Angus Council

Angus was one of Scotland's historic counties and had a county council from 1890 until 1975. The county was called Forfarshire until 1928 when the name was changed to Angus, being the name of the ancient province which had covered the same area as the later county.

In 1975 Angus became a district within the Tayside region, with Angus District Council serving as a lower-tier authority subordinate to Tayside Regional Council. The regions and districts were abolished in 1996, when Angus became a council area, governed by Angus Council, which took on all the local government functions previously performed by the district and regional councils. There were some adjustments to the boundaries of Angus with the neighbouring city of Dundee as part of both the 1975 and 1996 reforms.

Political control

The council has been under no overall control since 2017. Following both the 2017 and 2022 elections, the Scottish National Party formed minority administrations to run the council. In April 2025, the SNP administration lost a vote of no confidence and was replaced by a new minority administration comprising the Conservatives, Labour and four of the independent councillors, led by independent councillor George Meechan, who had been deputy leader of the council's SNP group until he left the party earlier in April 2025.

The first election to Angus District Council was held in 1974, initially operating as a shadow authority alongside the outgoing authorities until the new system came into force on 16 May 1975. A shadow authority was again elected in 1995 ahead of the reforms which came into force on 1 April 1996. Political control of the council since 1975 has been as follows:

Leadership

The role of provost is largely ceremonial in Angus. They chair full council meetings and act as the council's civic figurehead. Political leadership is provided by the leader of the council. The leaders since 1996 have been:

Composition

Following the 2022 election and subsequent by-elections and changes of allegiance up to April 2025, the composition of the council was:

Four of the independent councillors form part of the council's administration with the Conservatives and Labour. The next election is due in 2027.

Election results since 1995 have been as follows:

Wards

Angus is divided into 8 wards:

Council meetings are generally held at Forfar Town and County Hall at The Cross in the centre of Forfar. In 2007 the council moved its main offices to a new building called Angus House on Silvie Way in the Orchardbank Business Park on the outskirts of Forfar. The council also has offices in Arbroath.

Previously the council's main offices had been at County Buildings, on Market Street in Forfar. When the county council was established in 1890 the name County Buildings was used for the Forfar Sheriff Court, built 1871, which was the council's first meeting place. The council later moved its main offices into the adjoining converted former prison of 1843, which subsequently became known as County Buildings instead. County Buildings continued to serve as the headquarters of the county council until 1975 and the successor Angus District Council from 1975 to 1996. County Buildings continues to be used as secondary offices by the modern Angus Council.