South Staffordshire District | |
|---|---|
| South Staffordshire | |
 | |
 South Staffordshire shown within Staffordshire | |
| Sovereign state | United Kingdom |
| Constituent country | England |
| Region | West Midlands |
| Non-metropolitan county | Staffordshire |
| Status | Non-metropolitan district |
| Admin HQ | Codsall |
| Incorporated | 1 April 1974 |
| Government | |
| • Type | Non-metropolitan district council |
| • Body | South Staffordshire District Council |
| • MPs | Gavin Williamson Theodora Clarke |
| Area | |
• Total | 407.3 km2 (157.3 sq mi) |
| • Rank | 86th(of 296) |
| Population (2024) | |
• Total | 114,423 |
| • Rank | 216th(of 296) |
| • Density | 280.9/km2 (727.6/sq mi) |
| Ethnicity(2021) | |
| • Ethnic groups | |
| Religion(2021) | |
| • Religion | List
|
| Time zone | UTC0 (GMT) |
| • Summer (DST) | UTC+1 (BST) |
| ONS code | 41UF (ONS) E07000196 (GSS) |
| OS grid reference | SJ8701803171 |
South Staffordshire is alocal government district inStaffordshire,England. Its council is based inCodsall. Other notable settlements includeBrewood,Cheslyn Hay,Coven,Essington,Featherstone,Four Ashes,Great Wyrley,Huntington,Kinver,Landywood,Penkridge,Perton,Wedges Mills,Weston-under-Lizard andWombourne. The district covers a largely rural area lying immediately to the west and north-west of theWest Midlands conurbation.
The neighbouring districts areStafford,Cannock Chase,Walsall,Wolverhampton,Dudley,Bromsgrove,Wyre Forest,Shropshire andTelford and Wrekin.
The district was formed on 1 April 1974 under theLocal Government Act 1972. The new district covered two former districts, which were both abolished at the same time:[2]
The new district was named South Staffordshire, reflecting its position within the wider county.[3]
South Staffordshire District Council | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Type | |
| Type | |
| History | |
| Founded | 1 April 1974 |
| Leadership | |
Dave Heywood since January 2017[5] | |
| Structure | |
| Seats | 42 councillors |
 | |
Political groups |
|
| Elections | |
| First past the post | |
Last election | 4 May 2023 |
Next election | 6 May 2027 |
| Meeting place | |
 | |
| Council Offices, Wolverhampton Road, Codsall, Wolverhampton, WV8 1PX | |
| Website | |
| www | |
South Staffordshire District Council, which styles itself "South Staffordshire Council", providesdistrict-level services.County-level services are provided byStaffordshire County Council. The whole district is also covered bycivil parishes, which form a third tier of local government.[6]
The council has been underConservative majority control since 1976.
The first elections were held in 1973, initially operating as a shadow authority alongside the outgoing authorities before coming into its powers on 1 April 1974. Political control of the council since 1974 has been as follows:[7]
| Party in control | Years | |
|---|---|---|
| No overall control | 1974–1976 | |
| Conservative | 1976–present | |
Theleaders of the council since 1982 have been:
| Councillor | Party | From | To | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bill Brownhill[8] | Conservative | 1982 | 2005 | |
| Brian Edwards[9] | Conservative | 2005 | 13 Aug 2021 | |
| Roger Lees[10][11] | Conservative | 14 Sep 2021 | Sep 2024 | |
| Kath Perry[12][11] | Conservative | 24 Sep 2024 | ||
Following the2023 election the composition of the council was:[13]
| Party | Councillors | |
|---|---|---|
| Conservative | 29 | |
| Independent | 5 | |
| Liberal Democrats | 4 | |
| Labour | 2 | |
| Green | 2 | |
| Total | 42 | |
The next election is due in 2027.[14]
Since the last boundary changes in 2023 the council has comprised 42councillors representing 20wards, with each ward electing one, two or three councillors. Elections are held every four years.[15]
The district covers a similar geographic area toSouth Staffordshire parliamentary constituency, although the north of the district is covered by theStafford constituency.Sir Patrick Cormack of theConservative Party held the South Staffordshire seat, and its predecessor, Staffordshire South-West, between 1974 and 2010, when he retired and the seat was won byGavin Williamson for the Conservative Party.
The council is based at the Council Offices on Wolverhampton Road in Codsall. The building was purpose-built for the council shortly after it was created, opening in 1976 to replace buildings in Penkridge and Wombourne that the council inherited from its predecessors.[16]
The whole district is divided intocivil parishes. No parish in South Staffordshire has been declared to be a town by its parish council.[a] None of South Staffordshire's settlements are classed aspost towns either; postal addresses in the district therefore all include the name of a post town outside the district, the main ones beingCannock,Stourbridge,Stafford,Walsall andWolverhampton. The district's parishes are:[17]
At the 2021 census theOffice for National Statistics identified three built-up areas in the district with a population over 10,000, being Great Wyrley and Cheslyn Hay with 17,640 people, Wombourne with 12,815 and Codsall (including Bilbrook) with 11,865.[18]
There are many beauty spots within the South Staffordshire district, for example the village ofWombourne has theWom Brook Walk and theBratch Locks on theStaffordshire and Worcestershire Canal in the nearby village of Bratch.Other sites include:
Bunkers Tree Wood is also in the area and contains a largeCorvidroost.
In terms of television, the area is served byBBC West Midlands andITV Central. Television signals are received from the eitherSutton Coldfield orWrekin TV transmitters.[23][24]
Radio stations for the area are:
Local newspaper is theExpress & Star.
52°37′33″N2°11′30″W / 52.6258°N 2.1918°W /52.6258; -2.1918
