Dudley Metropolitan Borough Council

The town of Dudley had been a seigneurial borough from the thirteenth century, under the control of the lord of the manor.^[3] More modern forms of local government for the town began in 1791 when a body of improvement commissioners was established to pave, light and clean the streets, and supply water.^[4] The commissioners were replaced in 1853 with an elected local board.^[5]

The town was incorporated as a municipal borough in 1865, governed by a body formally called the "mayor, aldermen and burgesses of the borough of Dudley", generally known as the corporation, town council or borough council.^[6] The old local board's functions passed to the new borough council, which also replaced the ancient borough corporation.^[7]

When elected county councils were established in 1889, Dudley was considered large enough to provide its own county-level functions, and so it was made a county borough, independent from Worcestershire County Council, whilst remaining part of the geographical county of Worcestershire (despite being an exclave detached from the rest of the county).^[8][9] The County Borough of Dudley was enlarged on several occasions, notably in 1966 when it absorbed the majority of the abolished urban districts of Brierley Hill, Coseley and Sedgeley, alongside boundary adjustments with several other neighbours. As part of the 1966 reforms the borough was transferred to the geographical county of Staffordshire.^[10][11][12]

The modern metropolitan borough and its council were established in 1974 under the Local Government Act 1972, as one of seven boroughs in the new metropolitan county of the West Midlands. The new borough covered the combined area of the old county borough of Dudley plus the municipal boroughs of Halesowen and Stourbridge (the latter having absorbed the main part of the abolished Amblecote Urban District in the 1966 reforms). The enlarged district was named Dudley, and the borough status previously held by the county borough passed to the new district on its creation, allowing the chair of the council to take the title of mayor, continuing Dudley's series of mayors dating back to at least the sixteenth century.^[13][14]

From 1974 until 1986 the council was a lower-tier authority, with upper-tier functions provided by the West Midlands County Council. The county council was abolished in 1986 and its functions passed to the county's seven borough councils, including Dudley, with some services provided through joint committees.^[15]

Since 2016 the council has been a member of the West Midlands Combined Authority, which has been led by the directly elected Mayor of the West Midlands since 2017. The combined authority provides strategic leadership and co-ordination for certain functions across the county, but Dudley Council continues to be responsible for most local government functions.^[16][17]

The council bid for the borough to be awarded city status in 2011 and again in 2021, but was unsuccessful on both occasions.^[18][19][20]

Dudley Metropolitan Borough Council provides both county-level and district-level services, with some functions across the West Midlands provided via joint committees with the other West Midlands authorities, overseen by the combined authority and mayor. There are no civil parishes in the borough, which is an unparished area.^[21]

The council has its main offices at Dudley Council House on Priory Road, which was built in phases between 1928 and 1935 for the old county borough council.^[58]

Since the last boundary changes in 2004 the council has comprised 72 councillors representing 24 wards, with each ward electing three councillors. Elections are held three years out of every four, with a third of the council (one councillor for each ward) being elected each time for a four-year term of office. Elections for the Mayor of the West Midlands are held in the fourth year of the cycle when there are no borough council elections.^[59] New ward boundaries are being prepared to take effect from the 2024 election, which will require all seats to be contested at that election.^[60][61]

Following the 2023 review of constituencies and the July 2024 UK general election, the members of parliament for constituencies within Dudley MBC area are:

The Mayor presides over meetings of the full Council to ensure that business is carried out properly and efficiently, with due regard to the rights of Councillors and the interest of the Community.^[63] The Mayor of the Borough is elected at the Annual Meeting of the Council (usually in May each year) from the existing elected councillors.

The Mayor also nominates charities they wish to support during their mayoral year^[64] and hosts the annual Mayors Ball and Civic Awards. The Civic Awards aim to recognise individuals and groups who make a difference in the borough. Each award is named for a local personality in that field.^[65]

• The Frank Foley award for community spirit
• The William Shenstone award for environment
• The Duncan Edwards award for sport
• The Cedric Hardwicke award for arts
• The Thomas Attwood award for education
• The Mike Holder award for business

Dudley's coat of arms was designed in 1975.^[6] It symbolises each of the authorities that came together to form the present borough. Key themes on the civic arms reflect the area's pride in its industrial past.

The council adopted "Unity and Progress" as its motto in 1974.^[6]