Aberdeenshire Council () is the local authority for Aberdeenshire, one of the 32 council areas of Scotland. The council has been under no overall control since its creation in 1996. It is based at Woodhill House, which is outside its own territory in the neighbouring Aberdeen City council area.
History The Aberdeenshire council area was created in 1996 under the Local Government etc. (Scotland) Act 1994, which abolished the regions and districts which had been created in 1975, replacing them with single-tier council areas. Aberdeenshire covered the area of the abolished Banff and Buchan, Gordon and Kincardine and Deeside districts, all of which had been part of the Grampian region. It is named after the historic county of Aberdeenshire, but covers a larger area, also including most of the historic county of Kincardineshire and eastern parts of the historic county of Banffshire.
Governance The council is the fifth largest Scottish council by number of councillors, having 70 members.
The council has devolved power to six area committees: Banff and Buchan; Buchan; Formartine; Garioch; Marr; and Kincardine and Mearns. Each area committee takes decisions on local issues such as planning applications, and the split is meant to reflect the diverse circumstances of each area.
Political control Following the 2017 election a coalition of the Conservatives, Liberal Democrats and some of the independent councillors formed to run the council. The same parties continued running the council in coalition following the 2022 election.
The first election to the council was held in 1995. It initially operated as a shadow authority alongside the outgoing authorities until the new system came into force on 1 April 1996. Aberdeenshire Council has been under no overall control since its creation. (Put "Aberdeenshire" in search box to see specific results.)
Party in controlYears 1996–present
Leadership The role of provost is largely ceremonial in Aberdeenshire. They chair full council meetings and act as the council's civic figurehead. Political leadership is provided by the leader of the council. The leaders since 1996 have been:
Councillor Party From To Notes Audrey Findlay 1 Apr 1996 May 2007 Anne Robertson 17 May 2007 2 May 2012 Jim Gifford 17 May 2012 8 Jun 2015 Richard Thomson 8 Jun 2015 29 Sep 2016 Co-leaders Martin Kitts-Hayes Richard Thomson 29 Sep 2016 May 2017 Co-leaders Alison Evison Jim Gifford 18 May 2017 Jun 2020 Jun 2020 19 Nov 2020 Andy Kille 19 Nov 2020 May 2022 Mark Findlater 19 May 2022 28 Jun 2023 Gillian Owen 29 Jun 2023 25 Jun 2025 Stewart Adams 26 Jun 2025 Co-leaders Anne Stirling
Composition Following the 2022 election and subsequent changes of allegiance up to February 2026, the composition of the council was:
Party Councillors 20 18 14 7 11Total70
Of the independent councillors, seven form the 'Administration Independents' group, which forms part of the council's administration in coalition with the Conservatives and Liberal Democrats. The next election is due in 2027. Two Conservative councillors who defected to Reform UK in October 2024 were the party's first representatives in Scotland.
Premises The council is based at Woodhill House in Aberdeen, outside the council's own territory. The building was completed in 1977 for the former Grampian Regional Council.
Elections
Since 2007 elections have been held every five years under the single transferable vote system, introduced by the Local Governance (Scotland) Act 2004. Election results since 1995 have been as follows:
YearSeatsConservativeSNPLiberal DemocratsLabourGreenIndependent / OtherNotes 1995 47 4 15 15 0 0 13 1999 68 7 23 28 0 0 10 New ward boundaries. 2003 68 11 18 28 0 0 11 Local Election Results 2003: Aberdeenshire 2007 68 14 22 24 0 0 8 2012 68 14 28 12 2 1 11 2017 70 23 21 14 1 1 10 2022 70 26 21 14 0 0 9
Wards
The council has 70 councillors, elected by single transferable vote in 19 multi-member wards:
Ward numberWardMembers1Banff and District32Troup33Fraserburgh and District44Central Buchan45Peterhead North and Rattray46Peterhead South and Cruden37Turriff and District48Mid Formartine49Ellon and District410West Garioch311Inverurie and District412East Garioch413Westhill and District414Huntly, Strathbogie and Howe of Alford415Aboyne, Upper Deeside and Donside316Banchory and Mid Deeside317North Kincardine418Stonehaven and Lower Deeside419Mearns4
References