About the Council

Devon County Council is over 110 years old and in so many ways, its history reflects the changing way of life over that time for the people of Devon.

The story of the County Council begins with the Local Government Act of 1888, which in effect, brought democracy to the county’s local government for the first time. Before that date the smaller towns and rural areas of Devon were governed by unelected magistrates through the Devon Court of Quarter Sessions based at Rougemont Castle in Exeter.

It wasn’t until 16 January 1889 that elections for the first County Council were held. Life wasn’t too comfortable for the early County Councillors. There was no Council chamber so the first meeting took place in one of the courtrooms at nearby Rougemont Castle. But from tiny acorns mighty oaks grow, and so it has been with Devon County Council. In the beginning it operated with a budget of just £50,000. Today we are the largest authority in the South West of England, serving a population of over 680,000.

In its early days, the County Council was strictly men only. Women became eligible for election in 1907 and had to wait 24 years before the first female County Councillor was elected.