Councils that should be renamed

[telstarbox]

Scraping the bottom of the festive barrel here and inspired by the stations that should be renamed thread, which local authorities would work better with a name change?

Tandridge - not the main settlement, nobody has heard of the village, should be East Surrey as per the constituency

Gravesham - no reason not to be Gravesend

Sefton - similar to Tandridge, could be Bootle and Beaches

Dacorum - sounds pretentious, make it Hemel Hempstead

Huntingdonshire - sounds like a county council but isn't, simplify to Huntingdon

Oadby and Wigston - name is fine but why isn't this part of Leicester

Somerset West and Taunton - too long, any ideas?

Wyre - sensible but unsatisfying that it overlaps with Wyre Forest.

 

[NorthOxonian]

Huntingdonshire - sounds like a county council but isn't, simplify to Huntingdon

Until 1974 it was its own county - the name of the district council is a nod to that. Moreover Huntingdon itself is quite small (and probably not the biggest town in the district - by most accounts that's St Neots).

Somerset West and Taunton - too long, any ideas?

It's getting abolished in the new year anyhow, but a name including "Quantocks" might be an improvement? Either on its own or with Taunton included as well.

Wyre - sensible but unsatisfying that it overlaps with Wyre Forest.

The confusing thing is that Wyre district covers most of what I'd consider to be Fylde (but there's already a district called that in the south of the peninsula). South Fylde and North Fylde doesn't really work well though, and might cause pitchforks in Garstang. An alternative would be to rename Wyre Forest, but calling it the obvious name (Kidderminster) would go down terribly in Bewdley. It's not an easy conundrum!

The worst district names (in my opinion) are those which are completely obscure outwith the area. You've identified one in Dacorum, but there are worse - like Adur and Arun in West Sussex which I constantly get mixed up. The former should really be renamed to Shoreham, or merged into Worthing (with which it shares most services already). Babergh in Suffolk should just be "South Suffolk" which would also fit with the other rural Suffolk districts (West, Mid, East).

 

[nw1]

The worst district names (in my opinion) are those which are completely obscure outwith the area. You've identified one in Dacorum, but there are worse - like Adur and Arun in West Sussex which I constantly get mixed up. The former should really be renamed to Shoreham, or merged into Worthing (with which it shares most services already). Babergh in Suffolk should just be "South Suffolk" which would also fit with the other rural Suffolk districts (West, Mid, East).

Adur and Arun are of course rivers, so not as obscure as all that.

 

[Mcr Warrior]

Thurrock to "Thurrock and a hard place" perhaps?

Thurrock council admits disastrous investments caused £500m deficit

Tory-led Essex authority is on brink of bankruptcy and has appealed to government for emergency bailout

www.theguardian.com

 

[nw1]

Somerset West and Taunton - too long, any ideas?

It's not "Taunton Deane" anymore?

 

[xotGD]

City of Bradford Metropolitan District Council to Bradford City Council.

 

[WizCastro197]

Oadby and Wigston - name is fine but why isn't this part of Leicester

Because it isn't in Leicester?

Although I do think constituency wise, it shouldn't be in Harborough.

 

[THC]

Dacorum was one of the Hertfordshire hundreds and Babergh one of the Suffolk hundreds - archaic administrative units - so each name has a historical provenance.

All councils will have enshrined in their constitutions powers to change their name, so any resident with the time and drive to bring about such a change is perfectly at liberty to raise a petition. If that raises enough signatories then full council has to debate the proposal, and then it's down to lobbying the administration to secure their patronage. That is how Shepway DC was renamed to Folkestone and Hythe DC back in 2018.

THC

 

[Lost property]

Some BBC traffic reporters have long been ahead of the game here....Cheshire is pronounced "Chesh-ear but pride of place goes to the one who created a new county one day....Cumbriashire

 

[MotCO]

Three Rivers Council - where is that???

 

[THC]

Three Rivers Council - where is that???

Rickmansworth, south west Hertfordshire. Named for the rivers Chess, Colne and Gade, which pass through the district.

THC

 

[SargeNpton]

Thamesdown (before it got renamed to Swindon): could have been anywhere in the 215 miles between Gloucestershire and the Thames Estuary.

 

[telstarbox]

Three Rivers is quite an interesting name but I think their logo lets it down. Speaking of which:

https://robin-cg.medium.com/a-total...of-every-uk-local-authority-logo-b76e8f7efd5a

A Totally Objective Ranking of Every UK Local Authority Logo​

The humble local council. Recipient for every half-informed beef of the British busybody, from potholes to bin collections to tree-felling. But they do some more noble tasks, too — providing housing, social care and public services like libraries for millions of people.

