Borough of Rugby

The Borough of Rugby is a local government district with borough status in Warwickshire, England. The borough comprises the town of Rugby where the council has its headquarters, and the rural areas surrounding the town. At the 2021 census the borough had a population of 114,400, of which 78,125 lived in the built-up area of Rugby.

Aside from Rugby itself, settlements include Binley Woods, Brinklow. Dunchurch, Long Lawford, Monks Kirby, Wolston, Wolvey and the new development of Houlton. It includes a large area of the West Midlands Green Belt in the mostly rural area between Rugby and Coventry.

Between 2011 and 2021, the population of Rugby borough saw a 14.3% increase in population from around 100,100 to 114,400; the largest percentage increase of any local authority area in the West Midlands region.

The borough extends from Coventry in the west to Leicestershire and Northamptonshire in the east. It borders the Warwickshire districts of Nuneaton and Bedworth to the north-west, Stratford-on-Avon to the south, and Warwick to the south-west. The Leicestershire districts of Hinckley and Bosworth, Blaby and Harborough are to the north and north-east, whilst West Northamptonshire is to the south-east.

History

The town of Rugby had been a local board district from 1849. Such districts became urban districts in 1894. At the same time the Rugby Rural District was created covering the surrounding rural parishes. The urban and rural districts had separate councils, both based in Rugby. In 1932, Rugby Urban District was upgraded to become a municipal borough, and its boundaries were expanded to include most of Bilton (including New Bilton), Brownsover, Hillmorton and Newbold-on-Avon.

The present borough was created on 1 April 1974 by the Local Government Act 1972. It was created by a merger of the municipal borough of Rugby (which covered the town of Rugby) and the Rugby Rural District. The new district was named Rugby after its largest settlement. The district was awarded borough status from its creation, allowing the chair of the council to take the title of mayor, continuing Rugby's series of mayors dating back to 1932.

Governance

Rugby Borough Council provides district-level services. County-level services are provided by Warwickshire County Council. Much of the borough is also covered by civil parishes, which form a third tier of local government for their areas.

Political control

The council has been under no overall control since 2023. Following the 2024 election, a minority Labour administration formed to run the council with informal support from the Liberal Democrats.

Political control of the council since the 1974 reforms has been as follows:

Party in control		Years
	1974–1976
	1976–1979
	1979–1987
	1987–1990
	1990–2007
	2007–2016
	2016–2018
	2018–2023
	2023–present

Leadership

The role of mayor is largely ceremonial in Rugby. Political leadership is instead provided by the leader of the council. The leaders since 1974 have been:

Councillor	Party		From	To
Ken Marriott		1 Apr 1974	16 Aug 1977
Harold Cox		1977	1978
Gordon Collett		1978	May 1986
Lionel Franklyn		May 1986	May 1989
Gordon Collett		May 1989	May 1993
Lionel Franklyn		May 1993	May 1995
Bryan Levy		May 1995	May 2000
Steve Stewart		May 2000	20 Jun 2001
Alan Webb		20 Jun 2001	May 2002
Craig Humphrey		May 2002	31 Aug 2014
Michael Stokes		Sep 2014	16 May 2019
Seb Lowe		16 May 2019	May 2023
Derek Poole		18 May 2023	5 Jun 2024
Michael Moran		5 Jun 2024

Composition

Following the 2024 election, the composition of the council was:

Party		Councillors
	17
	15
	10
Total		42

The next election is due in 2026.

Elections

Since the last full review of boundaries in 2012 the council has comprised 42 councillors representing sixteen wards, with each ward electing either one or three councillors. Elections are held three years out of every four, with a third of the council being elected each time for a four-year term of office. Warwickshire County Council elections are held in the fourth year of the cycle when there are no borough council elections.

Premises

The council is based at Rugby Town Hall on Evreux Way in the town centre, which was purpose-built for the old borough council and opened in 1961.

Parishes

The borough of Rugby has 41 civil parishes mainly covering the rural areas of the borough. Rugby town is an unparished area and so does not have a separate town council.

Here is a list of parishes in the borough, some of which contain several settlements. Where a parish contains more than one settlement these are listed in brackets:

• Ansty,
• Binley Woods, Birdingbury, Bourton and Draycote, Brandon and Bretford, Brinklow, Burton Hastings
• Cawston, Church Lawford, Churchover, Clifton-upon-Dunsmore, Combe Fields, Copston Magna, Cosford,
• Dunchurch (incl: Toft)
• Easenhall
• Frankton,
• Grandborough
• Harborough Magna
• King's Newnham
• Leamington Hastings (incl: Broadwell, Hill & Kites Hardwick), Little Lawford, Long Lawford
• Marton, Monks Kirby,
• Newton and Biggin
• Pailton, Princethorpe
• Ryton-on-Dunsmore
• Shilton and Barnacle, Stretton Baskerville, Stretton-on-Dunsmore, Stretton-under-Fosse
• Thurlaston,
• Wibtoft, Willey, Willoughby, Withybrook, Wolfhampcote (incl: Flecknoe & Sawbridge), Wolston, Wolvey.

Places of interest

Places of interest in Rugby town include:

• The Rugby School Museum, which has audio-visual displays about the history of Rugby School and of the town.
• Rugby Art Gallery and Museum. The art gallery contains a nationally recognised collection of contemporary art. The museum contains, amongst other things, Roman artefacts dug up from the nearby Roman settlement of Tripontium.
• The Webb Ellis Rugby Football Museum, where traditional rugby balls are handmade. It contains much rugby football memorabilia.
• The Benn Hall, a conference, seminar, exhibition and party venue.
• Newbold Quarry Park, nature reserve
• Swift Valley Nature Reserve

Places of interest around Rugby include:

• Brandon Marsh
• Brinklow Castle
• Coombe Abbey
• Draycote Water – Reservoir and nature reserve
• Garden Organic
• Oxford Canal

See also

• List of wards in Rugby borough by population