Photo: Robert Graham · CC BY-SA 2.0Reform UK holds a majority on Durham County Council
Bishop Auckland is run by Durham County Council, with Bishop Auckland parish council for local matters. Reform UK has a majority on Durham County Council. Its MP is Dr Sam Rushworth (Labour), member for Bishop Auckland.
£2,602
Band D, a year, the middle band every council sets its tax from.
Where it goes →How Bishop Auckland’s politics has changed since 2021
A majority on Durham County Council
Reform UK holds a majority on Durham County Council: 63 of its 98 seats as elected. The Liberal Democrats hold 15, independents 12, Labour 5, the Greens 2 and the Conservatives 1. Who’s in charge ↓
Council tax
A Band D bill in Bishop Auckland is £2,649 for 2026–27; Durham County Council keeps 78% of it. The council area’s Band D has risen 51% in ten years, against England’s 56%. Council money ↓
Written from the data on this page: Democracy Club results since May 2021, the UK Parliament Members API and MHCLG council tax.
Who holds the seats
Seats by party as elected. A party needs 50 of County Durham’s 98 seats to run the council alone.
- Reform UK63
- Liberal Democrat15
- Independent12
- Labour5
- Green2
- Conservative1
Latest election: May 2025.
Seats are counted from election results: each ward’s most recent winners until its seats are filled. Councillors who have since changed party or resigned aren’t reflected, and which parties lead the council, and who is leader, comes from the council itself.
Results: Democracy Club (CC BY 4.0), elections since May 2021; seats per ward from its EveryElection.
The councils that run Bishop Auckland
One council runs every main service here.
Local matters: allotments, play areas, halls, footpaths and benches; it is consulted on planning and adds a precept to the council tax bill. A town council is a parish council by another name.
67% of Bishop Auckland’s residents · Band D precept £149
The parish council for the part of Bishop Auckland inside Dene Valley parish.
Who runs Bishop Auckland: same source as Who runs Bishop Auckland, above.
Every main council service: schools, social care, roads, bins, planning, housing and libraries.
Website ↗Transport, skills and regeneration across several council areas. It is led by an elected mayor.
Mayor: Kim McGuinness (Labour and Co-operative), elected May 2024
Who to ask
From GOV.UK’s “Understand how your council works”: here one council runs every main service.
26% of Bishop Auckland’s residents live outside any parish, with no parish council.
Councils from ONS lookups (wards and councils May 2026, parishes 2025), names and websites from GOV.UK’s local council finder; parish councils from MHCLG’s 2026–27 list of precepting parishes.
From the parish to Westminster
Every elected tier that speaks for Bishop Auckland, from the most recent elections.
- 1Town or parish2 parish councilsBishop Auckland parish councilDene Valley parish council
- 2Durham County Council3 wards · 8 councillorsLyndsey FoxJohn Paul KinvigTom RedmondNick BrownStephen GrayMichael David RamageKate RowlandJames Michael Stephenson
- 3Mayor of North East Combined AuthorityNorth East Combined Authority · elected May 2024Kim McGuinness
- 4Police and crime commissionerDurham Constabulary · elected May 2024Joy Allen
- 5House of CommonsBishop Auckland
Party colours are neutral on purpose: they tell parties apart and aren’t the parties’ own. Tap an MP’s name for their contact page on parliament.uk.
8 councillors for 3 wards
Wards with at least 2% of the town’s residents, or half their own inside it. Each shows who won its most recent elections, newest first, until its seats are filled.
- Lyndsey FoxReform UK · May 2025
- John Paul KinvigReform UK · May 2025
- Tom RedmondReform UK · May 2025
- Nick BrownReform UK · May 2025
- Stephen GrayReform UK · May 2025
- Michael David RamageReform UK · May 2025
- Kate RowlandReform UK · May 2025
- James Michael StephensonReform UK · May 2025
Show as a table
| Ward | Seats | Elected | When |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bishop Aucklandall in Bishop Auckland · 15,991 residents3 seats · May 2025 | 3 | Lyndsey FoxJohn Paul KinvigTom Redmond | May 2025 |
| West Auckland50% in Bishop Auckland · 5,199 residents2 seats · May 2025 | 2 | Nick BrownStephen Gray | May 2025 |
| Shildon & Dene Valley13% in Bishop Auckland · 2,169 residents3 seats · May 2025 | 3 | Michael David RamageKate RowlandJames Michael Stephenson | May 2025 |
Councillors can resign, change party or sit as independents between elections; a by-election winner replaces someone not named here. Durham County Council’s website lists who sits now.
Results from Democracy Club’s candidates database (CC BY 4.0; elections since May 2021) and ward seats from its EveryElection, matched to ONS wards (May 2026) and county divisions (May 2025).
County Durham council election, May 2025
Results in the wards that make up Bishop Auckland, as declared. Percentages are of votes cast for candidates in each ward; where a ward elects several councillors, each voter has that many votes.
3 wards voted. Every seat in the town’s wards was up.
No election is scheduled yet for Bishop Auckland’s wards in Democracy Club’s list. Councils publish a notice of election about five weeks before polling day.
Who can I vote for? ↗11,201 votes for candidates · 3 seats, so 3 votes each
5,270 votes for candidates · 2 seats, so 2 votes each
10,710 votes for candidates · 3 seats, so 3 votes each
Candidates and results: Democracy Club (CC BY 4.0), from councils’ declared results; polling dates from Democracy Club’s EveryElection.