These quite disparate functions need a banner under which they can operate, but the brand identity of local councils often isn’t their top priority. Among much chaff, though, there are a few stars (and some really astonishing disappointments).

Each has been ranked using some broad criteria accounting for the adherence to design principles, the originality of the concept, and the technical execution, with nebulous bonus points added or subtracted on a whim, because unlike your local council, this is not a democracy.

 

[Gloster]

Rename Croydon Black Hole because it keeps on having money poured into it. (Other candidates are available.)

 

[telstarbox]

Ooh bit political there

 

[philosopher]

Sandwell should definitely be renamed. The problem is to what as there is no clearly dominant settlement in that borough. The only alternative name I can really think of is East Black Country, which does not sound great either.

 

[Doctor Fegg]

Thamesdown (before it got renamed to Swindon): could have been anywhere in the 215 miles between Gloucestershire and the Thames Estuary.

Not really - the Thames bit yes, but the "Down" bit came from the Wessex Downs in the southern part of the borough. Not so many downs in Maidenhead.

 

[Basil Jet]

The fact that Haringey council is spelt differently from Harringay town is just bizarre.

 

[Gloster]

The fact that Haringey council is spelt differently from Harringay town is just bizarre.

Haringey is the old name for the locality, first recorded in 1201, and was reintroduced in 1963. Harringay was given to a house built in 1790 and later used by local government.

Source: A Concise Dictionary of Modern Place-Names in Great Britain and Ireland [not a concise title], Room, Oxford, 1985.

 

[507020]

Sefton - similar to Tandridge, could be Bootle and Beaches

Erm no - definitely not

Southport has almost double the population of Bootle, making it by far the largest settlement (100k vs 50k and of course the beaches have none) but the boundaries just need to be completely redrawn around here as the situation around “Sefton” is and always has been totally unworkable.

 

[Gloster]

Erm no - definitely not

Southport has almost double the population of Bootle, making it by far the largest settlement (100k vs 50k and of course the beaches have none) but the boundaries just need to be completely redrawn around here as the situation around “Sefton” is and always has been totally unworkable.

Wanpol (We Are Not Part Of Liverpool).

 

[507020]

Wanpol (We Are Not Part Of Liverpool).

That would actually be more sensible than all of the above

 

[busestrains]

Here are three name changes that i would suggest:

• Lewes District Council -> Ouse Valley District Council

This is more accurate as the council covers a large area far outside of Lewes. Also it prevents confusion with Lewes Town Council. The new name uses a geographical feature bringing it in line with Rother District Council and Wealden District Council nearby.

• Guildford Borough Council -> Surrey Hills District Council

This is more accurate as the council covers a large area far outside of Guildford. Also the term district is more correct for this council as boroughs are normally used for more urban councils where as Guildford is a much more rural council covering a large rural area outside of Guildford. The new name uses a geographical feature bringing it in line with Mole Valley District Council nearby.

• Waverley Borough Council -> Waverley District Council

Again for a similar reason to above i think district is a more accurate and suitable title for this council considering the areas it covers.

I would also redraw the borders of most councils but that is a completely different discussion.

 

[nr758123]

Tameside. A councillor there pointed out that most people hearing the name thought it was either in Scotland or somewhere upstream of London.

Hyndburn. Accrington to you or I.

Kirklees. Named after a historic building which is outside the borough boundaries in Calderdale.

Tees Valley Combined Authority. It's not a valley.

 

[THC]

Also the term district is more correct for this council as boroughs are normally used for more urban councils where as Guildford is a much more rural council covering a large rural area outside of Guildford. The new name uses a geographical feature bringing it in line with Mole Valley District Council nearby.

• Waverley Borough Council -> Waverley District Council

Again for a similar reason to above i think district is a more accurate and suitable title for this council considering the areas it covers.

You are mistaken in your understanding of what differentiates boroughs from districts. Borough status, in a similar vein to city status, is granted by royal charter to local government districts in England and Wales (s245 Local Government Act 1972). The status is purely honorary, and does not give any additional powers to the council or residents of the district. It has nothing to do with relative population density.

I would also redraw the borders of most councils but that is a completely different discussion.

Last done wholesale in England in the decade from 1965 to 1974, with piecemeal reorganisations of some remaining two-tier council areas from the 1990s on, firstly with unitary councils on existing district footprints, and latterly with unitaries on larger or even county footprints. That said, the structure of English local government is still in a mess, but neither the political capital nor the political will currently exists to complete the job.

THC

 

[busestrains]

Until 1974 it was its own county - the name of the district council is a nod to that. Moreover Huntingdon itself is quite small (and probably not the biggest town in the district - by most accounts that's St Neots).


It's getting abolished in the new year anyhow, but a name including "Quantocks" might be an improvement? Either on its own or with Taunton included as well.


