 The population of the council's area at the 2011 census was 37,369.Formally it is a unitary district with the full legal title of Rutland County Council District Council, caused by a renaming of the District of Rutland using powers under section 74 of the Local Government Act 1972 at a special meeting of the council held on 1 April 1997.Although, as with other unitary councils, the council is technically a non-metropolitan district council, section 8 of the Leicestershire (City of Leicester and District of Rutland) (Structural Change) Order 1996 created a county covering the same area as the District of Rutland, and further provided that there would be no council for the County of Rutland.