back to search results

The New Councillor

1950 , Luton (Bedfordshire)

Cat no. 6569

A dramatisation of the election of a new borough councillor: how he gains experience through his relationship with the leaders of the council, and with the people who elected him.

The progress of a new young councillor is followed by a local reporter, from his election, through his introduction to the work involved and as he tries to dispel the cynicism which surrounds local politics. The narrative brings the new, middle-class councillor into direct contact with the realities of working-class lives, especially over issues such as health and housing. Problems concerning schools, industrial expansion and town planning are also emphasised in his relationship with the council officials. There is documentary footage of election vote-counting, council meetings, urban slum housing, poorly maintained streets, play areas in parks, and rubbish disposal.

Featured Buildings

Luton Town Hall

Keywords

Elections; Health; Local councils; Poverty, Social class, Local government; Town planning

Background Information

The induction of new councillors still poses the challenges today as was the case 60 years ago. In a post dated 2 November 2010, offering the purchase of learning modules to newly elected councils, the government website records: "Hundreds of newly elected councillors are sworn in each year. They take on responsibility for the wellbeing of their communities and the spending of millions of pounds of public money on local services. For many it is an overwhelming experience." (from www.idea.gov.uk). Similarly, "The New Councillor" highlights the challenges in urban post-war Britain for local government, but also implies a need to motivate the population to take a fresh interest in local politics. In its excellent history of the Crown Film Unit, the BFI's Screenonline website (www.screenonline.org.uk) sums up the era of the Crown Film Unit which came to an end in 1952: "Other work focussed on the postwar era's own 'home front', with many films.... capturing the progress of reconstruction or promoting new public services." For more information about the COI (Central Office of Information) and Public Information Films, visit: http://coi.gov.uk http://www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/films/ "The New Councillor" was not one of the films selected for exhibition on-line by The National Archives.

Manifestations

The New Councillor

  • Barcode
    INV399399
    Canonical Title
    Unknown
    Carrier Type
    MP4 H264 digital
    Dimension
    Duration
    0:19:04
    Modification Date
    25/11/2011
    Parts
    Reference
    734411
  • Barcode
    INV393305
    Canonical Title
    Unknown
    Carrier Type
    MP4 H264 digital
    Dimension
    Duration
    0:19:04
    Modification Date
    31/08/2011
    Parts
    Reference
    725127
  • Barcode
    INV336525
    Canonical Title
    Unknown
    Carrier Type
    MP4 H264 digital
    Dimension
    Duration
    0:19:04
    Modification Date
    31/08/2011
    Parts
    Reference
    724485
  • Activities
    Barcode
    INV380862
    Canonical Title
    Unknown
    Carrier Type
    DV digital
    Dimension
    Duration
    0:19:04
    Modification Date
    10/05/2011
    Parts
    Reference
    707608
  • Activities
    Barcode
    INV257159
    Canonical Title
    Unknown
    Carrier Type
    master digital
    Dimension
    Duration
    0:19:16
    Modification Date
    06/12/2010
    Parts
    Reference
    698574
  • Activities
    Barcode
    INV243868
    Canonical Identifier
    1998/58
    Canonical Title
    Unknown
    Carrier Details
    Carrier Type
    16mm film
    Colour System
    bw
    Colour Type
    bw
    Dimension
    Duration
    0:19:26
    Has Image
    Y
    Has Sound
    Y
    Identifier
    Image Polarity
    pos
    Modification Date
    19/11/2010
    Parts
    Reference
    697528
    Sound
    sound
    Sound System
    optical
  • Activities
    Barcode
    INV266658
    Canonical Identifier
    1998/58
    Canonical Title
    Unknown
    Carrier Details
    Carrier Type
    16mm film
    Colour System
    bw
    Colour Type
    bw
    Dimension
    Duration
    0:19:26
    Has Image
    Y
    Has Sound
    Y
    Identifier
    Image Polarity
    pos
    Modification Date
    18/11/2010
    Parts
    Reference
    697437
    Sound
    sound
    Sound System
    optical

Copyright restrictions apply.

Please see our terms of use. Films on this website are provided for personal viewing. Should you wish to use the films in any other way please contact eafa@uea.ac.uk

terms of use
The data for this page was generated on 25/04/2024 07:23:31+00:00. Click to regenerate this page .