Borough of Rugby

The Borough of Rugby is a local government district with borough status in Warwickshire, England. The borough comprises the town of Rugby where the council has its headquarters, and the rural areas surrounding the town. At the 2021 census the borough had a population of 114,400, of which 78,125 lived in the built-up area of Rugby.

Aside from Rugby itself, settlements include Binley Woods, Brinklow. Dunchurch, Long Lawford, Monks Kirby, Wolston, Wolvey and the new development of Houlton. It includes a large area of the West Midlands Green Belt in the mostly rural area between Rugby and Coventry.

Between 2011 and 2021, the population of Rugby borough saw a 14.3% increase in population from around 100,100 to 114,400; the largest percentage increase of any local authority area in the West Midlands region.<ref name="ONS 2021">Template:Cite web</ref>

The borough extends from Coventry in the west to Leicestershire and Northamptonshire in the east. It borders the Warwickshire districts of Nuneaton and Bedworth to the north-west, Stratford-on-Avon to the south, and Warwick to the south-west. The Leicestershire districts of Hinckley and Bosworth, Blaby and Harborough are to the north and north-east, whilst West Northamptonshire is to the south-east.

History

The town of Rugby had been a local board district from 1849.<ref>Template:London Gazette</ref> Such districts became urban districts in 1894.<ref>Local Government Act 1894</ref> At the same time the Rugby Rural District was created covering the surrounding rural parishes.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> The urban and rural districts had separate councils, both based in Rugby. In 1932, Rugby Urban District was upgraded to become a municipal borough, and its boundaries were expanded to include most of Bilton (including New Bilton), Brownsover, Hillmorton and Newbold-on-Avon.<ref name="VOBRugbyUD/MB">Template:Cite web</ref>

The present borough was created on 1 April 1974 by the Local Government Act 1972. It was created by a merger of the municipal borough of Rugby (which covered the town of Rugby) and the Rugby Rural District.<ref>Template:Cite legislation UK</ref> The new district was named Rugby after its largest settlement.<ref>Template:Cite legislation UK</ref> The district was awarded borough status from its creation, allowing the chair of the council to take the title of mayor, continuing Rugby's series of mayors dating back to 1932.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

Governance

Template:Infobox legislature Rugby Borough Council provides district-level services. County-level services are provided by Warwickshire County Council.<ref>Template:Cite legislation UK</ref> Much of the borough is also covered by civil parishes, which form a third tier of local government for their areas.<ref name=electionmaps>Template:Cite web</ref>

Political control

The council has been under no overall control since 2023. Following the 2024 election, a minority Labour administration formed to run the council with informal support from the Liberal Democrats.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref>

Political control of the council since the 1974 reforms has been as follows:<ref name=compositions>Template:Cite web (Put "Rugby" in search box to see specific results.)</ref>

Party in control		Years
Template:Party name with colour	1974–1976
Template:Party name with colour	1976–1979
Template:Party name with colour	1979–1987
Template:Party name with colour	1987–1990
Template:Party name with colour	1990–2007
Template:Party name with colour	2007–2016
Template:Party name with colour	2016–2018
Template:Party name with colour	2018–2023
Template:Party name with colour	2023–present

Leadership

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

Councillor	Party		From	To
Ken Marriott<ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref>	Template:Party name with colour	1 Apr 1974	16 Aug 1977
Harold Cox<ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref>	Template:Party name with colour	1977	1978
Gordon Collett<ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref name=RA15May1986>Template:Cite news</ref>	Template:Party name with colour	1978	May 1986
Lionel Franklyn<ref name=RA15May1986/><ref name=RA11May1989/>	Template:Party name with colour	May 1986	May 1989
Gordon Collett<ref name=RA11May1989>Template:Cite news</ref><ref name=RA20May1993/>	Template:Party name with colour	May 1989	May 1993
Lionel Franklyn<ref name=RA20May1993>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref>	Template:Party name with colour	May 1993	May 1995
Bryan Levy<ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref name=CL12Jun2001/>	Template:Party name with colour	May 1995	May 2000
Steve Stewart<ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref name=CL12Jun2001>Template:Cite news</ref>	Template:Party name with colour	May 2000	20 Jun 2001
Alan Webb<ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref>	Template:Party name with colour	20 Jun 2001	May 2002
Craig Humphrey<ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref>	Template:Party name with colour	May 2002	31 Aug 2014
Michael Stokes<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>	Template:Party name with colour	Sep 2014	16 May 2019
Seb Lowe<ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref>	Template:Party name with colour	16 May 2019	May 2023
Derek Poole<ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref>	Template:Party name with colour	18 May 2023	5 Jun 2024
Michael Moran<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>	Template:Party name with colour	5 Jun 2024

Composition

Following the 2024 election, the composition of the council was:<ref name="ROE">Template:Cite web</ref>

Party		Councillors
Template:Party name with colour	17
Template:Party name with colour	15
Template:Party name with colour	10
Total		42

The next election is due in 2026.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

Elections

Template:Also Since the last full review of boundaries in 2012 the council has comprised 42 councillors representing sixteen wards, with each ward electing either one or three councillors. Elections are held three years out of every four, with a third of the council being elected each time for a four-year term of office. Warwickshire County Council elections are held in the fourth year of the cycle when there are no borough council elections.<ref>Template:Cite legislation UK</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

Premises

The council is based at Rugby Town Hall on Evreux Way in the town centre, which was purpose-built for the old borough council and opened in 1961.<ref name="rughistim">Template:Cite web</ref>

Parishes

The borough of Rugby has 41 civil parishes mainly covering the rural areas of the borough. Rugby town is an unparished area and so does not have a separate town council.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

Here is a list of parishes in the borough, some of which contain several settlements. Where a parish contains more than one settlement these are listed in brackets:

• Ansty,
• Binley Woods, Birdingbury, Bourton and Draycote, Brandon and Bretford, Brinklow, Burton Hastings
• Cawston, Church Lawford, Churchover, Clifton-upon-Dunsmore, Combe Fields, Copston Magna, Cosford,
• Dunchurch (incl: Toft)
• Easenhall
• Frankton,
• Grandborough
• Harborough Magna
• King's Newnham
• Leamington Hastings (incl: Broadwell, Hill & Kites Hardwick), Little Lawford, Long Lawford
• Marton, Monks Kirby,
• Newton and Biggin
• Pailton, Princethorpe
• Ryton-on-Dunsmore
• Shilton and Barnacle, Stretton Baskerville, Stretton-on-Dunsmore, Stretton-under-Fosse
• Thurlaston,
• Wibtoft, Willey, Willoughby, Withybrook, Wolfhampcote (incl: Flecknoe & Sawbridge), Wolston, Wolvey.

Places of interest

Places of interest in Rugby town include:

• The Rugby School Museum, which has audio-visual displays about the history of Rugby School and of the town.
• Rugby Art Gallery and Museum. The art gallery contains a nationally recognised collection of contemporary art. The museum contains, amongst other things, Roman artefacts dug up from the nearby Roman settlement of Tripontium.
• The Webb Ellis Rugby Football Museum, where traditional rugby balls are handmade. It contains much rugby football memorabilia.
• The Benn Hall, a conference, seminar, exhibition and party venue.
• Newbold Quarry Park, nature reserve
• Swift Valley Nature Reserve

Places of interest around Rugby include:

• Brandon Marsh
• Brinklow Castle
• Coombe Abbey
• Draycote Water – Reservoir and nature reserve
• Garden Organic
• Oxford Canal

See also

• List of wards in Rugby borough by population