This was the fourth election to the district council following the local government reforms in the 1970s.

The election was the first to use the 20 wards created by the Initial Statutory Reviews of Electoral Arrangements in 1980.

Each ward elected one councillor using first-past-the-post voting.

[1] Labour maintained control of the district council after winning 17 of the 20 seats and taking almost two-thirds of the popular vote.

The Liberal Party – who had contested the election in an electoral alliance with the Social Democratic Party (SDP) – won two seats and the remaining seat was won by the Conservatives.