Thurrock Borough Council
MayorBill Cook
Election 127 May 2026[1]
LeaderRichard Bingley
Party 2
Reform UK
Election 227 May 2026[1]
Managing DirectorDave Smith
Election 321 March 2023[2]
Seats49 councillors[3]
Political groups 1
Administration (45)
Reform (45)
Other parties (4)
Conservative (2)
Labour (2)
Term lengthFour years
Voting system 1First past the post
Last election 17 May 2026
Session roomFile:Thurrock Civic Offices 2022 wing.jpg
Meeting placeThurrock Town Hall, New Road, Grays, RM17 6SL
Websitewww.thurrock.gov.uk
ConstitutionConstitution

Thurrock Council is the local authority for the borough of Thurrock in the ceremonial county of Essex, England. Since 1998 the council has been a unitary authority, being a district council which also performs the functions of a county council. It is a member of the East of England Local Government Association. The council is based in Grays.

In 2022 the council's level of debt arising from failed investments led to it issuing a Section 114 notice, being the local authority equivalent of declaring bankruptcy. The government directed neighbouring Essex County Council to take over Thurrock's finances and also appointed a new managing director for the council.

History

Thurrock Urban District had been created in 1936 from the former urban districts of Grays Thurrock, Purfleet and Tilbury and the Orsett Rural District.[4]

Urban districts were abolished in 1974 under the Local Government Act 1972. A new non-metropolitan district called Thurrock was created covering almost the same area as the former Thurrock Urban District, with just a minor change on the border with Basildon to place the whole designated area for Basildon new town in that district.[5][6] The reformed Thurrock district was given borough status at the same time, allowing the council to call itself "Thurrock Borough Council" and letting the chair of the council the title of mayor.[7]

The council was made a unitary authority on 1 April 1998, taking over county-level services in the area from Essex County Council. The way the change was implemented was to create a new non-metropolitan county of Thurrock covering the borough, but with no separate county council; instead, the existing borough council took over county council functions, making it a unitary authority. Since 1998 the council has generally styled itself "Thurrock Council" rather than "Thurrock Borough Council".[8] Thurrock remains part of the ceremonial county of Essex for the purposes of lieutenancy.[9]

The planning function for large developments was exercised by the Thurrock Thames Gateway Development Corporation in the whole of the borough from 2003 to 2012.[10][11]

Financial difficulties

In 2020, it emerged that the council had borrowed £420 million to buy into the solar power market, eventually rising to a total investment of £655 million.[12] One of the companies in which the council had invested, Toucan Energy, went into administration on 11 November 2022.[13][14] Businessman Liam Kavanagh is accused of cheating the council out of as much as £130 million in relation to the deals.[15] Thurrock also made a £94 million loan to the Just Loans Group plc, a business lender which went bankrupt in June 2022.[16]

On 2 September 2022, the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities intervened in the running of Thurrock Council, passing financial control of the council to Essex County Council, as well as ordering a Best Value Inspection, in response to concerns about the council's level of financial risk and debt.[17] The council's financial exposure arises from loans of more than a billion pounds used to fund commercial investments. Council leader Rob Gledhill resigned on 2 September 2022, the day the government intervention was announced.[18]

On 29 November 2022, Thurrock Council admitted that in that financial year it had a near £500 million budget deficit, mostly from failed investments. It asked for emergency financial assistance from the government.[16][19] On 19 December 2022 the council issued a Section 114 notice barring any new expenditure, being the local authority equivalent of declaring bankruptcy.[20][21] In March 2023 the government appointed a new managing director for the council, Dave Smith.[22]

Governance

As a unitary authority, Thurrock Council provides all local government services, albeit with oversight of the council's finances from Essex County Council since the government intervention in September 2022. There are no civil parishes in the borough, which is an unparished area.[23]

Political control

The council has been under Labour majority control since the 2024 election.

Political control of the council since the 1974 reforms has been as follows:[24][25]

Lower tier non-metropolitan district

Party in controlYears
1974–1979
1979–1982
1982–1998

Unitary authority

Party in controlYears
1998–2004
2004–2007
2007–2012
2012–2014
2014–2021
2021–2024
[26]2024–2024
2024–2026
2026–present

Leadership

The role of Mayor of Thurrock is largely ceremonial, usually being held by a different councillor each year. Political leadership is instead provided by the leader of the council. The leaders since 1989 have been:

CouncillorPartyFromTo
Jimmy Aberdein[27]19891995
Andy Smith[28][29]199530 Jun 2004
Anne Cheale[30][31]30 Jun 2004May 2006
Terry Hipsey[32][33]24 May 200625 Mar 2009
Garry Hague[34][35]25 Mar 200919 May 2010
John Kent[36][37]19 May 201025 May 2016
Rob Gledhill[38][39]25 May 20162 Sep 2022
Mark Coxshall[40][41]13 Oct 2022May 2023
Andrew Jefferies[42][43]24 May 202322 May 2024
John Kent[44][45]22 May 202428 April 2025
Lynn Worrall[46]21 May 2025May 2026
[46]21 May 2025May 2026

