Greenwich London Borough Council, also known as Greenwich Council or the Council of the Royal Borough of Greenwich, is the local authority for the Royal Borough of Greenwich in Greater London, England. The council is responsible for providing a range of services within the borough. The council has been under Labour majority control since 1971. It meets at Woolwich Town Hall and has its main offices at the Woolwich Centre opposite.

History There has been a Greenwich local authority since 1856 when the Greenwich District was created, governed by an elected board. It was one of the lower tier authorities within the area of the Metropolitan Board of Works, which was established to provide services across the metropolis of London.Metropolis Management Act 1855 (18 & 19 Vict. c. 120) In 1889 the Metropolitan Board of Works' area was made the County of London. In 1900 the lower tier was reorganised into metropolitan boroughs, each with a borough council, two of which were called Greenwich and Woolwich.London Government Act 1899 (62 & 63 Vict. c. 14)

The London Borough of Greenwich and its council were created under the London Government Act 1963, with the first election held in 1964. For its first year the council acted as a shadow authority alongside the area's outgoing authorities, being the councils of the two metropolitan boroughs of Greenwich and Woolwich. The new council formally came into its powers on 1 April 1965, at which point the old boroughs and their councils were abolished.

From 1965 until 1986 the council was a lower-tier authority, with upper-tier functions provided by the Greater London Council. The split of powers and functions meant that the Greater London Council was responsible for "wide area" services such as fire, ambulance, flood prevention, and refuse disposal; with the boroughs (including Greenwich) responsible for "personal" services such as social care, libraries, cemeteries and refuse collection. The Greater London Council was abolished in 1986 and its functions passed to the London Boroughs, with some services provided through joint committees. Greenwich became a local education authority in 1990 when the Inner London Education Authority was dissolved.Education Reform Act 1988 (c. 40)

Since 2000 the Greater London Authority has taken some responsibility for highways and planning control from the council, but within the English local government system the council remains a "most purpose" authority in terms of the available range of powers and functions.

In 2012 the borough was given the additional honorific status of being a royal borough. The council's full legal name since then has been "The Mayor and Burgesses of the Royal Borough of Greenwich".

In May 2014 the Labour-run council refused to support the building of a memorial to Lee Rigby, whose murder by Islamists occurred in the borough, in spite of being "overwhelmed by interest in a local memorial". The authority previously faced criticism at the time of the killing, with the cabinet attending an away day immediately after the murder, therefore missing a visit by the Prime Minister.The Telegraph, "Lee Rigby memorial: 'All I want is to know my son will not be forgotten, Andrew Gilligan, 17 May 2014. Following a campaign which saw 25,000 people sign a petition in support of the memorial the council dropped its opposition to the tribute.

Powers and functions The local authority derives its powers and functions from the London Government Act 1963 and subsequent legislation, and has the powers and functions of a London borough council. It sets council tax and as a billing authority it also collects precepts for Greater London Authority functions and business rates. It sets planning policies which complement Greater London Authority and national policies, and decides on almost all planning applications accordingly. It is also the local education authority.

Political control The council has been under Labour majority control since 1971.

The first election was held in 1964, initially operating as a shadow authority alongside the outgoing authorities until it came into its powers on 1 April 1965. Political control of the council since 1965 has been as follows: (Put "Greenwich" in search box to see specific results.) Party in controlYears 1965–1968 1968–1971 1971–present

Leadership The role of Mayor of Greenwich is largely ceremonial. Political leadership is instead provided by the leader of the council. The leaders since 1965 have been:

Councillor Party From To Ronald Stucke 1964 1966 Thomas Smith 1966 1968 William Manners 1968 1969 Charles Miles 1969 1971 John Cartwright 1971 1974 Arthur Capelin 1974 1982 John Austin 1982 1987 David Picton 1987 1989 Quentin Marsh 1989 1992 Len Duvall 1992 2000 Chris Roberts 2000 2014 Denise Hyland May 2014 May 2018 Danny Thorpe 23 May 2018 25 May 2022 Anthony Okereke 25 May 2022

Composition Following the 2026 election the composition of the council was as follows: Party Councillors 35 13 6 1 Total 55 The next election is due in May 2030.

Elections

Since the last boundary changes in 2022 the council has comprised 55 councillors representing 23 wards, with each ward electing two or three councillors. Elections are held every four years.

Wards

The wards of Greenwich and the number of seats:

Abbey Wood (3) Blackheath Westcombe (3) Charlton Hornfair (2) Charlton Village & Riverside (2) East Greenwich (3) Eltham Page (2) Eltham Park & Progress (2) Eltham Town & Avery Hill (3) Greenwich Creekside (2) Greenwich Park (2) Greenwich Peninsula (3) Kidbrooke Park (2) Kidbrooke Village & Sutcliffe (2) Middle Park & Horn Park (2) Mottingham, Coldharbour & New Eltham (3) Plumstead & Glyndon (3) Plumstead Common (3) Shooters Hill (2) Thamesmead Moorings (2) West Thamesmead (2) Woolwich Arsenal (3) Woolwich Common (2) Woolwich Dockyard (2)

Premises Although named after Greenwich, the council has always had its main offices and meeting place in Woolwich. Council meetings are held at Woolwich Town Hall on Wellington Street, which was completed in 1906 for the old Woolwich Borough Council.

The council's main offices are at the Woolwich Centre, on the opposite side of Wellington Street from the Town Hall. The Woolwich Centre was completed for the council in 2011 and also includes a library.

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