Dorset County Council

Dorset County Council is the county council of Dorset in England. It provides the upper tier of local government, below which are district councils, and town and parish councils. The county council has 46 elected councillors and is based at County Hall in Dorchester. CompositionWhen councillors are elected they represent one of England's major political parties or are "independent". The Conservative Party currently have the highest number of councillors in the chamber. As such, the leader of the cabinet (effective head of the chamber) also represents the Conservative Party and can choose the cabinet members from the Conservative Party as well. The Liberal Democrats have the second highest number of councillors and the final councillor is an independent. Following the 2017 Local Elections, the Conservatives hold 32 seats, Liberal Democrats 11, the Green Party 2 and Labour 1. Responsibilities for servicesDorset County Council's responsibilities include schools, social care for the elderly and vulnerable, road maintenance, libraries and trading standards. The county council's area is also administered by six smaller authorities that have their own district or borough councils. The responsibilities of these councils include local planning, council housing, refuse collection, sports and leisure facilities, and street cleaning. The district areas are further divided into civil parishes, which have "parish councils" or "town councils"; the latter of which often use a town hall. Typical activities undertaken by a parish council include maintaining allotments, footpaths, playing fields and the local community or village hall. On some matters, the county council share responsibilities with the district and parish councils. These include economic development and regeneration, emergency planning, tourism promotion and coastal protection.

Dorset County Council is the county council of Dorset in England. It provides the upper tier of local government, below which are district councils, and town and parish councils. The county council has 46 elected councillors and is based at County Hall in Dorchester. CompositionWhen councillors are elected they represent one of England's major political parties or are "independent". The Conservative Party currently have the highest number of councillors in the chamber. As such, the leader of the cabinet (effective head of the chamber) also represents the Conservative Party and can choose the cabinet members from the Conservative Party as well. The Liberal Democrats have the second highest number of councillors and the final councillor is an independent. Following the 2017 Local Elections, the Conservatives hold 32 seats, Liberal Democrats 11, the Green Party 2 and Labour 1. Responsibilities for servicesDorset County Council's responsibilities include schools, social care for the elderly and vulnerable, road maintenance, libraries and trading standards. The county council's area is also administered by six smaller authorities that have their own district or borough councils. The responsibilities of these councils include local planning, council housing, refuse collection, sports and leisure facilities, and street cleaning. The district areas are further divided into civil parishes, which have "parish councils" or "town councils"; the latter of which often use a town hall. Typical activities undertaken by a parish council include maintaining allotments, footpaths, playing fields and the local community or village hall. On some matters, the county council share responsibilities with the district and parish councils. These include economic development and regeneration, emergency planning, tourism promotion and coastal protection.