Bishop Auckland is in Bishop Auckland constituency
The constituency’s MP and the 4 July 2024 general election, the whole constituency’s result (it reaches beyond Bishop Auckland).
40,427 votes for candidates · majority 6,672
Labour, MP since 4 July 2024.
turnout in July 2024: 40,427 votes from 70,745 registered voters. England: 60%.
Majority 6,672 of 40,427 votes (16.5%): wider than in 59% of England’s 543 constituencies.
MPs and results: UK Parliament Members API (Open Parliament Licence v3.0); constituencies from ONS (2024 boundaries). Percentages are of valid votes; turnout is votes cast over the electorate.
Bishop Auckland’s Band D council tax is £2,649 a year
Where a Band D bill goes, what it has cost over the years, and what the councils plan to spend per resident.
Durham County Council keeps £2,071.11 of a Band D bill (78%); the rest goes to the Bishop Auckland parish council, the Durham police and crime commissioner and the Durham Fire and Rescue Authority.
Across the whole town the average Band D is £2,602 (parishes differ; weighted by residents).
Band D since 2009
County Durham’s Band D bill has risen 51% in ten years, from £1,735.37 in 2016–17, against England’s average (56%). It was £1,567.12 in 2009–10.
Your bill by band
A Band D home in Bishop Auckland, 2026–27, before discounts. The Valuation Office Agency’s band search gives any home’s band.
County Durham’s councils
Average Band D in each council area, 2026–27, parish precepts included. Bars start at £2,300.
Council budgets per resident, 2026–27
Show as a table, with County Durham
| County Durham | Bishop Auckland’s councils | County Durham | England |
|---|---|---|---|
| Adult social care | £415 | £443 | £487 |
| Children’s social care | £371 | £394 | £290 |
| Roads and transport | £37 | £48 | £41 |
| Housing (not council homes’ rents) | £34 | £36 | £61 |
| Bins, street cleaning, environment | £130 | £125 | £119 |
| Libraries, leisure, culture | £73 | £65 | £44 |
| Planning and development | £28 | £23 | £26 |
| Public health | £125 | £116 | £78 |
| Running the council | £53 | £57 | £59 |
| Other | £60 | £33 | £19 |
| Total, schools apart | £1,325 | £1,340 | £1,234 |
Net budgeted service spending, MHCLG Revenue Account budget 2026–27, per resident (ONS mid-2025 estimates). Schools are left out: academies are paid for directly by government, so council school budgets depend on how many schools have converted. County Durham and England: all their councils together. Police, fire and transport authorities aren’t included.
Band D: MHCLG Band D council tax 2026–27 (each authority’s own figure, excluding parish precepts) and Council Tax statistics for town and parish councils 2026–27; since 1993–94, MHCLG’s area averages including parishes.
Having a say in how Bishop Auckland is run
It takes about five minutes online; the deadline is 12 working days before a poll.
gov.uk ↗Type a postcode to write to each of its councillors and its MP.
WriteToThem ↗GOV.UK sends the report to the council that looks after the road.
gov.uk ↗Council and committee meetings are open to the public, with agendas and minutes online.
durham.gov.uk ↗Anyone can comment while an application is open for consultation.
durham.gov.uk ↗The rules, nomination papers and guidance for council candidates.
Electoral Commission ↗Questions about how Bishop Auckland is run
Which council runs Bishop Auckland?
Bishop Auckland is run by Durham County Council.
Does Bishop Auckland have a town council?
Yes: Bishop Auckland has its own parish-tier council (Bishop Auckland parish council; town councils are parish councils by another name), which adds £149 to a Band D bill in 2026–27.
Who is the MP for Bishop Auckland?
Dr Sam Rushworth (Labour) is the MP for Bishop Auckland, which covers Bishop Auckland.
How many councillors does Bishop Auckland have?
8 ward councillors represent Bishop Auckland’s 3 wards.
When are the next elections in Bishop Auckland?
No election is scheduled yet in Democracy Club’s list for Bishop Auckland’s wards. The next UK general election must be held by August 2029.
How much is council tax in Bishop Auckland?
Band D council tax in Bishop Auckland is £2,602 for 2026–27. Your bill depends on your home’s band, from A (6/9 of Band D) to H (18/9).
Who controls Durham County Council?
Reform UK has a majority: 63 of 98 seats as elected. The council’s website lists who leads it now.
Who won the 2025 council election in Bishop Auckland?
In Bishop Auckland’s wards on 1 May 2025, Reform UK 8 of the 8 seats up. Reform UK had the largest share of votes, 53.2%.
Sources: ONS ward, county division, parish, constituency lookups (Census 2021 output areas; Open Government Licence v3.0) · GOV.UK local council finder · Democracy Club candidates (CC BY 4.0) and EveryElection · UK Parliament Members API (Open Parliament Licence v3.0) · MHCLG Band D council tax, parish precepts and Revenue Account budgets 2026–27 (OGL v3.0) · ONS mid-2025 population estimates. Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0.
Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Contains HM Land Registry data © Crown copyright and database right 2026. Contains OS data © Crown copyright and database right 2026 (ONS boundaries). Northern Ireland: Source: NISRA; contains Land & Property Services data and Ordnance Survey of Northern Ireland information, © Crown copyright, licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Scotland: contains National Records of Scotland data, Registers of Scotland data and SEPA data, © Crown copyright / © SEPA 2025, licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.