Agenda item

Community Governance Review

Meeting of Audit and Governance Committee, Wednesday 23 September 2015 10.00 am (Item 82.)

To agree the timetable to assess the case for undertaking a community governance review (CGR) of parish boundaries and electoral arrangements.

Minutes:

The governance manager presented the report.

It was a requirement to carry out community governance reviews (CGRs) periodically and good practice suggested that this took place every 10 to 15 years. There were also a number of triggers for one to be considered, such as requests from the community, for example the recent review in Ross-on-Wye, or where it is shown that there are significant anomalies such as population changes. There had not been a review for some twenty years, and in line with good practice, a review was due.

A timetable for establishing the case for a county-wide review was set out in the report for consideration. The alternative would be to focus on individual areas. The report took a cautious approach in recognition of the statutory requirement to complete a review once it was decided to conduct it, and in consideration of the resources that would be required. A further consideration was the timing of implementing any changes alongside other electoral activity.

The chairman reminded the committee of the 2012 boundary commission changes and advised caution that this could happen again around 2018 and would have a bearing on a review.

A member acknowledged the potential scale of a review based on previous experience of the Ross review. It was confirmed that the permitted timescale commences once council decides it will undertake a county wide CGR. There was no discretion for the council to vary this and so evidence was being gathered at this stage. All parish and town councils were consulted and were meeting in September. They were asked to identify what issues they would like to have covered in any review. At the same time, data were being collected on elector numbers and aligning this to population growth predictions. Herefordshire Association of Local Councils (HALC) was engaged and was supporting parishes. As much ground work as possible was being carried out without entering into consultation as this would be part of the statutory process.

A member sought reassurance that the problems and challenges were sufficiently clear and that it had been made clear to parishes about their responsibilities with regard to a review. It was confirmed that there had been discussions with HALC and it was concluded that that it would be better in practice to work alongside parishes to ensure that they did not feel passive in a review although the council had a responsibility to lead the process.

The chairman welcomed the point that HALC were involved. It was noted that not all parish councils had HALC membership and that it was essential that all parish councils were included.

The vice chairman welcomed a more receptive approach to parishes and an awareness of their concerns.

A member in attendance commented on the determination of parish boundaries and asked how a review would align with area plans. In response, explanation was given that community identity, physical boundaries and also those boundaries defined by partners such as the police were taken into account in a review, and that timescales would need to be considered in relation to mapping of area plans.

Further comments from members included:

• Observation that the review had been discussed at some parish council meetings within a ward although it was not clear to what extent its significance had been acknowledged. There was also concern regarding capacity at parish level to respond to devolved responsibility;

• feedback that parishes were content with their current arrangements;

• implications related to issues in addition to area plans and that any future reviews of constituency boundaries may have an impact on how parish boundaries are aligned;

• more devolved powers may attract a different range of people taking part on parish councils, increasing opportunities for greater proactivity;

• localities had been a useful concept with regard to service centres for delivering services especially in remoter areas; and