Rochdale Borough Council

Rochdale Borough Council
Arms of Rochdale Borough Council
Coat of arms
Corporate logo
Type
Type
History
Founded1 April 1974
Leadership
Janet Emsley,
Labour
since 14 May 2025[1]
Neil Emmott,
Labour
since 19 May 2021
James Binks
since 2025[2]
Structure
Seats60 councillors[3]
Political groups
Administration (43)
  Labour (43)
Other parties (17)
  Conservative (8)
  Liberal Democrat (3)
  Middleton Ind. (2)
  Reform UK (2)
  Workers Party (2)
Joint committees
Greater Manchester Combined Authority
Greater Manchester Police, Fire and Crime Panel
Elections
Last election
2 May 2024
Next election
7 May 2026
Meeting place
Number One Riverside, Smith Street, Rochdale
Website
www.rochdale.gov.uk

Rochdale Borough Council is the local authority of the Metropolitan Borough of Rochdale in Greater Manchester, England. It is a metropolitan borough council and provides the majority of local government services in the borough. The council has been a member of the Greater Manchester Combined Authority since 2011.

The council has been under Labour majority control since 2011. It is based at Number One Riverside.

History

Further information: County Borough of Rochdale

The town of Rochdale had been governed by improvement commissioners from 1825.[4] 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.[5] 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.[6]

Rochdale Town Hall: Completed 1871 for old borough council and served as modern council's headquarters until 2013. Still used by council for annual mayor-making ceremony.

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.[7]

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.[8] The council styles itself Rochdale Borough Council rather than its full formal name of Rochdale Metropolitan Borough Council.[9]

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.[10]

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.[11][12]

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.[13] There are no civil parishes in the borough.[14]

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:[15][16]

Party in control Years
Labour 1974–1975
No overall control 1975–1976
Conservative 1976–1979
No overall control 1979–1980
Labour 1980–1982
No overall control 1982–1986
Labour 1986–1992
No overall control 1992–1996
Labour 1996–2003
No overall control 2003–2007
Liberal Democrats 2007–2010
No overall control 2010–2011
Labour 2011–present

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:

Councillor Party From To
Derrick Walker[17][18][19] Labour 1 Apr 1974 1976
Edward Collins[20][21] Conservative 1976 May 1980
Stephen Moore[22][23] Labour May 1980 May 1982
Edward Collins[24][25] Conservative May 1982 Jan 1986
Ron Lewis[26][27] Conservative Jan 1986 May 1986
Richard Farnell[27][28] Labour May 1986 May 1992
Paul Rowen[29][30] Liberal Democrats 13 May 1992 May 1996
Jim Dobbin[31][32] Labour May 1996 May 1997
Peter Roberts[32][33] Labour May 1997 2006
Alan Taylor[34][35] Liberal Democrats 2006 Jan 2010
Irene Davidson[34][36] Liberal Democrats Jan 2010 24 Nov 2010
Colin Lambert[37][38] Labour 15 Dec 2010 4 Jun 2014
Richard Farnell[39][40][41] Labour 4 Jun 2014 8 Dec 2017
Allen Brett[42][43] Labour 13 Dec 2017 May 2021
Neil Emmott[44] Labour 19 May 2021

Composition

Following the 2024 election,[45] and subsequent by-elections and changes of allegiance up to July 2025 the composition of the council was:[46]

Party Councillors
Labour 43
Conservative 8
Liberal Democrats 3
Middleton Independents Party 2
Reform UK 2
Workers Party 2
Total 60

The next election is due in May 2026.[46]

Elections

See also: Rochdale Metropolitan Borough Council 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.[47]

Wards and councillors

Each ward of the council's 20 wards is represented by three councillors.[48]

