Photo: Robert Edwards · CC BY-SA 2.0No party holds a majority on Colchester City Council
Layer Breton is run by Colchester City Council and Essex County Council, with Birch parish council for local matters. No party holds a majority on Colchester City Council. The Conservatives have a majority on Essex County Council. Its MP is Priti Patel (Conservative), member for Witham.
£2,295
Band D, a year, the middle band every council sets its tax from.
Where it goes →How Layer Breton’s politics has changed since 2021
No majority on Colchester City Council
The Conservatives, the largest group, hold 18 of its 51 seats as elected, 8 short of the 26 needed. The Liberal Democrats hold 13, Labour 12, Reform UK 5 and the Greens 3. Who’s in charge ↓
Essex in 2021
Essex County Council, which runs schools, social care and roads, has a Conservative majority at the May 2021 election: the Conservatives won 52 of 75 seats. Essex ↓
The 2026 vote
Across Layer Breton’s wards, Reform UK took 38.1%, the Conservatives took 33% and the Greens took 12.7% of votes in May 2026. In 2024, Reform UK had 0%. How Layer Breton has voted ↓
Council tax
A Band D bill in Layer Breton is £2,321 for 2026–27; Colchester City Council keeps 10% of it. The council area’s Band D has risen 47% 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 on Layer Breton’s councils
Seats by party as elected. A party needs 26 of Colchester’s 51 or 38 of Essex’s 75 seats to run the council alone.
- Conservative18
- Liberal Democrat13
- Labour12
- Reform UK5
- Green3
Latest election: May 2026.
- Conservative52
- Liberal Democrat8
- Labour5
- Independent4
- Canvey Island Independent Party2
- Residents for Uttlesford2
- Green1
- Rochford District Residents1
Latest election: May 2021.
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.
Two tiers of council, and a parish tier
Layer Breton has two tiers of council: the county runs the big services, the district the local ones.
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 Layer Breton’s residents · Band D precept £80
Bins and recycling, planning, housing, environmental health, leisure, and collecting council tax.
Website ↗Schools, social care, roads and transport, libraries and waste disposal.
Website ↗Who to ask
From GOV.UK’s “Understand how your council works”: in two-tier areas the district or borough runs local services and the county the big ones.
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 Layer Breton, from the most recent elections.
- 1Town or parishParish tierBirch parish council
- 2Colchester City Council1 ward · 3 councillorsAndrew Patrick HardingKevin Paul BentleyAndrew Ellis
- 3Essex County Council1 division · 1 councillorKevin Paul Bentley
- 4Police and crime commissionerEssex Police · elected May 2024Roger Charles Hirst
- 5House of CommonsWitham
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.
3 councillors for 1 ward
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.
- Andrew Patrick HardingReform UK · May 2026
- Kevin Paul BentleyConservative · May 2024
- Andrew EllisConservative · May 2023
Show as a table, with Essex County Council’s 1 division (1 councillor)
| Ward | Seats | Elected | When |
|---|---|---|---|
| Marks Tey and Layer8% in Layer Breton · 869 residents3 seats · May 2026, May 2024, May 2023 | 3 | Andrew Patrick HardingKevin Paul BentleyAndrew Ellis | May 2026, May 2024, May 2023 |
Essex County Council: county divisions
| Division | Seats | Elected | When |
|---|---|---|---|
| Stanway and Pyefleet ED2% in Layer Breton · 869 residents1 seat · May 2021 | 1 | Kevin Paul Bentley | May 2021 |
Councillors can resign, change party or sit as independents between elections; a by-election winner replaces someone not named here. Colchester City 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).
The Conservatives led each vote to 2024; Reform UK led in 2026
Share of all votes cast for candidates in Layer Breton’s wards at each scheduled council election since 2021. A gap is a year with no election here.
Seats won at each election
Show as a table
| Party | 2021 | 2022 | 2023 | 2024 | 2026 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Green | 8.3% | 9.3% | 11.8% | 11.1% | 12.7% |
| Labour | 11.6% | 18.5% | 21.6% | 25.9% | 6.9% |
| Liberal Democrat | 8% | 15.5% | 11.9% | 9.7% | 9.3% |
| Conservative | 67.4% | 56.6% | 54.8% | 53.2% | 33% |
| Reform UK | 0% | 0% | 0% | 0% | 38.1% |
In 2026, Reform UK won 1 of the 1 seats up in Layer Breton’s wards.
Results: Democracy Club (CC BY 4.0). Where a ward elects several councillors at once, each voter has that many votes; all of them count here.
