Exeter City Council is the council and local government of the city of Exeter

Exeter

Exeter is a historic city in Devon, England. It lies within the ceremonial county of Devon, of which it is the county town as well as the home of Devon County Council. Currently the administrative area has the status of a non-metropolitan district, and is therefore under the administration of the...

, Devon

Devon

Devon is a large county in southwestern England. The county is sometimes referred to as Devonshire, although the term is rarely used inside the county itself as the county has never been officially "shired", it often indicates a traditional or historical context.The county shares borders with...

.

The City Council provides a range of services within the city including housing, refuse collections and recycling, planning, economic development, tourism, leisure and arts facilities and activities. The Council also provides housing and council tax benefits as well as collecting the council tax on behalf of the city council, county council, police and fire services. Services such as education, social services, transport and highways are provided in the city by Devon County Council.

The government proposed that the city should become an independent unitary authority

Unitary authority

A unitary authority is a type of local authority that has a single tier and is responsible for all local government functions within its area or performs additional functions which elsewhere in the relevant country are usually performed by national government or a higher level of sub-national...

 within Devon, much like neighbouring Plymouth

Plymouth

Plymouth is a city and unitary authority area on the coast of Devon, England, about south-west of London. It is built between the mouths of the rivers Plym to the east and Tamar to the west, where they join Plymouth Sound...

 and Torbay

Torbay

Torbay is an east-facing bay and natural harbour, at the western most end of Lyme Bay in the south-west of England, situated roughly midway between the cities of Exeter and Plymouth. Part of the ceremonial county of Devon, Torbay was made a unitary authority on 1 April 1998...

. The statutory orders to set up the unitary authority were passed in Parliament and a new unitary city council was due to start in Exeter on 1 April 2011. However, following the 2010 general election the new government announced in May 2010 that the reorganisation would be blocked.
Planned elections for seats on the City Council due to be held May 2010 were cancelled and new elections were held on the 9th of September 2010.

Districts of Exeter

The wards of the city for City Council purposes are listed below. Most of these correspond to traditional divisions of the city that would be recognised by local inhabitants. One or two, inevitably, are somewhat artificial creations:

• Alphington
  Alphington, Devon
  Alphington is a suburb of the City of Exeter in southwest England. The ward of Alphington has a population of 8250 according to the 2001 census, making it the third largest in Exeter, with the village itself accounting for about a quarter of this figure...
  
   - includes the Marsh Barton
  Marsh Barton
  Marsh Barton is Exeter's largest trading estate, covering over and supporting over 500 diverse businesses including one of Europe's largest motoring centres, showrooms, city plumbing, builders merchants, tool and plant hire....
  
   industrial estate
• Cowick - includes parts of the area known locally as St Thomas
• Duryard
  Duryard
  Duryard is an ancient area of Exeter and was once the hunting land of the Anglo-Saxon kings. The name comes from the Anglo-Saxon dear and geard . Today, much of the area is occupied by the University of Exeter, which has a halls of residence named Duryard....
  
  
• Exwick
  Exwick
  Exwick is a suburb of Exeter, England, in the north-west of the City. Its name is derived from the River Exe, which forms its eastern boundary. It is also an Ecclesiastical parish and an electoral ward.-Population:...
  
  
• Heavitree
  Heavitree
  Heavitree is a district of Exeter, Devon, England. Part of the historic district is currently one of the wards for elections to the City Council. Formerly an independent Urban District, it became a part of Exeter in 1913...
  
  
• Mincinglake - covers parts of Stoke Hill and Beacon Heath, little used locally as the name of an area
• Newtown
  Newtown, Exeter
  Newtown is an area of Exeter between St Sidwells and Heavitree and has been an area for the poor since Saxon times. A workhouse was built in 1671 on a site currently used as a car park, but Newtown remained largely rural up until the 19th century...
  
   - includes parts of the areas known locally as St Sidwells
  St Sidwells
  St Sidwells is an area east of Exeter city centre in the ward of Newtown. Formerly a village in its own right, St Sidwells grew in importance along with Exeter thanks to its location on the main cart track between Exeter and the high ground of Stoke Hill and the rich farmland of East Devon.The...
  
  , St Leonards and Newtown itself.
• Pennsylvania
• Pinhoe
  Pinhoe
  Pinhoe is a village on the north eastern outskirts of Exeter in the English county of Devon, which was incorporated into the city in 1966. The 2001 census recorded a population of 6,108 people resident within Pinhoe Ward , one of 18 wards comprising the City of Exeter...
  
  
• Polsloe - little used locally as the name of an area, centred along Polsloe Road.
• Priory - includes parts of the areas referred to locally as Wonford
  Wonford
  Wonford is an undefined area in the centre of Exeter covering parts of St Loyes and Heavitree. Originally, Wonford was a royal estate named after a stream that rose on the southern slopes of Stoke Hill and flowed through Northbrook Park. In 937, the name was wynford meaning fair stream...
  
   and Countess Wear
  Countess Wear
  Countess Wear, alternatively called Countess Weir, is a residential district within the city of Exeter, in the English county of Devon. The name derives from the weir constructed in 1286 on the instruction of Isabella de Fortibus, Countess of Devon....
  
  . The ward takes its name from the former local secondary school now known as Isca College. Priory School had been built on the site of the former Priory of St James
• St David's
• St James
• St Leonards
• St Loyes - includes areas referred to locally as Heavitree and Wonford, and most of the Sowton
  Sowton
  Sowton is a village and civil parish east of Exeter in East Devon, England. It has a population of 639.Its parish council merged with that of nearby Clyst St Mary in 1976 to form Bishop's Clyst.Sowton is also the name of an industrial estate at...
  
   industrial estate
• St Thomas
  St Thomas, Exeter
  St Thomas is a large civil parish in Devon, England, on the western side of the river Exe, connected to Exeter by Exe Bridge. It has a number of pubs, places of worship, a couple of schools and a large shopping precinct...
  
  
• Topsham
  Topsham, Devon
  Topsham is a suburb of Exeter in the county of Devon, England, on the east side of the River Exe, immediately north of its confluence with the River Clyst and the former's estuary, between Exeter and Exmouth. Although village-sized, with a current population of around 5,023, it was designated a...
  
   - the historic town of Topsham, plus parts of Countess Wear (principally the Golf and Country Club and the Southbrook estate).
• Whipton Barton

All city wards return two councillors to the Council, except for Alphington, Exwick, Priory, and Whipton Barton, which return three. The council holds elections by thirds over a four year cycle - one third of seats being contested in each of three years, and elections to Devon County Council taking place in the fourth.

Four political parties are currently represented on the council: Labour with 11 seats, the Conservatives with 12 seats, the Liberal Democrats with 13 seats and the Liberals with 4 seats.

Party		Seats
	19
	11
	9
	1