Rochdale Borough Council

History

The town of Rochdale had been governed by improvement commissioners from 1825. In 1856 the town was incorporated as a municipal borough, governed by a body formally called the 'mayor, aldermen and burgesses of the borough of Rochdale', generally known as the corporation, town council or borough council. When elected county councils were established in 1889, Rochdale was considered large enough for its existing council to provide county-level services, and so it was made a county borough, independent from the new Lancashire County Council, whilst remaining part of the geographical county of Lancashire.

The larger Metropolitan Borough of Rochdale and its council were created in 1974 under the Local Government Act 1972 as one of ten metropolitan districts within the new metropolitan county of Greater Manchester. The first election was held in 1973. For its first year the council acted as a shadow authority alongside the area's six outgoing authorities, being the borough councils of Rochdale, Heywood and Middleton and the urban district councils of Littleborough, Milnrow and Wardle. The new metropolitan district and its council formally came into being on 1 April 1974, at which point the old districts and their councils were abolished.

The metropolitan district was awarded borough status from its creation, allowing the chair of the council to take the title of mayor, continuing Rochdale's series of mayors dating back to 1856. The council styles itself Rochdale Borough Council rather than its full formal name of Rochdale Metropolitan Borough Council.

From 1974 until 1986 the council was a lower-tier authority, with upper-tier functions provided by the Greater Manchester County Council. The county council was abolished in 1986 and its functions passed to Greater Manchester's ten borough councils, including Rochdale, with some services provided through joint committees.

Since 2011 the council has been a member of the Greater Manchester Combined Authority, which has been led by the directly elected Mayor of Greater Manchester since 2017. The combined authority provides strategic leadership and co-ordination for certain functions across Greater Manchester, notably regarding transport and town planning, but Rochdale Council continues to be responsible for most local government functions.

Governance

Rochdale Borough Council provides metropolitan borough services. Some strategic functions in the area are provided by the Greater Manchester Combined Authority; the leader of Rochdale Council sits on the combined authority as Rochdale's representative. There are no civil parishes in the borough.

Political control

Rochdale has been under Labour majority control since 2011.

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

Leadership

The role of mayor is largely ceremonial in Rochdale. Political leadership is instead provided by the leader of the council. The leaders since 1974 have been:

Composition

Following the 2024 election, and subsequent by-elections and changes of allegiance up to July 2025 the composition of the council was:

The next election is due in May 2026.

Elections

Since the last boundary changes in 2022, the council has comprised 60 councillors representing 20 wards, with each ward electing three councillors. Elections are held three years out of every four, with a third of the council (one councillor for each ward) elected each time for a four-year term of office.

Wards and councillors

Each ward of the council's 20 wards is represented by three councillors.

Premises

The council is based at Number One Riverside on Smith Street in the centre of Rochdale. It was purpose-built for the council and opened in 2013. Prior to 2013 the council met and had some offices at Rochdale Town Hall, which had been completed in 1871 for the old borough council, with additional offices spread across numerous other buildings. The Town Hall is still used for certain ceremonial functions, including the annual council meeting when new mayors are appointed.

References

References

1. "Council minutes, 14 May 2025".
2. (23 January 2025). "New chief executive of Rochdale council appointed". Manchester Evening News.
3. "Open Council Data UK - compositions councillors parties wards elections".
4. "Rochdale Improvement Act 1825". The National Archives.
5. (1911). "A History of the County of Lancaster: Volume 5". Victoria County History.
6. "Rochdale Municipal Borough / County Borough". GB Historical GIS / University of Portsmouth.
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8. (28 March 1974). "District Councils and Boroughs".
9. "Find your local council".
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11. {{cite legislation UK. (2011)
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13. "GMCA Members".
14. "Election Maps". Ordnance Survey.
15. "Compositions Calculator". University of Exeter.
16. (2009-04-19). "Rochdale". [[BBC News Online]].
17. (29 October 1973). "Men of the future". Manchester Evening News.
18. (15 May 1981). "Spotlight on new Mayor and Mayoress". Middleton Guardian.
19. (6 February 1976). "Three-month rent-reprieve likely". Middleton Guardian.
20. (19 November 1976). "Next year's rate target is 4p plus". Middleton Guardian.
21. (3 May 1980). "The dozen winners". Rochdale Observer.
22. (7 May 1980). "Ex-town clerk's son to be council leader". Rochdale Observer.
23. (14 May 1982). "Labour loses council control... but party makes ground in Middleton". Middleton Guardian.
24. (8 January 1986). "Council leader resigns". Rochdale Observer.
25. (14 May 1982). "Tory at top". Middleton Guardian.
26. (18 January 1986). "All set for rate-revolt battle plan". Rochdale Observer.
27. (16 May 1986). "New brooms: Labour takes control". Middleton Guardian.
28. (9 May 1992). "People's choice". Rochdale Observer.
29. (16 May 1992). "Drawing the line between a pact and a coalition". Rochdale Observer.
30. (3 May 1996). "Power and the glory as town is painted red". Manchester Evening News.
31. (9 May 1996). "Labour's night to remember". Heywood Advertiser.
32. (22 May 1997). "Local pledge as Peter takes on a leading role". Middleton Guardian.
33. (24 April 2005). "Council leader to quit after six years". Manchester Evening News.
34. (11 May 2019). "'Rochdale is a poorer place without him': Tributes paid to former council leader Alan Taylor following his death aged 75". Manchester Evening News.
35. (12 January 2013). "History as Irene takes the lead role". Manchester Evening News.
36. (24 November 2010). "Rochdale Council leader resigns following defections". BBC News.
37. "Council minutes, 15 December 2010".
38. (3 June 2014). "End of the road: Colin Lambert unseated as Rochdale Council leader after crunch meeting". Mancunian Matters.
39. "Council minutes, 4 June 2014".
40. (8 December 2017). "Council leader resigns ahead of 'no confidence' vote". ITV News.
41. (20 August 2021). "Richard Farnell, former two-time Labour leader of Rochdale council, has died". Manchester Evening News.
42. "Council minutes, 13 December 2017".
43. (9 May 2021). "Councillor Allen Brett has been ousted as the leader of Rochdale council". Manchester Evening News.
44. "Council minutes, 19 May 2021".
45. (4 May 2024). "Local elections 2024: full mayoral and council results for England". The Guardian.
46. "Rochdale". Thorncliffe.
47. {{cite legislation UK. (2021)
48. "Councillor contact information by Ward". Rochdale Borough Council.
49. "Number One Riverside". FaulknerBrowns Architects.
50. "Number One Riverside - council offices". Rochdale Borough Council.
51. {{NHLE
52. "Annual council meeting, 15 May 2024".