Royal Borough of Windsor and Maidenhead

Royal Borough of Windsor and Maidenhead
Unitary authority, Borough, Royal borough

Shown within Berkshire
Coordinates: 51°28′00″N 0°40′00″W / 51.4667°N 0.6667°W / 51.4667; -0.6667Coordinates: 51°28′00″N 0°40′00″W / 51.4667°N 0.6667°W / 51.4667; -0.6667
Sovereign state United Kingdom
Constituent country England
Region South East England
Ceremonial county Berkshire
Status Unitary authority
Incorporated 1 April 1974
Admin HQ Maidenhead
Government
  Type Unitary authority
  Body Windsor and Maidenhead Borough Council
  Leadership Leader & Cabinet (Conservative)
  MPs Adam Afriyie, Theresa May
Area
  Total 76.61 sq mi (198.43 km2)
Area rank 167th (of 326)
Population (mid-2014 est.)
  Total 147,400
  Rank 131st (of 326)
  Density 1,900/sq mi (740/km2)
  Ethnicity 90.2% White
5.4% S.Asian
1.2% Black
1.7% Mixed Race
1.4% Chinese or Other[1]
Time zone GMT (UTC0)
  Summer (DST) BST (UTC+1)
ONS code 00ME (ONS) E06000040 (GSS)
OS grid reference SU926750
Website www.rbwm.gov.uk

The Royal Borough of Windsor and Maidenhead is a Royal Borough of Berkshire, in South East England. It is home to Windsor Castle, Eton College, Legoland and Ascot Racecourse.

The borough was formed on 1 April 1974 as a non-metropolitan district of Berkshire, under the Local Government Act 1972, from parts of the former administrative counties of Berkshire and Buckinghamshire. From Berkshire came the boroughs of Maidenhead and Windsor, and the rural districts of Cookham and Windsor, and from Buckinghamshire came the Eton urban district, and the parishes of Datchet, Horton and Wraysbury from the rural district of Eton.[2] It inherited royal borough status from Windsor, the site of Windsor Castle.

The local authority is Windsor and Maidenhead Borough Council . It became a unitary authority on 1 April 1998 with the abolition of Berkshire County Council.[3] It is the only Royal Borough outside Greater London.

Floods

As with many other parts of the United Kingdom, the borough was affected by the UK storms of January-February 2014.

Towns and villages

The Royal Borough of Windsor and Maidenhead contains the following towns and villages

Politics

Westminster

The Royal Borough is represented at Westminster by two members of parliament of the Conservative Party: Adam Afriyie (Windsor) and Prime Minister Theresa May (Maidenhead). The UK Parliamentary constituency of Maidenhead has been held by the Conservative Party since its creation in 1997, while the UK Parliamentary constituency of Windsor has been held by the Conservative Party since its creation in 1874. The two seats are considered to be safe Conservative seats.

Local government

The Royal Borough is currently under a Conservative administration. Elections for councillors to the Royal Borough take place every four years; the last took place in 2015.

The political control of the Royal Borough is as follows:[4][5]

Party in control Years
Conservative 1973–1991
No overall control 1991–1995
Liberal Democrats 1995–1997
No overall control 1997–2003
Liberal Democrats 2003–2007
Conservative 2007–present

57 councillors represent the electorate of 23 wards.[6]

Parish and town councils

There are 14 parish councils and 1 town council in the borough. They are: Bisham, Bray, Cookham, Cox Green, Datchet, Eton (town), Horton, Hurley, Old Windsor, Shottesbrooke, Sunningdale, Sunninghill and Ascot, Waltham St Lawrence, White Waltham, Wraysbury.

The towns of Maidenhead and Windsor are unparished.

Education

The Windsor and Maidenhead LEA provides a comprehensive system, with three-tier schools in Windsor, and two-tier system elsewhere.[7]

Twin towns

The Royal Borough of Windsor and Maidenhead is twinned with the following Towns:

References

  1. Population estimates
  2. The English Non-metropolitan Districts (Definition) Order 1972. SO 1972/2039.
  3. The Berkshire (Structural Change) Order 1996. SI 1996/1879
  4. UK Politics | Local Elections 2000 | Windsor & Maidenhead Royal. BBC News. Retrieved on 17 July 2013.
  5. Election 2007 | Local Council Elections | Windsor & Maidenhead Royal council. BBC News (4 May 2007). Retrieved on 17 July 2013.
  6. "Councillors". The Royal Borough of Windsor and Maidenhead. Retrieved 24 March 2010.
  7. "School system in Windsor to remain as three-tier". Windsor Advertiser. 5 July 2012.
  8. "British towns twinned with French towns". Archant Community Media Ltd. Retrieved 11 July 2013.
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