Dacorum

Borough of Dacorum
Shown within Hertfordshire
Geography
Status:	Borough Non-metropolitan district
Region:	East of England
Admin. County:	Hertfordshire
Area: - Total	Ranked 162nd 212.48 km²
Admin. HQ:	Hemel Hempstead
ONS code:	26UC
Demographics
Population: - Total (2008 est.) - Density	Ranked 136th 139,600 657 / km²
Ethnicity:	93.1% White 3.2% South Asian 1.4% Black 1.5% Mixed
Politics
Leadership:	Leader & Cabinet
Control:	Conservative
MPs:	David Gauke Mike Penning

The Borough of Dacorum is a local government district in Hertfordshire, England. It includes the towns of Hemel Hempstead, Berkhamsted, Tring, and Kings Langley. It had a population of 137,799 at the 2001 census ^[1].

The District of Dacorum was formed in 1974, under the Local Government Act 1972 by the amalgamation of 7 smaller local authorities which are symbolised in the 7 oak leaves which surround a tudor rose found on the coat of arms. ^[2]

The five major components were the municipal borough of Hemel Hempstead, the urban districts of Berkhamsted and Tring, the rural districts of Berkhamsted and Hemel Hempstead and those parts of the rural districts of St Albans and Watford which were within the designated area of Hemel Hempstead new town.

The district was granted borough status in 1984. Hemel Hempstead had maintained Charter Trustees from 1974 to 1984.

The borough takes its name from the old hundred of Dacorum which covered approximately the same area. The name of the hundred, first recorded in 1196, is simply the Latin for "of the Danes", since the hundred lies at the margin of the Danelaw, the southern boundary of which was formed by the River Lee. This hundred was a combination of the two Domesday Book hundreds of Tring and Danais. ^[3]

Main settlements

The main towns and villages of the borough are:

Aldbury, Bovingdon, Berkhamsted, Bourne End, Bulbourne, Chipperfield, Cow Roast, Flamstead, Flaunden, Frithsden, Gaddesden Row, Great Gaddesden, Hemel Hempstead, Kings Langley, Little Gaddesden, Little Tring, Long Marston, Markyate, Nettleden, New Mill, Northchurch, Potten End, Ringshall, Tring, Tringford, Water End, and Wigginton.

The borough is entirely parished, apart from Hemel Hempstead.

Political representation

Flag of the Borough of Dacorum

The Council consists of 51 elected members, representing twenty-five electoral wards. 14 of the wards elect two councillors each. Six, denoted below, elect three councillors each. Five, also denoted below, elect one.

The Council is currently controlled by the Conservatives, who hold 44, or 86%, of the 51 seats. The Liberal Democrats hold 5, making them the second-largest contingent. Labour hold 2, down from 14 in the last election, in 2003.

Composition

Wards

Dacorum consists of twenty-five wards. Wards electing three members are denoted with asterisks (*). Those electing one member are denoted an obelisk (†).

Political control

Town twinning

• The Borough of Dacorum, is twinned with:
  • Neu-Isenburg, Germany

Two of the civil parishes in the borough also maintain their own separate twinning arrangements:

• Berkhamsted Town Council is twinned with:
  • Beaune (France)

• Kings Langley Parish Council with:
  • Baku (Ghana).

See also

• Primary schools in Dacorum

References

• The Dacorum Heritage Trust The Trust is the museum organisation for the Borough of Dacorum.
• Hertfordshire Museums More local museums.

External links

• Dacorum Borough Council - official website

Coordinates: 51°46′N 00°32′W / 51.767°N 0.533°W / 51.767; -0.533