Agenda item

To consider the report of the Returning Officer (attached).

The Council was reminded that, at its meeting on 22 July 2020, it had agreed to proceed to a second stage of consultation on the Windlesham Community Governance Review, to consult on the following proposals:

a.     The creation of a new parish ward co-terminus to the current KC polling district, to be named Windlesham (North) ward of Windlesham Parish Council;

b.     The creation of a new parish ward co-terminus with the KA and KB polling districts, to be named Bagshot Ward of Windlesham Parish Council;

c.      Renaming the Windlesham ward of Windlesham Parish Council as Windlesham (South) ward of Windlesham Parish Council;

d.     Windlesham Parish Council (WPC) be renamed to better reflect its geographical boundaries.

A second round of consultation had been undertaken in Windlesham parish between 4 August and 8 September 2020, to which 109 responses had been received from across the parish area.

The consultation responses had broadly supported the proposals in respect of the revised warding arrangements and the councillor allocations to the wards. However, it was not felt that there had sufficient public support to justify pursuing proposals to change the name of Windlesham Parish Council (WPC).

Members were reminded that Section 75 of the Local Government Act 1972 gave a borough council the statutory authority to change the name of a parish or town council at any time through the laying down of a Statutory Order. As a result, it was not proposed to change WPC’s name at this time but the list of alternative names suggested in the consultation would be passed to the Clerk of WPC for the Parish Council to consider in its own time.  If, at a future point, WPC felt that a name change was appropriate this Council would work with the Parish Council to take these changes forward.

The Council was reminded that the Local Government Boundary Commission for England (LGBCE) had put the current electoral arrangements for WPC in place during its 2016 review of the Borough Council’s ward boundaries.  Legislation protected electoral arrangements that had been put in place by the LGBCE for a period of five years from the date that a reorganisation order was made.  If at any point within this five year period a principal authority wisheed to change these arrangements then the consent of the LGBCE was required.  The electoral arrangements for WPC fell within this five year window and consequently these changes would require the consent of the LGBCE.

RESOLVED that, subject to the agreement of the Local Government Boundary Commission for England, the following changes be made to the electoral arrangements of Windlesham Parish Council:

                        (i)          a new parish ward co-terminus to the current KC polling district be created and named Windlesham (North) ward of Windlesham Parish Council;

                      (ii)          anew parish ward co-terminus with the KA and KB polling districts be created and named Bagshot Ward of Windlesham Parish Council;

                     (iii)          the Windlesham ward of Windlesham Parish Council be renamed Windlesham (South) ward of Windlesham Parish Council; and

                     (iv)          the number of councillors for the revised warding of Windlesham Parish Council be set at: