The district was formed on 1 April 1974 under the Local Government Act 1972. The new district covered the whole area of two former districts and part of a third, which were all abolished at the same time:[2]
The new district was named after the old village of Gedling.[3][4] The civil parish of Gedling had been abolished in 1935 and absorbed into the Carlton Urban District.[5]
The new Gedling district was granted borough status from its creation, allowing the chair of the council to take the title of mayor.[6]
The council has been under Labour majority control since 2011.
The first election to the council was held in 1973, initially operating as a shadow authority alongside the outgoing authorities until the new arrangements took effect on 1 April 1974. Political control of the council since 1974 has been as follows:[10][11]
The role of mayor is largely ceremonial in Gedling. Political leadership is instead provided by the leader of the council. The leaders since 2002 have been:
The council is based at the Civic Centre in Arnot Hill Park. The building was purpose-built for the council in 1985 at a cost of £2.2 million. It was formally opened by Princess Anne on 1 November 1985.[23]
Since the last boundary changes in 2015 the council has comprised 41 councillors representing 19 wards, with each ward electing one, two or three councillors. Elections are held every four years.[24]
The borough is covered by two parliamentary constituencies. The more urban southern part of the borough adjoining Nottingham is in the Gedling constituency, which until 1983 was known as Carlton. The more rural northern part of the borough, including Calverton and Ravenshead, forms part of the Sherwood constituency.[26]
Parishes
Map of the Borough of Gedling
There are twelve civil parishes in the borough. The former Arnold Urban District and most of the former Carlton Urban District comprise an unparished area. The parish of Stoke Bardolph has a parish meeting rather than a parish council due to its small population.[27][26]
