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Camden London Borough Council

Camden London Borough Council, also known as Camden Council, legally The Mayor and Burgesses of the London Borough of Camden, is the local authority for the London Borough of Camden in Greater London, England. The council has been under Labour majority control since 2010. The council meets at Camden Town Hall and their other premises.

History

The London Borough of Camden and its council were created under the London Government Act 1963, with the first election held in 1964. For its first year the council acted as a shadow authority alongside the area's three outgoing authorities, the metropolitan boroughs of Hampstead, Holborn and St Pancras. The new council formally came into its powers on 1 April 1965, at which point the old boroughs and their councils were abolished.

The council's full legal name is "The Mayor and Burgesses of the London Borough of Camden", but it styles itself Camden Council.

From 1965 until 1986 the council was a lower-tier authority, with upper-tier functions provided by the Greater London Council. The split of powers and functions meant that the Greater London Council was responsible for "wide area" services such as fire, ambulance, flood prevention, and refuse disposal; with the boroughs (including Camden) responsible for "personal" services such as social care, libraries, cemeteries and refuse collection. The Greater London Council was abolished in 1986 and its functions passed to the London Boroughs, with some services provided through joint committees. Camden became a local education authority in 1990 when the Inner London Education Authority was dissolved.

Since 2000 the Greater London Authority has taken some responsibility for highways and planning control from the council, but within the English local government system the council remains a "most purpose" authority in terms of the available range of powers and functions.

Powers and functions

The local authority derives its powers and functions from the London Government Act 1963 and subsequent legislation. It sets council tax and as a billing authority also collects precepts for Greater London Authority functions and business rates. It sets planning policies which complement Greater London Authority and national policies, and decides on most planning applications. It is a local education authority and is also responsible for council housing, social services, libraries, waste collection and disposal, traffic, and most roads and environmental health. In 2025, the Care Quality Commission rated Camden Councils Greenwood Centre as outstanding for its adult social care provision.

The council licenses street trading throughout the borough, including the following markets:

Political control

The council has been under Labour majority control since 2010.

The first election to the council was held in 1964, initially operating as a shadow authority alongside the outgoing authorities until the new arrangements came into effect on 1 April 1965. Political control of the council since 1965 has been as follows:

Leadership

The role of mayor is largely ceremonial in Camden. Political leadership is instead provided by the leader of the council. The leaders since 1965 have been:

Composition

Following the 2022 election and subsequent by-elections up to March 2025, the composition of the council was as follows:

The next election is due in May 2026.

Wards

The wards of Camden and the number of seats:

  1. Belsize (3)
  2. Bloomsbury (3)
  3. Camden Square (2)
  4. Camden Town (2)
  5. Fortune Green (3)
  6. Frognal (2)
  7. Gospel Oak (3)
  8. Hampstead Town (2)
  9. Haverstock (3)
  10. Highgate (3)
  11. Holborn & Covent Garden (3)
  12. Kentish Town North (2)
  13. Kentish Town South (3)
  14. Kilburn (3)
  15. King's Cross (3)
  16. Primrose Hill (3)
  17. Regent's Park (3)
  18. South Hampstead (3)
  19. St Pancras & Somers Town (3)
  20. West Hampstead (3)

Premises

The council meets at Camden Town Hall on Judd Street, which was completed in 1937 for the old St Pancras Borough Council, originally being known as St Pancras Town Hall. The council's main offices are at 5 Pancras Square, which was purpose-built for the council as part of the regeneration of the King's Cross area, being completed in 2014.

Prior to 2014 the council's main offices were at the Town Hall Annexe, which had been completed in 1977 at the corner of Argyle Street and Euston Road, immediately east of the Town Hall. The Town Hall Annexe was subsequently converted into a hotel.

Elections

Since the last boundary changes in 2022 the council has comprised 55 councillors representing 20 wards, with each ward electing two or three councillors. Elections are held every four years.

The wards are:

Criticisms

DVLA Data Mis-use

In 2012 it was reported that Camden Council was one of several local authorities to have been banned from accessing information from the Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency. This information is normally made available to local authorities for purposes such as enforcing parking fines, but access can be withdrawn if they are found to be mis-using the service. The Big Brother Watch organisation, which obtained the information about the ban under a Freedom of Information request, claimed that "the public are right to be worried that their privacy is at risk across a range of government services."

Local employment imbalance

Following Freedom of Information requests in 2020, it was discovered that only 16% of Camden's employees live within the borough, and that many of its employees live as far afield as Scotland and Northern Ireland.

It was also discovered that senior employees were more likely to live further away from Camden, with a spokesperson saying that finding employees with specialised skillsets near to the borough was 'almost impossible'. Camden stated in response that all their staff are provided with one day's extra leave for volunteering, with a 'focus on Camden'.

Statistics also showed that only a single employee lived in Camden's three Central London wards, despite comprising almost a quarter of the borough's size and population.

Social Housing

In November 2024, the Housing Ombudsman published a special investigation into Camden Councils management of social housing. The investigation was prompted by a significant volume of severe maladministration rulings. They found evidence of a defensive complaints culture. The main areas of concern identified were complaint management, disrepair and how vulnerable tenants were treated. One tenant had to live with damp and mould, for over three years, severely impacting the tenants mental health.

Notable councillors

References

External links