The Borough of Crewe and Nantwich was created on 1 April 1974 under the Local Government Act 1972 by the merger of the borough of Crewe (an industrial town), the urban district of Nantwich (a smaller market town), and Nantwich Rural District.[1] The new district was proposed to be called just "Crewe", but the shadow authority elected in 1973 to oversee the transition to the new system successfully petitioned the government to change the name to "Crewe and Nantwich" before the district came into being.[2][3][4] The new district was awarded borough status from its creation, allowing the chairman of the council to take the title of mayor.[5]
The first elections to the council were held in 1973, initially operating as a shadow authority until the new arrangements came into effect on 1 April 1974. Political control of the council from 1974 until its abolition in 2009 was held by the following parties:[8]
On 4 May 2006 a referendum was held to decide whether the "Leader and Cabinet" form of local government would be replaced by an elected mayor. The proposal was rejected by 18,768 (60.8%) votes to 11,808 (38.2%) on a 35.3% turnout.
Premises
The council met at the Municipal Buildings in Earle Street, Crewe, which had been completed for the former Crewe Borough Council in 1905.[21] The main administrative offices were at Delamere House on Delamere Street in Crewe, which was built as a joint facility for both the new Crewe and Nantwich Borough Council and Cheshire County Council, being completed in 1974 just before local government reorganisation took effect.[22][23] Delamere House was later supplemented with additional offices in a large extension to the rear of the Municipal Buildings, completed in 1991.[24]
^"It's Crewe and Nantwich Council". Crewe Chronicle. 24 January 1974. p. 1. Retrieved 5 September 2022. The Secretary of State for the Environment has consented to the name of Crewe District Council being changed to Crewe and Nantwich District Council...