Colchester council election, May 2026
Results in the wards that make up Layer Breton, as declared. Percentages are of votes cast for candidates in each ward; where a ward elects several councillors, each voter has that many votes.
1 ward voted. Colchester elects a third of its councillors at a time, so a third of the seats were up.
No election is scheduled yet for Layer Breton’s wards in Democracy Club’s list. Councils publish a notice of election about five weeks before polling day.
Who can I vote for? ↗3,808 votes for candidates
Candidates and results: Democracy Club (CC BY 4.0), from councils’ declared results; polling dates from Democracy Club’s EveryElection.
Layer Breton is in Witham constituency
The constituency’s MP and the 4 July 2024 general election, the whole constituency’s result (it reaches beyond Layer Breton).
50,603 votes for candidates · majority 5,145
Conservative, MP since 6 May 2010.
turnout in July 2024: 50,603 votes from 78,991 registered voters. England: 60%.
Majority 5,145 of 50,603 votes (10.2%): the 191st-narrowest of 543 in England.
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.
Layer Breton’s Band D council tax is £2,321 a year
Where a Band D bill goes, what it has cost over the years, and what the councils plan to spend per resident.
Colchester City Council keeps £231.15 of a Band D bill (10%); the rest goes to the Birch parish council, Essex County Council, the Essex Police and the Essex PCC-Fire.
Across the whole town the average Band D is £2,295 (parishes differ; weighted by residents).
Band D since 1993
Colchester’s Band D bill has risen 47% in ten years, from £1,548.23 in 2016–17, against England’s average (56%). It was £536.63 in 1993–94.
Your bill by band
A Band D home in Birch, 2026–27, before discounts. The Valuation Office Agency’s band search gives any home’s band.
Essex’s councils
Average Band D in each council area, 2026–27, parish precepts included; the 11 nearest of 14. Bars start at £2,100.
Council budgets per resident, 2026–27
Show as a table, with Essex
| Colchester + Essex | Layer Breton’s councils | Essex | England |
|---|---|---|---|
| Adult social care | £487 | £473 | £487 |
| Children’s social care | £187 | £217 | £290 |
| Roads and transport | £48 | £51 | £41 |
| Housing (not council homes’ rents) | £20 | £45 | £61 |
| Bins, street cleaning, environment | £124 | £127 | £119 |
| Libraries, leisure, culture | £42 | £47 | £44 |
| Planning and development | £27 | £19 | £26 |
| Public health | £62 | £67 | £78 |
| Running the council | £54 | £69 | £59 |
| Other | £0 | £4 | £19 |
| Total, schools apart | £1,051 | £1,118 | £1,234 |
Net budgeted service spending, MHCLG Revenue Account budget 2026–27, per resident (ONS mid-2025 estimates). Both tiers added: Colchester per its residents plus Essex per the county’s. Schools are left out: academies are paid for directly by government, so council school budgets depend on how many schools have converted. Essex 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 Layer Breton 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.
colchester.gov.uk ↗Anyone can comment while an application is open for consultation.
colchester.gov.uk ↗The rules, nomination papers and guidance for council candidates.
Electoral Commission ↗Questions about how Layer Breton is run
Which council runs Layer Breton?
Layer Breton is run by Colchester City Council and Essex County Council. The county council runs schools, social care and roads; the district runs bins, planning and housing.
Does Layer Breton have a town council?
Yes: Layer Breton has its own parish-tier council (Birch parish council; town councils are parish councils by another name), which adds £80 to a Band D bill in 2026–27.
Who is the MP for Layer Breton?
Priti Patel (Conservative) is the MP for Witham, which covers Layer Breton.
How many councillors does Layer Breton have?
3 ward councillors represent Layer Breton’s 1 ward, and 1 county councillors its county divisions.
When are the next elections in Layer Breton?
No election is scheduled yet in Democracy Club’s list for Layer Breton’s wards. The next UK general election must be held by August 2029.
How much is council tax in Layer Breton?
Band D council tax in Layer Breton is £2,295 for 2026–27. Your bill depends on your home’s band, from A (6/9 of Band D) to H (18/9).
Who controls Colchester City Council?
No party has a majority. As elected, Conservative 18 · Liberal Democrat 13 · Labour 12 · Reform UK 5 · Green 3 of 51 seats; a majority needs 26. The council’s website lists who leads it now.
Who controls Essex County Council?
The Conservatives have a majority: 52 of 75 seats as elected.
Who won the 2026 council election in Layer Breton?
In Layer Breton’s wards on 7 May 2026, Reform UK 1 of the 1 seats up. Reform UK had the largest share of votes, 38.1%.
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.