The confusing thing is that Wyre district covers most of what I'd consider to be Fylde (but there's already a district called that in the south of the peninsula). South Fylde and North Fylde doesn't really work well though, and might cause pitchforks in Garstang. An alternative would be to rename Wyre Forest, but calling it the obvious name (Kidderminster) would go down terribly in Bewdley. It's not an easy conundrum!

The worst district names (in my opinion) are those which are completely obscure outwith the area. You've identified one in Dacorum, but there are worse - like Adur and Arun in West Sussex which I constantly get mixed up. The former should really be renamed to Shoreham, or merged into Worthing (with which it shares most services already). Babergh in Suffolk should just be "South Suffolk" which would also fit with the other rural Suffolk districts (West, Mid, East).

Adur and Arun are of course rivers, so not as obscure as all that.

I would abolish the current Adur District Council entirely. I would transfer Shoreham (everything on the East side of the River Adur) to Brighton & Hove City Council. I would transfer Lancing (everything on the West side of the River Adur) to Worthing Borough Council.

Then i would rename the current Horsham District Council to Adur District Council. Horsham District Council covers a huge area including many towns and villages almost an hour away from Horsham so it is better to give it a geographical name. The vast majority of the River Adur is located inside the current Horsham District Council area so renaming Horsham District Council to Adur District Council would make sense.

Additionally i would also rename Chichester District Council to South Downs District Council. Chichester District Council also covers a huge area including many towns and villages almost an hour away from Chichester so again it is better to give it a geographical name. Also it would prevent confusion with Chichester City Council which is a parish council. The current council area is in the heart of the South Downs and most of the district is within the South Downs so i think South Downs District Council is a good name.

I would keep Arun District Council as it is as i think that it is a good accurate name.

 

[Magdalia]

Last done wholesale in England in the decade from 1965 to 1974, with piecemeal reorganisations of some remaining two-tier council areas from the 1990s on, firstly with unitary councils on existing district footprints, and latterly with unitaries on larger or even county footprints. That said, the structure of English local government is still in a mess, but neither the political capital nor the political will currently exists to complete the job.

1974 was a comprehensive reorganisation that created the Metropolitan Counties (and their Passenger Transport Authorities), plus new two tier counties in Avon, Humberside and Cleveland. There were also significant boundary changes such as moving Bournemouth from Hampshire to Dorset and Slough from Buckinghamshire to Berkshire.

What now looks like a mess is a result of various piecemeal changes that have taken place since, with loss of consistency on when and where single tier or two tier local government is used.

Three Rivers is quite an interesting name but I think their logo lets it down. Speaking of which:

https://robin-cg.medium.com/a-total...of-every-uk-local-authority-logo-b76e8f7efd5a

Thanks for sharing this, it did keep me amused for half an hour.

I do like the concept of a totally objective ranking that adds or subtracts nebulous bonus points on a whim.

 

[THC]

1974 was a comprehensive reorganisation that created the Metropolitan Counties (and their Passenger Transport Authorities), plus new two tier counties in Avon, Humberside and Cleveland. There were also significant boundary changes such as moving Bournemouth from Hampshire to Dorset and Slough from Buckinghamshire to Berkshire.

I cited above the decade from 1965 on as that is when the GLC and the London boroughs came into being, which in effect was the start of the process of consolidation and restructuring in English local government that culminated in 1974.

What now looks like a mess is a result of various piecemeal changes that have taken place since, with loss of consistency on when and where single tier or two tier local government is used.

Not quite, as pretty much all restructuring of local government since 1974 has seen the replacement of two-tier structures by unitary authorities. So the approach to restructuring in itself, while not complete is at least consistent; what is not is the scale of these new unitary authorities, which has increased somewhat over the last 30 years.

As an aside, the introduction of combined authorities since 2010 has not strictly speaking reintroduced two-tier local government to metropolitan areas amongst others, but has devolved to a local level powers, functions and funding previously held by central government and its agencies, including Government Offices for the Regions, Regional Development Agencies and the like.

THC

 

[swt_passenger]

Additionally i would also rename Chichester District Council to South Downs District Council. Chichester District Council also covers a huge area including many towns and villages almost an hour away from Chichester so again it is better to give it a geographical name.

Those are the South Downs that reach all the way from Beachy Head to Winchester?

 

[busestrains]

Those are the South Downs that reach all the way from Beachy Head to Winchester?

That is true. But as Chichester District Council is located pretty much exactly in the middle and covers a larger amount of the South Downs compared to other districts i think South Downs District Council would be a good name. The same thing could be said about some other councils. Wealdean District Council only covers about one quarter of the Wealdean area (the High Weald AONB which is what it is named after) but yet they have still choose the name Wealden for it and i think Wealden is a good suitable name.