The three districts were abolished under the Local Government (Wales) Act 1994, with Powys County Council becoming a unitary authority with effect from 1 April 1996, taking on the functions formerly performed by the district councils.[5]
Political control
The council has been under no overall control since 2017. Following the 2022 election a Liberal Democrat and Labour coalition formed to take control of the council.[6] The Green councillor later joined the coalition.[7]
The first election to the council was held in 1973, initially operating as a shadow authority before coming into its powers on 1 April 1974. Political control of the council since 1974 has been held by the following parties:[8]
Of the independent councillors, 15 form the 'Powys Independents' group and the other two are not affiliated to any group.[16] The next election is due in 2027.[17]
Elections
Elections are held every five years. Since the last ward boundary changes in 2022, 68 councillors have been elected from 60 wards.[18] Prior to 2012, elections were generally held every four years.
The council has its headquarters at County Hall on Spa Road East in Llandrindod Wells, which opened in 1990.[22] The site was formerly occupied by the Pump House Hotel, which had been the meeting place of the former Radnorshire County Council from 1889 and then served as both the offices and meeting place of Powys Council Council following the local government reorganisation in 1974. The old building was found to be structurally unstable in the late 1980s and it was decided to build a new county hall on the same site.[23]
The council also has three area offices, being one inherited from each of the three former districts abolished in 1996:[24]
The Gwalia in Llandrindod Wells, built in 1900 as the Gwalia Hotel, becoming offices of Radnorshire County Council 1950–1974 then Radnorshire District Council 1974–1996.
The former headquarters of Montgomeryshire District Council at Neuadd Maldwyn in Welshpool also served as an area office for Powys County Council until 2019 when it was sold.[25]
Powys is administered by Powys County Council and has 68 elected councillors representing 60 council wards. Although it is a unitary authority, the highway functions of the council, along with the allocation of small grants, are delegated to the three Shire Committees. Brecknockshire has 24 councillors, Radnorshire has 15 and Montgomeryshire has 34.[26]
Local elections take place every five years. Some of the electoral wards are coterminous with communities (parishes) of the same name. There are 112 communities in the principal area. Nearly all communities have a local community council.
The following table lists the council wards, the political group representing them, and the communities they cover. Communities with a community council are indicated with a '*':
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