Ward Councillor Party Term of office
Bamford Stephen Anstee Conservative 2021–2027
Angela Smith Conservative 2018–2026
Philip Beal Conservative 2024–2028
Balderstone and Kirkholt Jordan Tarrant-Short Reform UK 2025–2027[a]
Phillip Massey Labour 2021–2026
Daniel Meredith Labour 2024–2028
Castleton Aisling-Blaise Gallagher Labour 2024–2028
Aasim Rashid Labour 2018–2027
Billy Sheerin Labour 2021–2026
Central Rochdale Farooq Ahmed Workers Party 2024–2028
Iftikhar Ahmed Labour 2021–2026
Sameena Zaheer Labour 2023–2027
East Middleton Paul Beswick Middleton Ind. 2022–2026
Terry Smith Labour 2023–2027
Dylan James Williams Labour 2024–2028
Healey Tricia Ayrton Labour 2022–2027
Shaun O'Neill Labour 2021–2026
Shah Wazir Labour 2024–2028
Hopwood Hall Susan Emmott Labour 2019–2024
Peter Hodgkinson Labour 2022–2027
Carol Wardle Labour 2018–2024
Kingsway Shakil Ahmed Labour 2021–2026
Daalat Ali Labour 2024–2028
Rachel Massey Labour 2019–2027
Littleborough Lakeside Tom Besford Labour 2024–2028
Janet Emsley Labour 2018–2026
Richard Jackson Labour 2023–2027
Milkstone and Deeplish Mohammad Arshad Labour 2022–2026
Minaam Ellahi Workers Party 2024–2028
Aiza Rashid Labour 2022–2027
Milnrow and Newhey David Bamford Liberal Democrats 2018–2027
Irene Davidson Liberal Democrats 2021–2026
Andy Kelly Liberal Democrats 2024–2028
Norden James Gartside Conservative 2021–2026
Michael Holly Conservative 2018–2027
Peter Winkler Conservative 2024–2028
North Heywood Liam O'Rourke Labour 2021–2026
Bev Place Labour 2022–2027
Paul O'Neill Labour 2024–2028
North Middleton Peter Allonby Middleton Ind. 2022–2026
Elizabeth Atewologun Labour 2023–2027
Kath Bromfield Labour 2024–2028
Smallbridge and Firgrove John Blundell Labour 2024–2028
Aftab Hussain Labour 2019–2026
Amna Mir Labour 2021–2023
South Middleton Patricia Mary Dale Labour 2018–2027
June West Labour 2024–2028
Peter Williams Labour 2019–2026
Spotland and Falinge Iram Faisal Labour 2021–2026
Amber Nisa Labour 2022–2027
Faisal Rana Labour 2024–2028
Wardle, Shore & West Littleborough Ashley Dearnley Conservative 2021–2026
Adam Branton Conservative 2024–2028
John Taylor Conservative 2018–2027
West Heywood Angela Brown Labour 2022–2026
Peter Joinson Labour 2022–2028
Linda Robinson Labour 2023–2027
West Middleton Phil Burke Labour 2019–2026
Neil Emmott Labour 2018–2027
Susan Smith Labour 2024–2028
  1. ^ Elected in a by-election in May 2025

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.[49][50] 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.[51] The Town Hall is still used for certain ceremonial functions, including the annual council meeting when new mayors are appointed.[52]

