The building became the headquarters of Cleckheaton Urban District Council, when it was formed in 1894, and of the enlarged Spenborough Urban District Council, when it was established in 1915. On 20 May 1926, the town hall was the venue for an important speech by the future leader of the National Liberal Party, Sir John Simon, who called for unity in the wake of the collapse of the General Strike: he said the British people should "retrace the false steps and acknowledge a grievous error ".