Carmarthenshire County Council ( or ) is the local authority for the county of Carmarthenshire, one of the principal areas of Wales. It provides a range of services including education, planning, transport, social services and public safety. It came into existence on 1 April 1996 under the provisions of the Local Government (Wales) Act 1994, alongside the other 21 principal areas. It took over local government functions previously provided by the three district councils of Carmarthen, Dinefwr, and Llanelli, as well as the county-level services in the area from Dyfed County Council, all of which councils were abolished at the same time.
The council is based at County Hall in Carmarthen.
History The administrative county of Carmarthen and the first Carmarthenshire County Council was established in 1889 under the Local Government Act 1888. The first elections were held in January 1889.
The council was headquartered in Llandovery until it moved to Carmarthen in 1907. Construction of a new County Hall started in 1939 but, due to the World War, was not completed until 1955. The elections were:
1889 Carmarthenshire County Council election 1892 Carmarthenshire County Council election 1895 Carmarthenshire County Council election 1898 Carmarthenshire County Council election 1901 Carmarthenshire County Council election 1904 Carmarthenshire County Council election 1907 Carmarthenshire County Council election 1910 Carmarthenshire County Council election 1913 Carmarthenshire County Council election 1946 Carmarthenshire County Council election
The county council was abolished under the Local Government Act 1972 on 1 April 1974, with the creation of Dyfed. A new unitary authority of Carmarthenshire was later established, as a result of the Local Government (Wales) Act 1994, which came into force on 1 April 1996.
There have been two bodies called Carmarthenshire County Council. The first existed from 1889 until 1974, and the current one was created in 1996.
Elected county councils were created in 1889 under the Local Government Act 1888, taking over certain functions which had previously been administered by unelected magistrates at each county's quarter sessions. The first election was held in January 1889 and the majority of the seats were won by the Liberals.
At a preliminary meeting in March 1889 the councillors debated where the new council should meet, with some advocating that meetings should rotate between Carmarthen, Llandeilo and Llanelli, others arguing that meetings should be held solely in Carmarthen. It was resolved by 30 votes to 29 to meet only in Carmarthen. The council formally came into its powers on 1 April 1889, on which day it held its first official meeting at Carmarthen Guildhall (then also known as the Shire Hall).
By 1895 the council had adopted the pattern of holding meetings in rotation at Carmarthen, Llandeilo and Llanelli, and the council's clerk was based in Llandovery. Construction of a new County Hall in Carmarthen started in 1939 but, due to the Second World War, was not completed until 1955.
The Liberals continued to dominate the council until the 1920s, from which time most rural seats were held by independents, while the Labour Party dominated the industrial part of the county.
The original Carmarthenshire County Council was abolished under the Local Government Act 1972, with the area becoming part of the county of Dyfed, which also covered the former counties of Pembrokeshire and Cardiganshire. From 1974 until 1996 the area of the former county of Carmarthenshire was split into the three districts of Carmarthen, Dinefwr, and Llanelli, with Dyfed County Council providing county-level services.
In 1996 the councils established in 1974 were all abolished under the Local Government (Wales) Act 1994, and Carmarthenshire County Council was re-established as a unitary authority for the area.
Political control Plaid Cymru won a majority of the council's seats at the 2022 election but lost its majority following a defection in May 2024, since when the council has been under no overall control.
The first election to the re-established council was held in 1995, initially operating as a shadow authority before coming into its powers on 1 April 1996. Political control of the council since 1996 has been as follows: (Put "Carmarthenshire" in search box to see specific results.)
Party in controlYears 1996–2022 2022–2024 2024–present
Leadership The leaders of the council since 1996 have been:
Councillor Party From To Gerald Meyler 1 Apr 1996 May 1999 Meryl Gravell May 1999 May 2012 Kevin Madge May 2012 May 2015 Emlyn Dole May 2015 May 2022 Darren Price 25 May 2022 13 November 2025 Linda Evans 13 November 2025
The council's chief executive since 2019 has been Wendy Walters. She succeeded Mark James, who had held the post for 17 years.
Composition Following the 2022 election and subsequent by-elections and changes of allegiance up to August 2025, the composition of the council was: Party Councillors 37 18 2 18Total75 Of the independent councillors, 12 sit together as the "Independent Group" and the other six are unaffiliated to any group. The council's cabinet is made up of Plaid Cymru and Independent Group councillors. The next election is due in 2027.
Elections Elections take place every five years. The last election was held on 5 May 2022.
YearSeatsPlaid CymruLabourIndependentLiberal DemocratsConservativeNotes199580 7 37 32 3 1199974 13 28 32 1 0200474 16 25 33 0 120087431123010201274282323002017743622160020227538231400Plaid Cymru majority control Party with the most elected councillors in bold. Coalition agreements in Notes column.
Electoral divisions The county is divided into 51 electoral wards returning 75 councillors. In July 2021 Welsh Government accepted a number of ward change proposals by the Local Democracy and Boundary Commission for Wales, the changes gave a better parity of representation. Thirty-four wards remained unchanged.
