Photo: Nigel Jones · CC BY-SA 2.0No party holds a majority on Broadland District Council
Rackheath is run by Broadland District Council and Norfolk County Council, with Rackheath parish council for local matters. No party holds a majority on Broadland District Council. The Conservatives have a majority on Norfolk County Council. Its MP is Jerome Mayhew (Conservative), member for Broadland and Fakenham.
£2,475
Band D, a year, the middle band every council sets its tax from.
Where it goes →How Rackheath’s politics has changed since 2021
No majority on Broadland District Council
The Conservatives, the largest group, hold 21 of its 47 seats as elected, 3 short of the 24 needed. The Liberal Democrats hold 14, Labour 7, the Greens 4 and Reform UK 1. Who’s in charge ↓
Norfolk in 2021
Norfolk County Council, which runs schools, social care and roads, has a Conservative majority at the May 2021 election: the Conservatives won 53 of 84 seats. Norfolk ↓
Council tax
A Band D bill in Rackheath is £2,475 for 2026–27; Broadland District Council keeps 5% of it. The council area’s Band D has risen 54% 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 Rackheath’s councils
Seats by party as elected. A party needs 24 of Broadland’s 47 or 43 of Norfolk’s 84 seats to run the council alone.
- Conservative21
- Liberal Democrat14
- Labour7
- Green4
- Reform UK1
Latest election: May 2023.
- Conservative53
- Labour11
- Liberal Democrat10
- Green4
- Independent4
- Reform UK2
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
Rackheath 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.
100% of Rackheath’s residents · Band D precept £151
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 Rackheath, from the most recent elections.
- 1Town or parishParish tierRackheath parish council
- 2Broadland District Council1 ward · 2 councillorsMartin Lee MurrellFran Whymark
- 3Norfolk County Council1 division · 1 councillorFran Whymark
- 4Police and crime commissionerNorfolk Constabulary · elected July 2026Colin Sutton
- 5House of CommonsBroadland and Fakenham
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.
2 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.
- Martin Lee MurrellConservative · May 2023
- Fran WhymarkConservative · May 2023
Show as a table, with Norfolk County Council’s 1 division (1 councillor)
| Ward | Seats | Elected | When |
|---|---|---|---|
| Wroxham32% in Rackheath · 1,761 residents2 seats · May 2023 | 2 | Martin Lee MurrellFran Whymark | May 2023 |
Norfolk County Council: county divisions
| Division | Seats | Elected | When |
|---|---|---|---|
| Wroxham ED9% in Rackheath · 1,761 residents1 seat · May 2021 | 1 | Fran Whymark | May 2021 |
Councillors can resign, change party or sit as independents between elections; a by-election winner replaces someone not named here. Broadland District 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).
Broadland council election, May 2023
Results in the wards that make up Rackheath, 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. Every seat in the town’s wards was up.
No election is scheduled yet for Rackheath’s wards in Democracy Club’s list. Councils publish a notice of election about five weeks before polling day.
Who can I vote for? ↗2,615 votes for candidates · 2 seats, so 2 votes each
Candidates and results: Democracy Club (CC BY 4.0), from councils’ declared results; polling dates from Democracy Club’s EveryElection.
Rackheath is in Broadland and Fakenham constituency
The constituency’s MP and the 4 July 2024 general election, the whole constituency’s result (it reaches beyond Rackheath).
49,513 votes for candidates · majority 719
Conservative, MP since 12 December 2019.
turnout in July 2024: 49,513 votes from 76,863 registered voters. England: 60%.
Majority 719 of 49,513 votes (1.5%): the 28th-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.
Rackheath’s Band D council tax is £2,475 a year
Where a Band D bill goes, what it has cost over the years, and what the councils plan to spend per resident.
Broadland District Council keeps £135.74 of a Band D bill (5%); the rest goes to the Rackheath parish council, Norfolk County Council and the Norfolk police and crime commissioner.
Band D since 1993
Broadland’s Band D bill has risen 54% in ten years, from £1,585.68 in 2016–17, against England’s average (56%). It was £506.25 in 1993–94.
Your bill by band
A Band D home in Rackheath, 2026–27, before discounts. The Valuation Office Agency’s band search gives any home’s band.
Norfolk’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 Norfolk
| Broadland + Norfolk | Rackheath’s councils | Norfolk | England |
|---|---|---|---|
| Adult social care | £505 | £505 | £487 |
| Children’s social care | £259 | £259 | £290 |
| Roads and transport | £51 | £40 | £41 |
| Housing (not council homes’ rents) | £32 | £37 | £61 |
| Bins, street cleaning, environment | £100 | £125 | £119 |
| Libraries, leisure, culture | £28 | £43 | £44 |
| Planning and development | £37 | £41 | £26 |
| Public health | £60 | £60 | £78 |
| Running the council | £47 | £69 | £59 |
| Other | £35 | £39 | £19 |
| Total, schools apart | £1,205 | £1,268 | £1,234 |
Net budgeted service spending, MHCLG Revenue Account budget 2026–27, per resident (ONS mid-2025 estimates). Both tiers added: Broadland per its residents plus Norfolk 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. Norfolk 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 Rackheath 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.
southnorfolkandbroadland.gov.uk ↗Anyone can comment while an application is open for consultation.
southnorfolkandbroadland.gov.uk ↗The rules, nomination papers and guidance for council candidates.
Electoral Commission ↗Questions about how Rackheath is run
Which council runs Rackheath?
Rackheath is run by Broadland District Council and Norfolk County Council. The county council runs schools, social care and roads; the district runs bins, planning and housing.
Does Rackheath have a town council?
Yes: Rackheath has its own parish-tier council (Rackheath parish council; town councils are parish councils by another name), which adds £151 to a Band D bill in 2026–27.
Who is the MP for Rackheath?
Jerome Mayhew (Conservative) is the MP for Broadland and Fakenham, which covers Rackheath.
How many councillors does Rackheath have?
2 ward councillors represent Rackheath’s 1 ward, and 1 county councillors its county divisions.
When are the next elections in Rackheath?
No election is scheduled yet in Democracy Club’s list for Rackheath’s wards. The next UK general election must be held by August 2029.
How much is council tax in Rackheath?
Band D council tax in Rackheath is £2,475 for 2026–27. Your bill depends on your home’s band, from A (6/9 of Band D) to H (18/9).
Who controls Broadland District Council?
No party has a majority. As elected, Conservative 21 · Liberal Democrat 14 · Labour 7 · Green 4 · Reform UK 1 of 47 seats; a majority needs 24. The council’s website lists who leads it now.
Who controls Norfolk County Council?
The Conservatives have a majority: 53 of 84 seats as elected.
Who won the 2023 council election in Rackheath?
In Rackheath’s wards on 4 May 2023, Conservative 2 of the 2 seats up. The Conservatives had the largest share of votes, 52%.
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.