authority functions and business rates. It sets planning policies which complement Greater London Authority and national policies, and decides on almost all planning applications accordingly. It is a local education authority and is also responsible for council housing, social services, libraries, waste collection and disposal, traffic, and most roads and environmental health.

Political control

The council has been under Labour majority control since 1971.

The first election was held in 1964, initially operating as a shadow authority alongside the outgoing authorities until it came into its powers on 1 April 1965. Political control of the council since 1965 has been as follows:

Leadership

Prior to 2002, political leadership was provided by the leader of the council. The leaders from 1985 to 2002 were:

In 2002 the council changed to having directly elected mayors. The mayors since 2002 have been:

Composition

Following the 2022 election and subsequent by-elections and changes of allegiance up to May 2025, the composition of the council (excluding the elected mayor's seat) was as follows:

The Newham Independents Party was registered as a political party in June 2024. The other independent councillor, Belgica Guaña, had been a Labour candidate in 2022 but was suspended from the party after the deadline for changing party descriptions on ballot papers has passed. Therefore the electorate thought they had voted for a Labour candidate, but she sits as an independent.{{cite news|url=https://www.thejc.com/news/news/newham-councillor-who-shared-holocaust-hoax-article-re-elected-51Ki0oWhvVCptafn44RP3

The next election is due in 2026.

Wards

The wards of Newham and the number of councillors they elect:

1. Beckton (3)
2. Boleyn (3)
3. Canning Town North (3)
4. Canning Town South (3)
5. Custom House (3)
6. East Ham (3)
7. East Ham South (3)
8. Forest Gate North (2)
9. Forest Gate South (3)
10. Green Street East (3)
11. Green Street West (3)
12. Little Ilford (3)
13. Manor Park (3)
14. Maryland (2)
15. Plaistow North (3)
16. Plaistow South (3)
17. Plaistow West & Canning Town East (3)
18. Plashet (2)
19. Royal Albert (2)
20. Royal Victoria (2)
21. Stratford (3)
22. Stratford Olympic Park (2)
23. Wall End (3)
24. West Ham (3)

Elections

Since the last boundary changes in 2022 the council has comprised 66 councillors representing 24 wards, with each ward electing two or three councillors. Elections are held every four years: the next election is due in May 2026.

Premises

Full council meetings are held in the Old Town Hall, Stratford. The building was completed in 1868 for the former West Ham Local Board, predecessor of West Ham Borough Council.

Most committees and scrutiny meetings are held in the smaller council chamber at Newham Town Hall, formerly known as East Ham Town Hall, which was completed in 1903 for the former East Ham Urban District Council, predecessor of East Ham Borough Council.

In 2010 the council consolidated most of its offices into a modern building at Newham Dockside, located at 1000 Dockside Road adjacent to the Royal Albert Dock, which had been built in 2004 as part of attempts to regenerate the area around the Royal Docks in the south of the borough. The council bought the building for £92million after the original developers were unable to find tenants for it.

Legal issues

In 2007 the Council's processes for the procurement of housing leased from private landlords were challenged by an unsuccessful tenderer, Lettings International Ltd., because, while the broad headings had been disclosed under which the Council would evaluate the tenders it received, such as price, compliance with the identified specification, and "the suitability of premises, staffing and working conditions", the relative weighting attached to various sub-criteria within these headings had not been disclosed so that tenderers could take them into account when preparing their tenders. In addition, the Council had allocated three marks out of five for tenders which met the identified specification, with higher marks only available to tenderers whose bids exceeded the specification. The High Court, in addressing the case, found that the Council had not acted with the degree of transparency required under EU and UK public procurement legislation.

A further legal case determined in 2013 between Squibb Group Ltd., London Pleasure Gardens Ltd and the Council highlighted that the Council had agreed to lend money to London Pleasure Gardens to fund the development of a site for the 2012 London Olympics, but when the London Pleasure Gardens business collapsed, the Council was able to show that neither the loan agreement nor their agreement to pay interim funding on two occasions had created a guarantee to cover missing payments due to the contractor for works completed.

References

References

1. (24 May 2025). "Kol boy 1st Bengali to become 1st citizen of London borough". The Times of India.
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16. (October 2025). "London Borough Council Elections 3 May 2018". London Residuary Body.
17. "London Boroughs Political Almanac: London Borough of Newham".
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19. (1 July 2024). "Newham councillor suddenly quits Labour for Greens after Keir Starmer's Bangladesh comments". [[MyLondon]].
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21. (22 November 2023). "London councillor quits Labour Party over anger at Gaza stance".
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23. (24 May 2021). "The London Borough of Newham (Electoral Changes) Order 2021".
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28. (25 June 2004). "Behemoth in steel and glass". Building.
29. (23 September 2013). "Newham Council 'may quit £111m office'". BBC.
30. Sinclair, S., [https://web.archive.org/web/20241214171522/https://www.fenwickelliott.co.uk/sites/default/files/Legal%20Briefing%2036-2008.pdf Legal Briefing: Letting International Ltd v Newham London Borough Council], ''Fenwick Elliott'', published September 2008, archived on 14 December 2024, accessed on 12 April 2025
31. Hughes, S., [https://www.keatingchambers.com/resources/cases/squibb-vs-london-pleasure-gardens-and-london-borough-of-newham Squibb vs London Pleasure Gardens and London Borough of Newham], ''Keating Chambers'', published on 25 November 2015, accessed on 15 November 2024