Most of these wards are coterminous with communities. Most communities in Carmarthenshire have a community council. For each ward, councillors are elected to sit on Carmarthenshire County Council. The following table lists council wards, community councils and associated geographical areas. Communities with their own community council are marked with a *.
WardCommunities Councillors ReturnedFormer district councilElectorate 20221AbergwiliAbergwili*, Llanllawddog*1Carmarthen1,9602AmmanfordAmmanford Town* (Iscennen, Pontamman and Pantyffynnon wards) 2Dinefwr41943BetwsBetws*1Dinefwr1,8964BigynLlanelli Town* (Bigyn ward)3Llanelli4,9865Burry PortPembrey and Burry Port Town (Burry Port ward)2Llanelli3,4406ByneaLlanelli Rural* (Bynea ward)2Llanelli3,2297Carmarthen Town North and SouthCarmarthen Town* (North and South wards)3Carmarthen6,8228Carmarthen Town WestCarmarthen Town* (Carmarthen Town West ward)2Carmarthen3,7679Cenarth and LlangelerCenarth*, Llangeler* and Newcastle Emlyn*2Carmarthen4,53910CilycwmCil-y-cwm*, Llansadwrn*, Llanwrda*, Cynwyl Gaeo* and Llanycrwys*1Dinefwr,Carmarthen2,24411Cwarter BachCwarter Bach*1Dinefwr2,23212Cynwyl ElfedCynwyl Elfed*, Bronwydd* and Llanpumsaint*1Carmarthen2,02813Dafen and FelinfoelLlanelli Rural* (Dafen and Felinfoel ward)2Llanelli4,06414ElliLlanelli Town* (Elli ward)1Llanelli15GarnantCwmamman* (Pistillwyd and Twyn wards)1Dinefwr1,62716GlanammanCwmamman* (Grenig and Tircoed wards)1Dinefwr1,87917GlanymorLlanelli Town* (Glanymor ward)2Llanelli4,64918GlynLlanelli Rural* (Glyn ward)1Llanelli1,75819GorslasGorslas*2Dinefwr3,78820HendyLlanedi* (Hendy ward)1Llanelli2,36421HengoedLlanelli Rural* (Hengoed ward)2Llanelli3,27022Kidwelly and St. IshmaelKidwelly Town* and St Ishmael* 2Llanelli4,08023Laugharne TownshipLaugharne Township*, Eglwyscummin, Llanddowror* and Pendine*1Carmarthen2,23124LlanboidyLlanboidy*, Cilymaenllwyd* and Llangynin*1Carmarthen1,74425LlanddarogLlanddarog* and Llanarthney1Carmarthen1,71026LlandeiloLlandeilo Town* and Dyffryn Cennen*1Dinefwr2,14827LlandoveryLlandovery Town* and Llanfair-ar-y-bryn*1Dinefwr2,12128LlandybieLlandybie* (Llandybie and Heolddu wards)2Dinefwr3,33429LlanegwadLlanegwad*, Llanfihangel Rhos-y-Corn* and Llanfynydd*1Dinefwr,Carmarthen2,07930Llanfihangel AberbythychLlanfihangel Aberbythych* and Llangathen*1Dinefwr1,54931Llanfihangel-ar-ArthLlanfihangel-ar-Arth* and Llanllwni*1Carmarthen2,28232LlangadogLlangadog*, Llanddeusant* and Myddfai*1Dinefwr1,64633LlangennechLlangennech*2Llanelli4,12234LlangunnorLlangunnor*1Carmarthen2,19435LlangyndeyrnLlangyndeyrn* and Llandyfaelog*2Carmarthen4,07336LlannonLlannon*2Llanelli4,26337LlanybydderLlanybydder* and Pencarreg*1Carmarthen2,13738LliediLlanelli Town* (Lliedi ward)2Llanelli4,00939LlwynhendyLlanelli Rural* (Pemberton ward)2Llanelli3,29740Manordeilo and SalemManordeilo and Salem*, Llansawel* and Talley*1Dinefwr2,21641PembreyPembrey and Burry Port Town* (Pembrey ward)2Llanelli3,54442Pen-y-groesLlandybie (Penygroes ward)1Dinefwr2,36343PontyberemPontyberem*1Llanelli2,22944SaronLlandybie* (Saron Ward)2Dinefwr3,40545St Clears and LlansteffanSt Clears Town* Llansteffan*, Llangain* and Llangynog*2Carmarthen4,32146Swiss ValleyLlanelli Rural* (Swiss Valley ward)1Llanelli2,19947TrelechAbernant*, Llanwinio*, Meidrim*, Newchurch and Merthyr* and Trelech*1Carmarthen2,37448TrimsaranTrimsaran*1Llanelli1,96849TycroesLlanedi* (Tycroes and Llanedi wards)1Llanelli2,18250TyishaLlanelli* (Tyisha ward)2Llanelli51WhitlandWhitland Town* and Henllanfallteg1Carmarthen1,841
Premises The council meets and has its main offices at County Hall in Carmarthen, which had been completed in 1955 for the original Carmarthenshire County Council, and served as the headquarters of Dyfed County Council between 1974 and 1996. The council has customer service centres in Ammanford, Carmarthen and Llanelli.
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