Wombourne - Governance

Governance

Wombourne is part of a two-tier local government structure, typical of rural county areas in England.

• It is situated within the district of South Staffordshire. This is based in Codsall, to the north of Wombourne, although it has district offices locally. It was established in 1974 by the merging of Seisdon Rural District, to which Wombourne had belonged, with Cannock Rural District. Wombourne consists of three district council wards, each represented by three councillors: Wombourne North and Lower Penn; Wombourne South West; Wombourne South East.

• South Staffordshire itself is contained within the county of Staffordshire. This was established as an administrative county in 1889. Wombourne constitutes a single division in County Council elections: South Staffordshire - Wombourne.

Wombourne also has a parish council. This was originally established in 1894 and took its present form in 1974.

Wombourne is part of the South Staffordshire (UK Parliament constituency), which is not coterminous with the district of the same name. It is also part of the large West Midlands (European Parliament constituency), which has seven MEPs.

Before the local government reforms of the 19th century, the local parish or vestry was both a civil and an ecclesiastical unit within the Seisdon Hundred of the historic county of Staffordshire. In Victorian times, it became part of the Seisdon Poor Law Union.