Local Government Act 1933 - Administrative Areas and Local Authorities

Administrative Areas and Local Authorities

Although the 1933 Act did not create new local government areas, it repealed most of the Local Government Acts of 1888 and 1894, and parts of the Municipal Corporations Act 1882, and reestablished the existing councils and administrative areas.

Section 1 stated:

(1) For the purposes of local government, England and Wales (exclusive of London) shall be divided into administrative counties and county boroughs, and administrative counties shall be divided into county districts, being either non-county boroughs, urban districts or rural districts, and county boroughs and county districts shall consist of one or more parishes.

(2) Subject to any alteration of boundaries or the constitution of new authorities which may take effect after the passing of this Act--

(a) the administrative counties shall be the administrative counties which are named in Part I of the First Schedule to this Act;

(b) the county boroughs shall be the boroughs which are named in Part II of the First Schedule to this Act;

(c) the non-county boroughs shall be the boroughs which are named in Part III of the First Schedule to this Act;

(d) the urban districts shall be the urban districts other than boroughs existing at the passing of this Act;

(e) the rural districts shall be the rural districts existing at the passing of this Act; and

(f) the parishes shall be the urban parishes which at the passing of this Act are comprised in boroughs or urban districts, and the rural parishes which at the passing of this Act are comprised in rural districts.

(3) Every county borough shall, with respect to the functions which the council of the borough discharge, form a separate administrative area.

The term "non-county boroughs" was introduced in preference to "municipal borough" as county boroughs were also legally municipal boroughs. The councils for each of these various areas were to be known by the generic term of "local authorities" in this and subsequent legislation.

The actual titles of the councils remained the same:

• X county council (or council of the county of X) for administrative counties
• The mayor, aldermen and burgesses of the borough of Y (or (lord) mayor, aldermen and citizens of the city of Z) for boroughs
• W urban district council (or urban district council of W)
• V rural district council (or rural district council of V)

Rural parishes were governed by parish councils or parish meetings.