Photo: Ian Greig · CC BY-SA 2.0The Conservatives hold a majority on Wyre Council
Thornton is run by Wyre Council and Lancashire County Council. The Conservatives have a majority on Wyre Council. Reform UK has a majority on Lancashire County Council. Its MP is Lorraine Beavers (Labour), member for Blackpool North and Fleetwood.
£2,429
Band D, a year, the middle band every council sets its tax from.
Where it goes →How Thornton’s politics has changed since 2021
A majority on Wyre Council
The Conservatives hold a majority on Wyre Council: 29 of its 50 seats as elected. Labour holds 16, independents 3 and Reform UK 2. Who’s in charge ↓
Lancashire changed hands in 2025
Lancashire County Council, which runs schools, social care and roads, went from a Conservative majority (47 of 84 seats in 2021) to a Reform UK majority at the May 2025 election: Reform UK won 53 of 84 seats. Lancashire ↓
Council tax
A Band D bill in Thornton is £2,429 for 2026–27; Wyre Council keeps 10% of it. The council area’s Band D has risen 53% 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 Thornton’s councils
Seats by party as elected. A party needs 26 of Wyre’s 50 or 43 of Lancashire’s 84 seats to run the council alone.
- Conservative29
- Labour16
- Independent3
- Reform UK2
Latest election: May 2023.
- Reform UK53+53
- Conservative8−39
- Independent7+7
- Labour5−28
- Liberal Democrat5+3
- Green4+2
- Our West Lancashire2+2
Change against the council before the 1 May 2025 election.
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, no parish tier
Thornton has two tiers of council: the county runs the big services, the district the local ones.
Bins and recycling, planning, housing, environmental health, leisure, and collecting council tax.
Website ↗Schools, social care, roads and transport, libraries and waste disposal.
Website ↗Transport, skills and regeneration across several council areas.
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.
All of Thornton is unparished: there is no parish or town council, so the council runs local matters itself and no parish precept is added to the bill.
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 council to Westminster
Every elected tier that speaks for Thornton, from the most recent elections.
- 1Wyre Council4 wards · 9 councillorsConservative 6 · Labour 3 · Reform UK 1 · all 10
- 2Lancashire County Council2 divisions · 2 councillorsNigel AldersonJames Crawford
- 3Police and crime commissionerLancashire Constabulary · elected May 2024Clive Grunshaw
- 4House of CommonsBlackpool North and Fleetwood
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.
9 councillors for 4 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.
- Victoria WellsLabour · May 2023
- Harry Thomas SwattonLabour · May 2023
- Kevin Ronald HigginsonLabour · May 2023
- James CrawfordReform UK · November 2024 · by-election
- David James HiggsConservative · May 2023
- Paul EllisonConservative · May 2023
- Henry JacksonConservative · May 2023
- Steven Robert LiveseyConservative · May 2023
- Kenneth John MintoConservative · May 2023
- Andrea KayConservative · May 2023
Show as a table, with Lancashire County Council’s 2 divisions (2 councillors)
| Ward | Seats | Elected | When |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bourneall in Thornton · 6,618 residents3 seats · May 2023 | 3 | Victoria WellsHarry Thomas SwattonKevin Ronald Higginson | May 2023 |
| Marsh Millall in Thornton · 6,217 residents3 seats · November 2024, May 2023 | 3 | James Crawfordby-electionDavid James HiggsPaul EllisonHenry Jackson | November 2024, May 2023 |
| Stanahall in Thornton · 4,578 residents2 seats · May 2023 | 2 | Steven Robert LiveseyKenneth John Minto | May 2023 |
| Pheasant's Woodall in Thornton · 1,850 residents1 seat · May 2023 | 1 | Andrea Kay | May 2023 |
Lancashire County Council: county divisions
| Division | Seats | Elected | When |
|---|---|---|---|
| Thornton & Hambleton EDmostly in Thornton · 10,795 residents1 seat · May 2025 | 1 | Nigel Alderson | May 2025 |
| Cleveleys East EDmostly in Thornton · 8,468 residents1 seat · May 2025 | 1 | James Crawford | May 2025 |
Councillors can resign, change party or sit as independents between elections; a by-election winner replaces someone not named here. Wyre 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).
