Borough of Harrogate


The Borough of Harrogate is a local government district and borough of North Yorkshire, England. Its population at the census of 2011 was 157,869. Its council is based in the town of Harrogate, but it also includes surrounding towns and villages. Including the cathedral city of Ripon and almost all of the Nidderdale Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty. The most populous district of North Yorkshire, it is the county's fourth largest district, as well the seventh largest non-metropolitan district in England. The district is part of the Leeds City Region. It borders seven other areas; the Craven, Richmondshire, Hambleton and Selby districts in North Yorkshire, the York unitary authority, and the Districts of Leeds and Bradford in West Yorkshire.
The district was formed on 1 April 1974, under the Local Government Act 1972, as a merger of the Masham and Wath rural districts, and part of Thirsk, from the North Riding of Yorkshire, along with the boroughs of Harrogate and the city of Ripon, the Knaresborough urban district, Nidderdale Rural District, Ripon and Pateley Bridge Rural District, part of Wetherby Rural District and part of Wharfedale Rural District, all in the West Riding of Yorkshire.
On 1 April 1996 the parishes of Nether Poppleton, Upper Poppleton, Hessay and Rufforth were transferred from the district to become part of the newly formed York unitary authority. According to the 2001 census these parishes had a population of 5,169.

Politics

Elections to the borough council are held in three out of every four years, with one third of the 54 seats on the council being elected at each election. After being under no overall control from the 2006 election, the Conservative party gained a majority at the 2010 election.
Following the 2016 United Kingdom local elections and subsequent by-elections, the political composition of Harrogate is as follows: The last composition of the former 54 seat council.
YearConservativeLiberal DemocratIndependent
201637107

Before boundary change came in.
The current composition of the new 40 seat council from the boundary change is as follows
Local Election 2018.
YearConservativeLiberal DemocratIndependent
20183172

The district is divided between three parliamentary constituencies: the whole of Harrogate and Knaresborough, the eastern part of Skipton and Ripon and the north western part of Selby and Ainsty

Towns

By population:
1. Harrogate
2. Ripon
3. Knaresborough
4. Boroughbridge
5. Pateley Bridge
6. Masham

Historical sites