Composition

Following the 2026 election, the composition of the council is as follows:[47]

PartyCouncillors
45
2
2
Total49

Thurrock Youth Cabinet

Thurrock Council also operates Thurrock Youth Cabinet, an elected youth council of young people in the borough aged 11 to 18, or 11 to 25 if they have a disability or special needs.[48][49] Members are elected from schools or local youth groups to represent one of the 20 wards of Thurrock and have to live, study or work in the borough.[50][51] The Member of Youth Parliament and the Deputy Member of Youth Parliament for Thurrock also sit on the youth cabinet.[50][51]

Premises

The council is based at Thurrock Town Hall on New Road in Grays.[52] When the council was created in 1974 it used the former offices of the Thurrock Urban District Council in a converted house called Farley and adjoining buildings around the junction of Whitehall Lane and Palmers Avenue in Grays.[53] In 1986 the council built itself a new headquarters at the corner of New Road and Derby Bridge Road in the centre of Grays.[54] The building has subsequently been extended westward along New Road with a large central block added in 1992 and a new wing at the corner of New Road and High Street completed in 2022.[55][56]

Elections

See also: Thurrock Council elections

Since the last boundary changes in 2004, the council has comprised 49 councillors representing 20 wards, with each ward electing two or three councillors. Elections are held three years out of every four, electing a third of the council each time for a four-year term. In the fourth year of the cycle there is no election.[57] This system will change from 2025, with elections being held every four years for the whole council.[58]

Wards

The wards, with their numbers on the map below, are:[57][59]

  • Aveley and Uplands (1)
  • Belhus (3)
  • Chadwell St Mary (14)
  • Chafford and North Stifford (6)
  • Corringham and Fobbing (17)
  • East Tilbury (15)
  • Grays Riverside (7)
  • Grays Thurrock (8)
  • Little Thurrock Blackshots (10)
  • Little Thurrock Rectory (11)
  • Ockendon (2)
  • Orsett (20)
  • South Chafford (5)
  • Stanford East and Corringham Town (18)
  • Stanford-le-Hope West (16)
  • Stifford Clays (9)
  • The Homesteads (19)
  • Tilbury Riverside and Thurrock Park (12)
  • Tilbury St Chads (13)
  • West Thurrock and South Stifford (4)

Arms

Thurrock Council
EscutcheonArgent on a fess wavy between in chief a ship's screw and a wheel Azure and in base a Celtic cross also Azure charged in the centre with a Tudor rose Proper three lymphads Argent.
CrestOn a wreath of the colours an Albatross rising Proper from a bollard Sable roped Or.
SupportersOn the dexter a sea-lion guardant Or gutty Sable the tail Vert gutty Or and Argent holding in the dexter claw a block Or tackle Sable and on the sinister a knight in armour tempus 1370 resting the exterior hand on the hilt of his sheathed sword a hound at his feet all Proper upon a compartment per pale water barry wavy Argent and Azure and a representation of a stone quay Proper.
NotesShield and crest originally granted to Thurrock Urban District Council on 17 January 1957. Supporters granted on 14 May 1976.

Mayors

The mayors since 1982 have included:

CouncillorPartyFromTo
Bob Wood[60][61]19821983
Sid Josling[62]19841985
Arthur Clarke[63]19851986
George Watts[64]19881989
John Dunn[65]19891990
Ken Evans[66]19901991
Kitty Price[67]19911992
Pat Rice[68]19931994
Barry Palmer[69]19941995
Reg Lee[70]19951996
Sid Josling[62]19961997
Arthur Bennett[71]19971998
Albert Vandersteen[72]19981999
Carl Morris[73][74]19992000
Julian Norris[75][76]20002001
Barrie Lawrence[75][74]20012002
Gordon Barton[77][74]20022003
Gerard Rice[68][78]20032004
Ian Harrison[79][80]20042005
Colin Churchman[77][81]20052006
Joy Redsell[82][83]20062007
Diane Revell[84]20072008
John Everett[85]20082009
Maureen Pearce[86]20092010
Anne Cheale[87]Thurrock Concerned Conservative20102011
Yash Gupta[88][89]20112013
Tony Fish[90]20132014
Steve Liddiard[91]20142015
Sue Gray[92][93]20152016
Cathy Kent[94][95]20162017
Tunde Ojetola[96]20172018
Barbara Rice[97]20182019
Terry Piccolo[98]20192021
Sue Shinnick[99][100]20212022
James Halden[101]20222023
Sue Little20232024
Kairen Raper[102]20242025
Sue Shinnick[103]2025

See also

Thurrock, the area with borough status which this council administers.

References

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