Borough of Oadby and Wigston
Borough and non-metropolitan district
Oadby, one of the two towns that form the borough
Oadby, one of the two towns that form the borough
Shown within Leicestershire
Shown within Leicestershire
Sovereign stateUnited Kingdom
Constituent countryEngland
RegionEast Midlands
Administrative countyLeicestershire
Admin. HQOadby
Government
 • TypeOadby and Wigston Borough Council
 • MPs:Neil O'Brien
Area
 • Total9.08 sq mi (23.53 km2)
 • Rank286th
Population
 (2021)
 • Total57,753
 • RankRanked 291st
 • Density6,400/sq mi (2,500/km2)
Time zoneUTC+0 (Greenwich Mean Time)
 • Summer (DST)UTC+1 (British Summer Time)
ISO 3166-2GB-LEC
ONS code31UJ (ONS)
E07000135 (GSS)
NUTS 3UKF22
Ethnicity82.8% White
13.5% S.Asian
1.3% Black British

Oadby and Wigston is a local government district with borough status in Leicestershire, England. It covers the two towns of Oadby, where the council is based, and Wigston, which is the larger town. Both form part of the Leicester urban area, lying south-east of the city.

The neighbouring districts are Leicester, Harborough and Blaby.

History

The district was created 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:[1]

The new district was named Oadby and Wigston, combining the towns' names.[2] The new district was awarded borough status from its creation, allowing the chair of the council to take the title of mayor.[3]

Governance

Oadby and Wigston Borough Council
Logo
Type
Type
History
Founded1 April 1974
Leadership
Rosemarie Adams,
Liberal Democrat
since 10 May 2022[4][5]
Samia Haq,
Liberal Democrat
since 18 Apr 2023[6]
Anne Court
since 2018
Structure
Seats26 councillors
Political groups
Administration (19)
  Liberal Democrat (19)
Opposition (7)
  Conservative (7)
Length of term
4 years
Elections
Last election
4 May 2023
Next election
6 May 2027
Meeting place
Brocks Hill Council Offices, Washbrook Lane, Oadby, Leicester, LE2 5JJ
Website
www.oadby-wigston.gov.uk

Oadby and Wigston Borough Council provides district-level services. County-level services are provided by Leicestershire County Council. There are no civil parishes in the borough, which is an unparished area.[7][8]

Political control

The council has been under Liberal Democrat majority control since 1991.

The first election to the council was held in 1973, initially operating as a shadow authority alongside the outgoing authorities before coming into its powers on 1 April 1974. Political control of the council since 1974 has been as follows:[9][10]

Party in controlYears
Conservative1974–1991
Liberal Democrats1991–present

Leadership

The role of mayor is largely ceremonial in Oadby and Wigston. Political leadership is instead provided by the leader of the council. The leaders since 2006 have been:[11]

CouncillorPartyFromTo
John Boyce Liberal Democrats200618 Apr 2023
Samia Haq Liberal Democrats18 Apr 2023

Composition

Following the 2023 election the composition of the council was:[12][13]

Party Councillors
Liberal Democrats 19
Conservative 7
Total 26

The next election is due in 2027.

Elections

Borough council ward map

Since the last boundary changes in 2003 the council has comprised 26 councillors representing 10 wards, with each ward electing two or three councillors. Elections are held every four years.[14]

The wards are:

  • Oadby Brocks Hill (2)
  • Oadby Grange (3)
  • Oadby St Peter's (2)
  • Oadby Uplands (2)
  • Oadby Woodlands (2)
  • South Wigston (3)
  • Wigston All Saints (3)
  • Wigston Fields (3)
  • Wigston Meadowscroft (3)
  • Wigston St Walstan's (3)

The district forms part of the Harborough constituency.[8]

Premises

The council meets at the Brocks Hill Council Offices in Brocks Hill Park on Washbrook Lane in Oadby.

Bushloe House, Station Road, Wigston: Council headquarters 1974–2023

Until 2023 the council was based at Bushloe House on Station Road in Wigston, which had been built c. 1850 as a house and had been bought in 1942 by the old Wigston Urban District Council and converted to become its headquarters.[15][16] In 2023 the council moved its meetings and offices to the Brocks Hill offices in Oadby.[17]

Geography

It is composed of the areas of Oadby, Wigston, South Wigston and the hamlet of Kilby Bridge. It is predominantly urban, and borders Leicester directly to the north-west. There are no civil parishes in the district.

The most northerly corner is near the junction of the A6030 and B582, and near the Bupa hospital it meets Harborough. It runs along the B582 then along the former Roman road (which runs to Corby), passing the playing fields of the University of Leicester. It passes along the north edge of Oadby Lodge, a farm owned by the Co-op. Towards the deserted village of Stretton Magna (outside the district), the boundary passes southwestwards. This area was proposed to be the site of the eco-town Pennbury. It crosses the A6 at Glen Gorse Golf Club. It crosses Newton Lane and the Midland Main Line. It crosses the Grand Union Canal, and towards Kilby it meets the district of Blaby at the River Sence. It follows the River Sence, crossing the A5199 (Welford Road). At Rose Farm it follows Countesthorpe Road towards South Wigston, to the Grand Union Canal, crossing the former Midland Counties Railway, which it follows westwards. It passes northwards across St Thomas Road (B582) and the Birmingham to Peterborough Line. It passes northwards on the east side of the Glen Parva prison (in Blaby district). It meets Leicester UA south of Eyres Monsell, a large housing estate.

