The Borough of Basildon is the local government district in south Essex that covers the five towns of Basildon, Billericay, Laindon, Pitsea and Wickford.
The district was formed under the Local Government Act (1972) on April 1st 1974 from the former area of the Basildon Urban District and the part of Thurrock Urban District that was within the Basildon New Town created in 1949. Basildon District was awarded borough status in 2010.
The population of the Borough is approximately 172,000 and the local authority is Basildon Borough Council, which has responsibility for local planning, housing, environmental health, refuse and recycling, leisure services, and parks, with some matters reserved to Essex County Council, such as education, social services, libraries, and highways.
The Borough is represented in the House of Commons across four parliamentary constituencies: according to parliamentary boundaries set in 2024, the entirety of the Basildon & Billericay constituency is contiguous and the borough also contains the South Basildon part of the South Basildon & East Thurrock constituency, the Wickford part of the Rayleigh & Wickford constituency and the parish of Bowers Gifford & North Benfleet, which falls under the Castle Point constituency.
Basildon Borough elects 42 borough councillors across 14 wards - Billericay East, Billericay West, Burstead, Castledon & Crouch, Fryerns, Laindon Park, Langdon Hills, Lee Chapel North, Nethermayne, Pitsea North-West, Pitsea South-East, St Martin's, Wickford North and Wickford Park. We also elect nine councillors to Essex County Council across five divisions - Billericay & Burstead, Laindon Park & Fryerns, Pitsea, Westley Heights and Wickford Crouch
