Uttlesford at 50: a history of the council

1974 - Uttlesford formed from Dunmow Rural District Council, Saffron Walden Municipal Borough Council and Saffron Walden Rural District Council

John Vernon is the Chief Executive Officer from 1974 until 1990

Mrs. M. R. Davey is the first Chair from 1973 to 1976

Main offices at Debden Road Saffron Walden CB11 4AB with the finance team and others at Hill Street Saffron Walden

1990 - disastrous fire in the roof while restoring the former hospital for UDC offices

1990 - move to new offices at the former Saffron Walden Hospital at London Road

1991 - Local Plan (November 1991)

1994-95 - Jan Mennell Chair of UDC establishes Buffy Bus as her charity. The Buffy Bus is still going strong 30 years later

1995 - Local Plan adopted 15 April

2002-6 - Bridge End Gardens restored back the original 1870 plan with the help of a grant from the National Lottery Fund

2004 - Planning and Conservation teams move from Dunmow to Saffron Walden offices  

2005 Local Plan adopted 20 January

2010 - John Bosworth, employee of the council awarded a MBE in the Queen's birthday honours for his work at Bridge End Gardens. (June 2010)

2011 - former councillor Eggie Abrahams is awarded the honour of becoming the first Honorary Alderman of Uttlesford District Council (July 2011) for fifty years of his tireless service to the people of the district

2011 - Freedom of the district granted to 101 Engineer Regiment based at Carver Barracks, Debden

2011 - RTPI award for the council's social housing scheme at Tye Green Wimbish

2012 - £88.4 million paid to buy the council's housing stock out of the national housing subsidy system

2013 - Government minister Don Foster visits Uttlesford in recognition of the council's excellent work around Assets of Community Value (September)

2014 - Tour de France cycle race comes through the district (7 July)

2013-2021 - restoration of Grade I listed Walden Castle made possible by grant funding of £410,000 from Historic England and funding of almost £450,000 from UDC

2018 - Building Control team are LABC regional award winners for building excellence

2020 - Cornell Court first independent living housing, named after a former mayor of Saffron Walden, opened

2022 - new state-of-the-art facility at a former banana factory at Little Canfield opened for environmental services teams (waste and recycling) (August)