Following the local elections on May 7th where six County Councils Network (CCN) member councils were up for election, the CCN’s political proportionality has now been updated and independently verified.
This includes incorporating North Lincolnshire Council and Leicestershire County Council as newly, and re-joined, members into its political balance
The new CCN political balance, confirmed by the LGA, is now as follows:
In line with the CCN constitution, as the party with the relative majority, the Reform UK Group will now nominate the Chair.
CCN will now work with the Reform UK Group to confirm their nomination for Chair of the network. This will be announced in due course. Until this process is complete, Cllr Matthew Hicks will remain Chair.
Once Reform UK complete their internal processes and inform the CCN Chief Executive in the coming weeks, the councillor nominated by the group becomes Chair-Elect until the CCN’s Annual General Meeting (AGM) in September, at which point they will formally become the CCN Chair.
Any political grouping who has more than 5% of the weighted electorate in CCN member council areas is entitled to positions on the CCN Management Committee and Executive. As the Green Party now meets this threshold, the party will be eligible to form its own group on the network, separate to the Independent Group who they are currently incorporated with.
Councillors on CCN Executive have specific portfolios and act as the network’s spokespeople. The new CCN Executive will be nominated at the network’s AGM on 10th September. All existing executive members and spokespeople remain in place until the AGM.
As a strong cross-party network, representing the interests of county and unitary authorities across England, the CCN will be working closely with, and supporting, all councillors and new administrations as they navigate their first few weeks.
Yesterday, CCN published its Business Plan and Work Programme 2026/27. Presented on behalf of the cross-party Executive Committee, this set out the network extensive support to member councils and reinforcing its role as a leading cross-party national representative body and the voice for England’s counties.
Notes to editor
- CCN’s previous political balance, calculated in May 2025, was as follows:
| CCN Political balance: 2025 | |
|---|---|
| Conservative | 32.5% |
| Reform UK | 26.0% |
| Liberal Democrat | 21.4% |
| Independents/Other | 8.1% |
| Labour | 7.2% |
| Green | 4.8% |
| Total | 100.0% |
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