Westminster City Council

Westminster City Council is the local authority for the City of Westminster in Greater London, England. It helps take care of the area and make important decisions for the community. Since 2026, the council has been led mostly by the Conservative party.

The council usually holds its big meetings at Westminster Council House, also called Marylebone Town Hall. The main offices where the council works are located at Westminster City Hall on Victoria Street. These places are important for the people who live in Westminster because that is where decisions are made to help improve their neighborhood.

History

Westminster has been an important place since Saxon times but it wasn’t officially a borough for local government until 1900. It became a city in 1540.

From 1856, the area was governed by the Metropolitan Board of Works. In 1889, this area became the County of London. In 1900, the area was split into smaller boroughs, including Westminster, Paddington, and St Marylebone. The modern City of Westminster and its council were created in 1963, with the first election in 1964. The new council started fully in April 1965. In 1966, the city was allowed to have a lord mayor.

For many years, some services were managed by the Greater London Council, but that was abolished in 1986. Since 2000, the Greater London Authority has taken over some responsibilities, but Westminster City Council still has many important powers and duties.

Powers and functions

The Westminster City Council gets its powers from laws like the London Government Act 1963. It can set taxes and collect money for services in Greater London. The council makes rules about building and planning, looks after schools, houses, libraries, and waste, and helps with traffic and roads.

Political control

The council has been mostly led by the Conservative party, with some time by the Labour party. The first election happened in 1964, and the council started working fully on April 1, 1965.

The main leader of the council is different from the ceremonial Lord Mayor of Westminster. Here are the leaders since 1965:

After the 2026 election, the council’s groups look like this:

The next election will happen in 2030.

Elections

See also: Westminster City Council elections

Since changes to the areas in 2022, the council has had 54 councillors representing 18 areas, with each area choosing three councillors. Elections happen every four years.

Wards

Westminster is divided into different areas called wards. Each ward has three seats on the council. The wards include Abbey Road, Bayswater, Church Street, Harrow Road, Hyde Park, Knightsbridge & Belgravia, Lancaster Gate, Little Venice, Maida Vale, Marylebone, Pimlico North, Pimlico South, Queen's Park, Regent's Park, St James's, Vincent Square, West End, and Westbourne.

Premises

The council’s main offices are located at Westminster City Hall on Victoria Street in the Victoria area. The building was designed by Burnet Tait & Partners and finished in 1966. Full council meetings take place in the council chamber at Marylebone Town Hall on Marylebone Road. This hall was built in 1920 for the old Metropolitan Borough of St Marylebone, which was one of the council’s earlier forms.

Notable councillors

Many people who served on Westminster City Council went on to do important work in government or other leadership roles.

Some notable councillors include Diane Abbott, who later became a Member of Parliament for Hackney North and Stoke Newington. Nickie Aiken served as a councillor before becoming MP for Cities of London and Westminster. Edward Argar was a councillor and later became an MP for Charnwood and then Melton and Syston.

Other well-known figures include Karen Buck, who was a councillor and later an MP, and Alf Dubs, Baron Dubs, who also served as an MP after being a councillor. Many others have contributed to public service in various ways after their time on the council.