# Borough of Guildford

The Borough of Guildford is a local government district with borough status in Surrey, England. With around half of the borough's population, Guildford is its largest settlement and only town, and is where the council is based.
The borough includes part of the Surrey Hills, a designated Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty. The neighbouring districts are Surrey Heath, Woking, Elmbridge, Reigate and Banstead, Waverley and Rushmoor.

## History

The town of Guildford was an ancient borough, with its first known charter dating from 1257. It was reformed to become a municipal borough in 1836 under the Municipal Corporations Act 1835, which standardised the way many boroughs operated across the country. The borough boundaries were enlarged several times, notably in 1836, 1933 and 1954.
The modern district was formed on 1 April 1974 under the Local Government Act 1972, covering the area of two former districts, which were both abolished at the same time:
* Guildford Municipal Borough
* Guildford Rural District
Guildford's borough status transferred to the new district from its creation, allowing the chair of the council to take the title of mayor, continuing Guildford's series of mayors dating back to at least the fifteenth century.

## Governance

Guildford Borough Council provides district-level services. County-level services are provided by Surrey County Council. Parts of the borough are covered by civil parishes, which form a third tier of local government for their areas.
The council owns significant heritage assets that include monuments such as Guildford Castle, as well museums, art collections and civic regalia.
The council has shared a chief executive with neighbouring Waverley Borough Council since 2021.

### Political control

The council has been under Liberal Democrat majority control since the 2023 election.
Political control of the old municipal borough council from 1836 to 1974 was as follows:
| Party in control | Years |
| Conservative | 1836–1875 |
| No overall control | 1875–1877 |
| Conservative | 1877–1879 |
| No overall control | 1879–1880 |
| Conservative | 1880–1883 |
| No overall control | 1883–1885 |
| Conservative | 1885–1888 |
| Liberal | 1888–1889 |
| Conservative | 1889–1892 |
| No overall control | 1892–1892 |
| Liberal | 1892–1894 |
| No overall control | 1894–1895 |
| Liberal | 1895–1898 |
| No overall control | 1898–1899 |
| Independent | 1899–1957 |
| No overall control | 1957–1965 |
| Conservative | 1965–1972 |
| No overall control | 1972–1974 |
Political control of the modern borough council since the 1974 reforms has been as follows:
| Party in control | Years |
| Conservative | 1974–1991 |
| No overall control | 1991–1995 |
| Liberal Democrats | 1995–1997 |
| No overall control | 1997–2003 |
| Conservative | 2003–2019 |
| No overall control | 2019–2023 |
| Liberal Democrats | 2023–present |

### Leadership

The role of mayor is largely ceremonial in Guildford. Political leadership is instead provided by the leader of the council. The leaders since 2010 have been:
| Councillor | Party | From | To |
| Tony Rooth | Conservative | May 2010 | 11 Oct 2012 |
| Stephen Mansbridge | Conservative | 11 Oct 2012 | 19 Oct 2015 |
| Paul Spooner | Conservative | 9 Dec 2015 | May 2019 |
| Caroline Reeves | Liberal Democrats | 15 May 2019 | 22 Sep 2020 |
| Joss Bigmore | Residents for Guildford and Villages | 6 Oct 2020 | 22 Sep 2022 |
| Julia McShane | Liberal Democrats | 11 Oct 2022 | |

### Composition

Following the 2023 election the composition of the council was:
| Party | Party | Councillors |
| | Liberal Democrats | 25 |
| | Conservative | 10 |
| | Residents for Guildford and Villages | 7 |
| | Guildford Greenbelt Group | 3 |
| | Labour | 3 |
| Total | Total | 48 |
The next election is due in 2027.

### Elections

Since the last boundary changes in 2023 the council has comprised 48 councillors representing 21 wards, with each ward electing one, two or three councillors. Elections are held every four years.

#### Members of Parliament

The borough straddles five parliamentary constituencies:
| Constituency | Member of Parliament | Political party |
| Godalming and Ash | Jeremy Hunt | Conservative |
| Guildford | Zöe Franklin | Liberal Democrats |
| Surrey Heath | Al Pinkerton | Liberal Democrats |
| Woking | Will Forster | Liberal Democrats |
| Dorking and Horley | Chris Coghlan | Liberal Democrats |

### Premises

The council is based at Millmead House on Millmead in Guildford. The original house dates from the late seventeenth century, with extensive modern additions to the rear. Prior to the local government reorganisation of 1974, the building had been the headquarters of Guildford Rural District Council. The council's annual meeting when new mayors are appointed each May is held at Guildford Guildhall.

## Demography

Guildford has the second largest population of Surrey's eleven districts (based on census statistics, only 600 residents behind Reigate and Banstead). Approximately half of the borough's population live in the town of Guildford.

## Parishes

The central part of the borough, corresponding to the pre-1974 borough and covering the majority of the Guildford built-up area, is an unparished area. This area includes Bellfields, Boxgrove, Onslow Village, Park Barn, Stoughton, Westborough, and the (former) villages of Burpham, and Merrow.
The rest of the borough is covered by civil parishes:
* Albury
* Artington
* Ash
* Ash Vale
* Compton
* East Clandon
* East Horsley
* Effingham
* Normandy
* Ockham
* Pirbright
* Puttenham
* Ripley
* Seale and Sands
* Send
* Shackleford
* Shalford
* Shere
* St Martha
* Tongham
* Wanborough
* West Clandon
* West Horsley
* Wisley
* Worplesdon