The election was the first to use the 10 wards created by the Initial Statutory Reviews of Electoral Arrangements in 1981. Each ward elected one councillor using first-past-the-post voting.[1]
Labour maintained control of the district council after winning all 10 seats although four wards were uncontested after only Labour stood a candidate. Despite the uncontested seats, Labour increased their vote share by more than 20% and took nearly three-quarters of the popular vote.