Parish Council Community Governance Review – Public Consultation
Why is the Council undertaking the review?
The Local Government Boundary Commission for England will be commencing a review of North East Lincolnshire Council’s Ward boundaries in Summer 2024, with a view to completing that review by Autumn 2025. The new Ward boundaries will come into operation with effect from the June 2026 elections. Prior to this review, the Boundary Commission states that it is advisable to conduct a Parish Council community governance review as Parish Council boundaries form polling districts and these polling districts need to be incorporated into the Ward review.
Furthermore, the Council has a duty to take decisions about Parish Council electoral and governance arrangements and is legally required to monitor them every 15 years. With the exception of a community governance review of a couple of Parish Councils (Great Coates and Barnoldby Le Beck), a full review of our Parish Councils has not been held since North East Lincolnshire Council was formed in 1996.
This is now an opportune time to conduct a full review of the electoral arrangements and governance of our Town and Parish Councils in North East Lincolnshire. You can view an interactive map showing the boundaries of our Town and Parish Councils.
Parish council boundaries are in green on the interactive map and you can use the layers box to see boundaries for Wards, parishes, polling districts and polling stations.
Scope of the Community Governance Review
At Council on 25 May 2023, North East Lincolnshire Council agreed the following scope for the review:
- Creating, merging, altering or abolishing parishes.
- The naming of parishes and the style (i.e., whether to call it a Town council or village council, etc.) of new parishes.
- The electoral arrangements for parishes – the ordinary year of election, the size of the council, the number of councillors to be elected and parish warding.
- Grouping parishes under a common Parish Council, or de-grouping parishes.
Terms of reference (Word, 49KB) for the community governance review.
Timetable for the Review
| Date(s) | Meeting/Task | Actions | Papers |
|---|---|---|---|
| 25 May 2023 | Council (after AGM) | – Agree Terms of Reference for Review – Delegate Communities Scrutiny Panel to carry out the review and submit its recommendations to Council | Special Meeting | Democracy |
| 2 June to 28 July 2023 | Consultation | Eight weeks for consultation. | N/A |
| 15 August 2023 | Communities Scrutiny Panel | Consider feedback and draft recommendations for Council to consider. | Special – Communities Scrutiny Panel | Democracy |
| 7 September 2023 | Special Council | Consider report from Communities Scrutiny Panel and agree draft recommendations for further consultation. | Special Meeting of North East Lincolnshire Council | Democracy |
| 8 September to 3 November 2023 | Consultation | Eight weeks for consultation. | N/A |
| 23rd November 2023 | Communities Scrutiny Panel | Consider feedback and determine final recommendations for Council to consider. | Special – Communities Scrutiny Panel | Democracy |
| 14 December 2023 | Council | Consider report from Communities Scrutiny Panel and instigate changes to Parish Council electoral arrangements and/or request a further period of consultation if one or more further changes are proposed. | Council | Democracy |
| 15 December to 26 January 2024 | Consultation | Six weeks for consultation on Barnoldby Le Beck/Waltham parish boundary | N/A |
| 22 February 2024 | Communities Scrutiny Panel | Consider feedback and determine recommendations for Council | Communities Scrutiny Panel | Democracy |
| 14th March 2024 | Council | Consider report from Communities Scrutiny Panel and make final recommendation on parish boundary | Council | Democracy |
Consultation Phase 3 – Barnoldby Le Beck and Waltham Parish Boundary
At Council on 14th December, Members noted that during the second consultation period, some residents of Bradley Road, Barnoldby Le Beck have stated that their properties should be moved from Barnoldby Le Beck parish into Waltham parish as they consider their properties to be a natural overspill of Waltham village. The Council also received views to state that five properties on the Barnoldby Le Beck side of Bradley Road, near the roundabout, which are in Waltham parish, should actually be located in Barnoldby Le Beck and that Bradley Road should be the natural parish boundary.
Prior to making a decision on this issue, Elected Members would like to hear from residents of Waltham and Barnoldby Le Beck on these proposals, as well as both Parish Councils.
You can provide your views in one of the following ways:
Online: Community Governance Review
Email: [email protected]
Post: Electoral Services, Municipal Offices, Town Hall Square, Grimsby, DN31 1HU
The deadline for completing the survey is 26 January 2024.
Responses to the consultation will be considered by the Communities Scrutiny Panel on the 22nd February 2024 and the final decision will be taken by Council on 14th March 2024. Please note that if any change is made to the parish council boundary, this will come into effect from the next round of full Parish Council elections in May 2027.
Contact details
Elections, Municipal Offices, Town Hall Square, Grimsby, North East Lincolnshire, DN31 1HU
Telephone: 01472 324160