References

  1. ^ "Council minutes, 14 May 2025". Rochdale Borough Council. Retrieved 27 July 2025.
  2. ^ Lythgoe, George (23 January 2025). "New chief executive of Rochdale council appointed". Manchester Evening News. Retrieved 27 July 2025.
  3. ^ "Open Council Data UK - compositions councillors parties wards elections". opencouncildata.co.uk. Retrieved 31 July 2020.
  4. ^ "Rochdale Improvement Act 1825". legislation.gov.uk. The National Archives. Retrieved 2 June 2024.
  5. ^ "The parish of Rochdale". A History of the County of Lancaster: Volume 5. London: Victoria County History. 1911. pp. 187–201. Retrieved 2 June 2024.
  6. ^ "Rochdale Municipal Borough / County Borough". A Vision of Britain through Time. GB Historical GIS / University of Portsmouth. Retrieved 2 June 2024.
  7. ^ "Local Government Act 1972: Schedule 1", legislation.gov.uk, The National Archives, 1972 c. 70 (sch. 1), retrieved 30 May 2024
  8. ^ "District Councils and Boroughs". Parliamentary Debates (Hansard). 28 March 1974. Retrieved 30 May 2024.
  9. ^ "Find your local council". gov.uk. Retrieved 31 May 2024.
  10. ^ "Local Government Act 1985", legislation.gov.uk, The National Archives, 1985 c. 51, retrieved 5 April 2024
  11. ^ "The Greater Manchester Combined Authority Order 2011", legislation.gov.uk, The National Archives, SI 2011/908, retrieved 30 May 2024
  12. ^ "Understand how your council works". gov.uk. Retrieved 30 May 2024.
  13. ^ "GMCA Members". Greater Manchester Combined Authority. Retrieved 30 May 2024.
  14. ^ "Election Maps". Ordnance Survey. Retrieved 30 May 2024.
  15. ^ "Compositions Calculator". The Elections Centre. University of Exeter. Retrieved 21 May 2025. (Put "Rochdale" in search box to see specific results.)
  16. ^ "Rochdale". BBC News Online. 19 April 2009. Retrieved 7 May 2010.
  17. ^ Jackson, Norman (29 October 1973). "Men of the future". Manchester Evening News. p. 10. Retrieved 27 July 2025.
  18. ^ Pollitt, David (15 May 1981). "Spotlight on new Mayor and Mayoress". Middleton Guardian. p. 11. Retrieved 27 July 2025.
  19. ^ "Three-month rent-reprieve likely". Middleton Guardian. 6 February 1976. p. 1. Retrieved 27 July 2025.
  20. ^ "Next year's rate target is 4p plus". Middleton Guardian. 19 November 1976. p. 43. Retrieved 27 July 2025.
  21. ^ "The dozen winners". Rochdale Observer. 3 May 1980. p. 7. Retrieved 27 July 2025.
  22. ^ "Ex-town clerk's son to be council leader". Rochdale Observer. 7 May 1980. p. 1. Retrieved 27 July 2025.
  23. ^ "Labour loses council control... but party makes ground in Middleton". Middleton Guardian. 14 May 1982. p. 36. Retrieved 27 July 2025.
  24. ^ "Council leader resigns". Rochdale Observer. 8 January 1986. p. 1. Retrieved 27 July 2025.
  25. ^ "Tory at top". Middleton Guardian. 14 May 1982. p. 36. Retrieved 27 July 2025.
  26. ^ "All set for rate-revolt battle plan". Rochdale Observer. 18 January 1986. p. 12. Retrieved 27 July 2025.
  27. ^ a b "New brooms: Labour takes control". Middleton Guardian. 16 May 1986. p. 3. Retrieved 27 July 2025.
  28. ^ "People's choice". Rochdale Observer. 9 May 1992. p. 1. Retrieved 27 July 2025.
  29. ^ "Drawing the line between a pact and a coalition". Rochdale Observer. 16 May 1992. p. 76. Retrieved 27 July 2025.
  30. ^ "Power and the glory as town is painted red". Manchester Evening News. 3 May 1996. p. 31. Retrieved 27 July 2025.
  31. ^ "Labour's night to remember". Heywood Advertiser. 9 May 1996. p. 12. Retrieved 27 July 2025.
  32. ^ a b "Local pledge as Peter takes on a leading role". Middleton Guardian. 22 May 1997. p. 15. Retrieved 27 July 2025.
  33. ^ "Council leader to quit after six years". Manchester Evening News. 24 April 2005. Retrieved 27 July 2025.
  34. ^ a b Devine, Peter (12 January 2013). "History as Irene takes the lead role". Manchester Evening News. Retrieved 27 July 2025.
  35. ^ Jack, Patrick (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. Retrieved 27 July 2025.
  36. ^ "Rochdale Council leader resigns following defections". BBC News. 24 November 2010. Retrieved 31 August 2022.
  37. ^ "Council minutes, 15 December 2010". Rochdale Borough Council. Retrieved 27 July 2025.
  38. ^ Lomas, Kenny (3 June 2014). "End of the road: Colin Lambert unseated as Rochdale Council leader after crunch meeting". Mancunian Matters. Retrieved 27 July 2025.
  39. ^ "Council minutes, 4 June 2014". Rochdale Borough Council. Retrieved 27 July 2025.
  40. ^ "Council leader resigns ahead of 'no confidence' vote". ITV News. 8 December 2017. Retrieved 27 July 2025.
  41. ^ Wilkinson, Damon (20 August 2021). "Richard Farnell, former two-time Labour leader of Rochdale council, has died". Manchester Evening News. Retrieved 31 August 2022.
  42. ^ "Council minutes, 13 December 2017". Rochdale Borough Council. Retrieved 27 July 2025.
  43. ^ Wilkinson, Damon (9 May 2021). "Councillor Allen Brett has been ousted as the leader of Rochdale council". Manchester Evening News. Retrieved 27 July 2025.
  44. ^ "Council minutes, 19 May 2021". Rochdale Borough Council. Retrieved 27 July 2025.
  45. ^ "Local elections 2024: full mayoral and council results for England". The Guardian. 4 May 2024. Retrieved 21 May 2024.
  46. ^ a b "Rochdale". Local Councils. Thorncliffe. Retrieved 27 July 2025.
  47. ^ "The Rochdale (Electoral Changes) Order 2021", legislation.gov.uk, The National Archives, SI 2021/1230, retrieved 2 June 2024
  48. ^ "Councillor contact information by Ward". democracy.rochdale.gov.uk. Rochdale Borough Council. Retrieved 25 July 2023.
  49. ^ "Number One Riverside". faulknerbrowns.com. FaulknerBrowns Architects. Retrieved 25 July 2023.
  50. ^ "Number One Riverside - council offices". rochdale.gov.uk. Rochdale Borough Council. Retrieved 25 July 2023.
  51. ^ Historic England. "Town Hall (Grade I) (1084275)". National Heritage List for England. Retrieved 2 June 2024.
  52. ^ "Annual council meeting, 15 May 2024". Rochdale Borough Council. Retrieved 2 June 2024.


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