The independent Local Government Boundary Commission for England has published its final recommendations for new electoral arrangements for Cheshire West and Chester Council.
The publication follows three phases of public consultation and draws new boundaries for each council ward across Cheshire West and Chester.
The commission’s final recommendations propose that Cheshire West and Chester should be represented by 70 councillors in the future, five fewer than at present.
The recommendations also propose that those councillors should represent 6 three-councillor wards, 13 two-councillor wards and 26 one-councillor wards across Cheshire West and Chester.
Professor Colin Mellors, chair of the commission, said, “We are extremely grateful to people across Cheshire West and Chester who took part in the review. The commission has looked at all the evidence that was put forward during the consultation.
“We believe these recommendations deliver electoral fairness for voters as well as reflecting community ties throughout Cheshire West and Chester.”
In response to local feedback during consultation, the commission has changed some of the recommendations it published for consultation in August 2017.
For example, in Chester, the commission originally proposed that part of the Garden Quarter area should be included in the Blacon ward.
Following local feedback on the proposal, the commission changed the boundaries so that the Garden Quarter would be wholly contained in a Chester City & the Garden Quarter ward.
The commission then held another phase of consultation on the new proposals and has confirmed these as its final recommendations.
The commission also received representations during public consultation that Lache should be included in its own ward rather than included in a ward with Handbridge Park as proposed last August.
The commission agreed that community identities would be better reflected by instead dividing its proposed Overleigh ward into a Handbridge Park ward and a Lache ward.
In Neston, the commission originally proposed that the town should be covered by a Neston & Parkgate ward that would be represented by three councillors.
However, local people and organisations argued that community ties in the town would be better reflected by having three wards, each represented by one councillor.
The commission has changed its proposals accordingly in its final recommendations.
The commission has also listened to local feedback about its proposed names for wards across Chester West and Chester.
Local people put forward alternatives in several parts of the council area which the commission has adopted as part of its final recommendations.
As such, the final recommendations change the names of the following proposed wards:
– Eddisbury Hill to Tarvin & Kelsall
– Elton & Mickle Trafford to Gowy Rural
– Manley to Sandstone
– Northwich Winnington to Northwich Winnington & Castle
– Overpool & Grange to Central & Grange
– Whitby Groves to Whitby Park
– Whitby Heath to Whitby Groves
Elsewhere, the commission has made minor amendments to its draft recommendations to reflect local views put forward during consultation.
Full details of the changes and final recommendations are available on the commission’s website at www.lgbce.org.uk.
The proposed new arrangements must now be implemented by Parliament.
A draft order – the legal document which brings into force the recommendations – will be laid in Parliament in the coming months, and this will provide for the new electoral arrangements to come into force at the council elections in 2019.
Key to the map:
1. Blacon
2. Central & Grange
3. Chester City & the Garden Quarter
4. Christleton & Huntington
5. Davenham, Moulton & Kingsmead
6. Farndon
7. Frodsham
8. Gowy Rural
9. Great Boughton
10. Handbridge Park
11. Hartford & Greenbank
12. Helsby
13. Lache
14. Ledsham & Manor
15. Little Neston
16. Malpas
17. Marbury
18. Neston
19. Netherpool
20. Newton & Hoole
21. Northwich Leftwich
22. Northwich Winnington & Castle
23. Northwich Witton
24. Parkgate
25. Rudheath
26. Sandstone
27. Saughall & Mollington
28. Shakerley
29. Strawberry
30. Sutton Villages
31. Tarporley
32. Tarvin & Kelsall
33. Tattenhall
34. Upton
35. Weaver & Cuddington
36. Westminster
37. Whitby Groves
38. Whitby Park
39. Willaston & Thornton
40. Winsford Dene
41. Winsford Gravel
42. Winsford Over & Verdin
43. Winsford Swanlow
44. Winsford Wharton
45. Wolverham
Full details of the commission’s final recommendations (including maps) can be viewed at: www.lgbce.org.uk/current-reviews/north-west/cheshire/cheshire-west-and-chester.
The electoral review of Cheshire West and Chester Council is a separate undertaking from the review of parliamentary constituency boundaries which is being carried out by a separate body (Boundary Commission for England) under different rules and legislation.