# City of Chelmsford

The City of Chelmsford (/ˈtʃɛlmzfərd/) is a local government district with borough and city status in Essex, England. It is named after its main settlement, Chelmsford, which is also the county town of Essex. As well as the settlement of Chelmsford itself, the district also includes the surrounding rural area and the town of South Woodham Ferrers.
The neighbouring districts are Uttlesford, Braintree, Maldon, Rochford, Basildon, Brentwood and Epping Forest.

## History

Chelmsford's first elected council was a local board of health established in 1850. This replaced a body of improvement commissioners which had previously administered the town under the Chelmsford Improvement Act 1789 (29 Geo. 3. c. 44). The local board in turn was replaced by the Chelmsford Corporation in 1888 when the town was incorporated to become a municipal borough.
The current district was formed on 1 April 1974 under the Local Government Act 1972, covering two former districts which were abolished at the same time:
* Chelmsford Municipal Borough
* Chelmsford Rural District (except the two parishes of Ingatestone and Fryerning and Mountnessing, which went to Brentwood.)
The new district was named Chelmsford after its main town. The new council was initially called "Chelmsford District Council". Charter trustees were established for the area of the former municipal borough so as to allow the town to continue to have a mayor. The new district was granted borough status in 1977, changing the name of the council to "Chelmsford Borough Council" and allowing the chair of the council to take the title of mayor instead, with the charter trustees then being disbanded.
On 1 June 2012 the district was granted city status to mark the Diamond Jubilee of Elizabeth II, and the council therefore changed its name to "Chelmsford City Council".

## Governance

Chelmsford City Council provides district-level services. County-level services are provided by Essex County Council. Parts of the district are also covered by civil parishes, which form a third tier of local government.

### Political control

The council has been controlled by the Liberal Democrats since the 2019 election.
The first election to the council was held in 1973, initially operating as a shadow authority alongside the outgoing authorities until the new arrangements came into effect on 1 April 1974. Political control of the council since 1974 has been as follows:
| Party in control | Years |
| No overall control | 1974–1976 |
| Conservative | 1976–1983 |
| Alliance | 1983–1988 |
| Liberal Democrats | 1988–1991 |
| Conservative | 1991–1995 |
| Liberal Democrats | 1995–1999 |
| No overall control | 1999–2003 |
| Conservative | 2003–2019 |
| Liberal Democrats | 2019–present |

### Leadership

The role of mayor is largely ceremonial in Chelmsford. Political leadership is instead provided by the leader of the council. The leaders since 2003 have been:
| Councillor | Party | Party | From | To |
| Roy Whitehead | | Conservative | 2003 | 22 May 2019 |
| Stephen Robinson | | Liberal Democrats | 22 May 2019 | |

### Composition

Following the 2023 election and subsequent changes of allegiance in November 2023, the composition of the council was:
| Party | Party | Councillors |
| | Liberal Democrats | 33 |
| | Conservative | 19 |
| | Independent | 5 |
| Total | Total | 57 |
Three of the independent politicians sit together as the "Chelmsford Independents Group". The next election is due in 2027.

### Premises

The council is based at Chelmsford Civic Centre on Duke Street in Chelmsford. The building was purpose-built for the former borough council and was opened in 1935.

## Elections

Since the last full review of boundaries in 2003 the council has comprised 57 councillors elected from 24 wards, with each ward electing one, two or three councillors. Elections are held every four years.

## Geography

The district has two major centres, the principal settlement Chelmsford in the centre and the town of South Woodham Ferrers to the south east. The remainder of the district is predominantly rural, with many villages and hamlets.
The River Chelmer flows into the district near North End and flows to Chelmsford where the River Can converges with it at the city centre. The River Chelmer then flows out of the district between Boreham and Little Baddow. The River Can's source is in the north west of the district. The River Wid flows from the south of the borough through Widford towards the centre past Writtle to join the River Can between Writtle and Chelmsford. The River Crouch flows along the part of the southeastern border below South Woodham Ferrers. Hanningfield Reservoir, a Site of Special Scientific Interest, is located in the south of the borough.

## Transport

The rail links, both national and international, which run through the borough, are all operated by Greater Anglia. Two national rail services operate. The Great Eastern Main Line runs through the centre, stopping at Chelmsford railway station. Services via Chelmsford operate between London Liverpool Street and Ipswich, Clacton, Harwich, Braintree or Norwich. The Crouch Valley Line also runs through the far south-east tip of the borough, stopping at South Woodham Ferrers, running services between Wickford and Southminster.
The Amsterdam Express, a rail/sea/rail international service owned by also stops at Chelmsford, on its route between London and the Netherlands, via North Sea ferries.
There are several primary routes within the borough. One of these, the A12, is also a trunk road and runs from London and the M25, centrally in a north-easterly direction through the borough bypassing the city of Chelmsford onwards to Suffolk and Norfolk. Two other significant primary routes are the A130 which runs north-south across Essex and the A414, which begins as a primary route in Chelmsford but its terminus us Maldon in Essex. The A414 then runs west through Essex, meets the M11 and then its path continues into Hertfordshire via Harlow. Various other A- and B-Roads connect the borough, especially the city of Chelmsford to the rest of the county and beyond.
There is, additionally, a large integrated bus network provided primarily by First Essex which connects the city to towns and villages across the county. Other smaller operators also provide services, such as Stephensons of Essex and Arriva Essex.

## Parishes

There are 29 civil parishes in the district. The former Chelmsford Municipal Borough is an unparished area, directly administered by Chelmsford City Council. The parish council for South Woodham Ferrers takes the style "Town Council", whilst the parish of Mashbury has a parish meeting rather than a parish council due to its small population.
* Boreham
* Broomfield
* Chelmer
* Chelmsford Garden
* Chignall
* Danbury
* East Hanningfield
* Galleywood
* Good Easter
* Great Baddow
* Great and Little Leighs
* Great Waltham
* Highwood
* Little Baddow
* Little Waltham
* Margaretting
* Mashbury (meeting)
* Pleshey
* Rettendon
* Roxwell
* Runwell
* Sandon
* South Hanningfield
* South Woodham Ferrers (town)
* Springfield
* Stock
* West Hanningfield
* Woodham Ferrers and Bicknacre
* Writtle

## Education

Educational establishments in the borough include:
* Anglia Ruskin University
* King Edward VI Grammar School, known locally as 'KEGS'
* St John Payne Catholic School
* Writtle College, an agricultural college
* Great Baddow High School
* Moulsham High School and humanities college
* Hylands School Specialist Science and Sixth Form College
* The Boswells School
* Columbus School and College, a special needs school.
* Thriftwood School, a special needs school.
* Thriftwood College, a special needs 6th form
* Chelmer Valley High School
* New Hall School, opened 1799.
* Chelmsford County High School for Girls
* St Peter's College, the former Rainsford High School, which closed in August 2011.
* The Sandon School
* William de Ferrers School
* Chelmsford College a college of further education
* The Beaulieu Park School (Essex's First All Through School)

## Tourism

Henry VIII's former Palace of Beaulieu is situated in Boreham, now occupied by the New Hall School. Also located in the borough include the RHS Garden, Hyde Hall at Rettendon, and numerous open spaces in Chelmsford, including Admirals and Central Parks. Writtle, where Robert the Bruce is said to have married his second wife Elizabeth de Burgh in 1302, has English Royal connections, with King John building a hunting lodge there in 1211. Much of the site now lies within the grounds of Writtle College, the internationally famous centre for horticulture and agriculture. A few miles away is the village of Pleshey, where stand the ruins of a once important castle mentioned in William Shakespeare's play Richard II. The entire circuit of the castle walls can still be traced in the village streets. American tourists often visit the village of Springfield, Essex, the origin of "Springfield" as a popular place name, first giving its name to the important City of Springfield, Massachusetts, and subsequently Springfield, Illinois, the state capital of Illinois, and Springfield, Missouri, among numerous others.

## Freedom of the City

The following people and military units have received the Freedom of the City of Chelmsford.

### Individuals

* Colonel Sir John Ruggles-Brise: 1967.

## Arms

Coat of arms of City of Chelmsford :
* NotesGranted 3 March 1975.
* CrestOn a wreath of the colours a garb Or transfixed with a seaxe and a sword in saltire points upwards both Proper.
* EscutcheonArgent three bars wavy Azure on a chief indented Gules a saltire couped between two mullets Argent.
* SupportersDexter a lion Azure supporting an episcopal crozier Or sinister a like lion supporting an abbatical crozier Or with veil proper upon a compartment comprising a triple arched stone bridge above water barry wavy.
* MottoMany Minds One Heart