Wyre council election, May 2023
Results in the wards that make up Thornton, as declared. Percentages are of votes cast for candidates in each ward; where a ward elects several councillors, each voter has that many votes.
4 wards voted. Every seat in the town’s wards was up.
No election is scheduled yet for Thornton’s wards in Democracy Club’s list. Councils publish a notice of election about five weeks before polling day.
Who can I vote for? ↗3,181 votes for candidates · 3 seats, so 3 votes each
4,476 votes for candidates · 3 seats, so 3 votes each
1,993 votes for candidates · 2 seats, so 2 votes each
Every ward’s result (1 more)
655 votes for candidates
Candidates and results: Democracy Club (CC BY 4.0), from councils’ declared results; polling dates from Democracy Club’s EveryElection.
Thornton is in Blackpool North and Fleetwood constituency
The constituency’s MP and the 4 July 2024 general election, the whole constituency’s result (it reaches beyond Thornton).
41,810 votes for candidates · majority 4,647
Labour, MP since 4 July 2024.
turnout in July 2024: 41,810 votes from 73,339 registered voters. England: 60%.
Majority 4,647 of 41,810 votes (11.1%): the 211th-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.
Thornton’s Band D council tax is £2,429 a year
Where a Band D bill goes, what it has cost over the years, and what the councils plan to spend per resident.
Wyre Council keeps £240.05 of a Band D bill (10%); the rest goes to Lancashire County Council, the Lancashire police and crime commissioner and the Lancashire Fire and Rescue Authority.
Band D since 1993
Wyre’s Band D bill has risen 53% in ten years, from £1,603.00 in 2016–17, against England’s average (56%). It was £601.88 in 1993–94.
Your bill by band
A Band D home in the unparished part of Wyre, 2026–27, before discounts. The Valuation Office Agency’s band search gives any home’s band.
Lancashire’s councils
Average Band D in each council area, 2026–27, parish precepts included; the 11 nearest of 14. Bars start at £2,200.
Council budgets per resident, 2026–27
Show as a table, with Lancashire
| Wyre + Lancashire | Thornton’s councils | Lancashire | England |
|---|---|---|---|
| Adult social care | £523 | £533 | £487 |
| Children’s social care | £249 | £295 | £290 |
| Roads and transport | £48 | £44 | £41 |
| Housing (not council homes’ rents) | £11 | £24 | £61 |
| Bins, street cleaning, environment | £151 | £135 | £119 |
| Libraries, leisure, culture | £67 | £56 | £44 |
| Planning and development | £33 | £16 | £26 |
| Public health | £78 | £92 | £78 |
| Running the council | £79 | £73 | £59 |
| Other | £0 | £13 | £19 |
| Total, schools apart | £1,238 | £1,281 | £1,234 |
Net budgeted service spending, MHCLG Revenue Account budget 2026–27, per resident (ONS mid-2025 estimates). Both tiers added: Wyre per its residents plus Lancashire 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. Lancashire 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 Thornton 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.
wyre.gov.uk ↗Anyone can comment while an application is open for consultation.
wyre.gov.uk ↗The rules, nomination papers and guidance for council candidates.
Electoral Commission ↗Questions about how Thornton is run
Which council runs Thornton?
The county council runs schools, social care and roads; the district runs bins, planning and housing.
Does Thornton have a town council?
No. Thornton is unparished, so there is no town or parish council and no parish precept.
Who is the MP for Thornton?
Lorraine Beavers (Labour) is the MP for Blackpool North and Fleetwood, which covers Thornton.
How many councillors does Thornton have?
9 ward councillors represent Thornton’s 4 wards, and 2 county councillors its county divisions.
When are the next elections in Thornton?
No election is scheduled yet in Democracy Club’s list for Thornton’s wards. The next UK general election must be held by August 2029.
How much is council tax in Thornton?
Band D council tax in Thornton is £2,429 for 2026–27. Your bill depends on your home’s band, from A (6/9 of Band D) to H (18/9).
Who controls Wyre Council?
The Conservatives have a majority: 29 of 50 seats as elected. The council’s website lists who leads it now.
Who controls Lancashire County Council?
Reform UK has a majority: 53 of 84 seats as elected.
Who won the 2023 council election in Thornton?
In Thornton’s wards on 4 May 2023, Conservative 6 · Labour 3 of the 9 seats up. The Conservatives had the largest share of votes, 57.3%.
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.