Oxfordshire County Council

Oxfordshire County Council is the county council (upper-tier local authority) for the non-metropolitan county of Oxfordshire in the South East of England. Established in 1889, it is an elected body responsible for most strategic local government services in the county.

Oxfordshire County Council provides a wide range of services, including education (schools, libraries and youth services), social services, public health, highway maintenance, waste disposal, emergency planning, consumer protection and town and country planning for matters to do with minerals, waste, highways and education.This makes it one of the largest employers in Oxfordshire, with a gross expenditure budget of £856.2 million in 2021–22.

History

County councils were first introduced in England and Wales with full powers from 1 April 1889 as a result of the Local Government Act 1888, taking over administrative functions until then carried out by the unelected quarter sessions. 

The areas they covered were termed administrative counties and were not in all cases identical to the traditional shire counties. The city of Oxford was initially included in the administrative county, but seven months later, on 9 November 1889, the city become a county borough, making it independent from the county council and removing it from the administrative county.

The first elections to the new county council were held in January 1889. At the first meeting, several aldermen were elected.

Schools (both primary and secondary) were added to the County Council's responsibilities in 1902, and until the 1990s it was also responsible for operating Colleges of Further Education.

Oxfordshire County Council has seen a changing pattern of lower-tier authorities existing alongside it within its area, responsible for more local services, such as housing and waste collection. Until 1974, the county had a large number of urban district and rural district councils.

In 1974, local government was reorganised in England and Wales generally under the Local Government Act 1972, and Oxfordshire was enlarged to take in areas previously in Berkshire, as well as regaining authority over Oxford.

Within its new area, dozens of former urban and rural districts were amalgamated into five non-metropolitan districts: Oxford, Cherwell, South Oxfordshire, Vale of White Horse and West Oxfordshire.