Following the Leicester boundary, it crosses Saffron Road (B5366), then follows Dorset Avenue, follows the Midland Main Line northwards, crossing Aylestone Lane (B5418), then crosses the Midland Main Line. It crosses the Welford Road (A5199) at the point where the road becomes a dual-carriageway south of the Best Western Leicester Stage Hotel (in Leicester UA). It passes on the south edge of Knighton Park, and the western edge of Oadby Golf Club, west of Leicester Racecourse (in the district). Near the racecourse entrance it crosses the A563 southern ring road, then London Road (A6), passing northwards along the western edge of the University of Leicester's Oadby Student Village, west of the University of Leicester Botanic Garden (in the district).

Demography

Population growth in Oadby and Wigston
Year 1951 1961 1971 1981 1991 2001 2011 2016 2021 2031
Population 23,943 34,206 50,253 50,014 51,542 55,773 56,170 55,800 56,500 59,700
Census [18] ONS[19] ONS Projections [20]

Education

Both Beauchamp College, in the south of Oadby, and Wigston College, on the B582 in Wigston, are former grammar schools. Both were upper schools, as the three tier system operated in the district's schools. Also near the council offices on the B582 is South Leicestershire College, an FE college. Next to the Beauchamp College is Gartree High School, a former middle school. Another school is Manor High School, Oadby, which was the largest middle school in the country.

Coat of arms

Coat of arms of Oadby and Wigston
Crest
On a wreath Argent and Gules an owl affronty supporting with the wings a Brown pelt charged with a shuttle erect all Proper.
Escutcheon
Quarterly Gules and Vert on a bend Or between in the second and third quarters two bars gemelles Or surmounted of a pile reversed Argent a lion's gamb erased Gules between two pierced cinquefoils Ermine
Supporters
On the dexter side a lamb guardant Argent and on the sinister side a tiger guardant the tail reflexed upward along the exterior thigh Proper.
Motto
Obtain Wisdom [21]

Freedom of the borough

The following people, military units and Organisations have received the Freedom of the Borough of Oadby and Wigston.

Individuals

  • H. Embacher: 1988.

Military units

Organisations and groups

References

  1. ↑ "The English Non-metropolitan Districts (Definition) Order 1972", legislation.gov.uk, The National Archives, SI 1972/2039, retrieved 22 August 2022
  2. ↑ "The English Non-metropolitan Districts (Names) Order 1973", legislation.gov.uk, The National Archives, SI 1973/551, retrieved 22 August 2022
  3. ↑ "District Councils and Boroughs". Parliamentary Debates (Hansard). 28 March 1974. Retrieved 16 January 2012.
  4. ↑ "Council minutes, 10 May 2022". Oadby and Wigston Borough Council. Retrieved 4 November 2023.
  5. ↑ "Council minutes, 18 May 2023". Oadby and Wigston Borough Council. Retrieved 4 November 2023.
  6. ↑ "Council minutes, 18 April 2023" (PDF). Oadby and Wigston Borough Council. Retrieved 4 November 2023.
  7. ↑ "Local Government Act 1972", legislation.gov.uk, The National Archives, 1972 c. 70, retrieved 31 May 2023
  8. 1 2 "Election Maps". Ordnance Survey. Retrieved 17 October 2023.
  9. ↑ "Compositions calculator". The Elections Centre. Retrieved 10 August 2022.
  10. ↑ "Oadby & Wigston". BBC News Online. Retrieved 19 March 2010.
  11. ↑ "Council minutes". Oadby and Wigston Borough Council. Retrieved 18 August 2022.
  12. ↑ "Local elections 2023: live council results for England". The Guardian.
  13. ↑ "Oadby and Wigston Borough Council".
  14. ↑ "The Borough of Oadby and Wigston (Electoral Changes) Order 2002", legislation.gov.uk, The National Archives, SI 2002/2889, retrieved 4 November 2023
  15. ↑ Historic England. "Bushloe House (Grade II) (1073658)". National Heritage List for England. Retrieved 4 November 2023.
  16. ↑ "Wigston Urban District Council: Civic Centre and administrative offices". Leicester Evening Mail. 15 October 1942. p. 6. Retrieved 4 November 2023.
  17. ↑ Moorhouse, Sam (12 July 2023). "Oadby and Wigston Borough Council unveils new £2.7 million office in country park". Leicestershire Live. Retrieved 4 November 2023.
  18. ↑ Vision of Britain through time
  19. ↑ mid year estimate
  20. ↑ ONS population projections 2014 base
  21. ↑ "East Midlands Region". Civic Heraldry of England. Retrieved 8 March 2021.
  22. ↑ "Freedom of the Borough march to be held in Wigston". Leicester Mercury. 1 May 2012. Archived from the original on 12 September 2012.
  23. ↑ "Freedom of the Borough".
  24. ↑ "University of Leicester granted Honorary Freedom of the Borough". Oadby and Wigston Borough Council. Retrieved 12 July 2021.
  25. ↑ "University of Leicester Granted Freedom of The Borough". In Your Area. 4 April 2021. Retrieved 12 July 2021.
  26. ↑ "University of Leicester receives Freedom of the Borough honour". The University of Leicester. 13 September 2021. Retrieved 8 December 2023.
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