Bedford Borough Council

Bedford Borough Council
Type
Type	Unitary authority
Leadership
Speaker	John Wheeler, Conservative since 15 May 2024[1]
Mayor	Tom Wootton, Conservative since 9 May 2023
Chief Executive	Laura Church since October 2021
Structure
Seats	46 councillors plus elected mayor
Political groups	Conservative (15)   Labour (13)   Liberal Democrats (13)   Green (3)   Independent (3)
Length of term	Executive mayor elected every four years Whole council elected every four years
Elections
Voting system	Plurality-at-large
Voting system	First-past-the-post[2]
Last election	4 May 2023
Next election	6 May 2027
Meeting place
Borough Hall, Cauldwell Street, Bedford, MK42 9AP
Website
www.bedford.gov.uk

Bedford Borough Council is the local authority of the Borough of Bedford in Bedfordshire, England. It is a unitary authority, having the powers of a non-metropolitan county and district council combined. The executive of the council is the directly elected mayor of Bedford. It is a member of the East of England Local Government Association.

The council was founded in 1974 as Bedford District Council, being renamed North Bedfordshire Borough Council in 1975. In 1992 it changed its name again to become Bedford Borough Council. Until 2009 it was a lower-tier district council, with county-level services provided by Bedfordshire County Council. On 1 April 2009, the Bedfordshire County Council ceased to exist, at which point Bedford Borough Council became a unitary authority. Legally, it is a district council which also performs the functions of a county council.