Agenda and minutes

To receive any apologies or substitutions for the meeting.

Apologies were received from:

Cllr Ian Thorn

The Committee noted that Cllr Jacqui Lay was in attendance virtually (non-voting) and that Cllr Paul Oatway was in another meeting and would arrive late. He arrived at approximately 1.45pm.

To approve and sign the minutes of the meeting held on 26 September 2023.

The minutes of the meeting held on 26 September 2023 were presented for consideration, and it was,

Resolved:

To approve and sign the minutes as a correct record.

To receive any declarations of disclosable interests or dispensations granted by the Standards Committee.

There were no declarations.

To receive any announcements through the Chair.

There were no announcements.

Statements

If you would like to make a statement at this meeting on any item on this

agenda, please register to do so at least 10 minutes prior to the meeting. Up to 3speakers are permitted to speak for up to 3 minutes each on any agenda item.

Please contact the officer named on the front of the agenda for any further

clarification.

Questions

To receive any questions from members of the public or members of the Council received in accordance with the constitution.

Those wishing to ask questions are required to give notice of any such

questions in writing to the officer named on the front of this agenda no later than 5pm on Wednesday 15 November 2023 in order to be guaranteed of a written response. In order to receive a verbal response questions must be submitted no later than 5pm on Friday 17 November 2023. Please contact the officer named on the front of this agenda for further advice. Questions may be asked without notice if the Chairman decides that the matter is urgent.

Details of any questions received will be circulated to Committee members prior to the meeting and made available at the meeting and on the Council’s website.

No questions or statements were submitted.

Councillor Bill Parks was present to speak in relation to proposed changes to the Warminster area during the next item.

To receive a report from the Director, Legal and Governance.

Caroline Rudland, Electoral Services Specialist Manager, presented a report on the Polling District and Polling Place Review, which commenced on 2 October 2023.

The Committee was asked to approve a final polling district and polling place scheme which would come into force from 1 December 2023, when the electoral register was revised.

The Committee considered the comments received during the consultation period which ran from 2 October to 31 October 2023, during which, a total of 53 representations were received. All of the comments from the review were included within Appendix A. 

Of the 98 Unitary Divisions in Wiltshire, 61 changes had been recommended.

The Committee was presented with 3 categories to consider for approval, these were:

a.     Unitary Divisions where no changes were proposed to polling districts and there are no relevant comments to be considered from the public consultation. Any proposed changes in this category relate to polling stations only.

b.     Unitary Divisions where changes were proposed to the polling districts.

c.     Particular consideration and discussion to be given to the two Unitary Divisions of Sherston and Warminster North & Rural.

During discussion the Committee received clarification on why one larger ward area was divided into two separate polling districts.  The Committee also discussed and noted that any Community Boundary Review (CGR) changes approved since 2021 were not included as part of this this Polling District and Polling Place Review which was based on current electoral boundaries.  The CGR boundary changes approved since will not take effect until the 2025 elections and will be reviewed at a later date. 

The Officers were asked to take into consideration additional areas for possible change, such as in Calne South, MT2 where the polling station was quite a significant distance from the electors. 

The Committee noted the comments in relation to MT1 and MT2, Marden House community space and queried what happened when a venue no longer wished to host an election. The Elections Team in these instances sought alternative suitable locations in the area.

It was suggested that in areas where there was difficulty in finding a suitable replacement location, the community involved could be approached as they often had the best local knowledge.

Other polling districts to be looked at by the Elections Team were noted as XB1 (HiIlcott Village Hall no longer existed), and OB3 and OB4 (Activity Zone/Riverside Centre). Committee Members were asked to email details of each request to the Officer for consideration.

Merging Polling Districts

The Committee discussed the proposal to merge two polling districts in Luckington, noting a comment received had indicated an elector’s preference not to merge. 

The Committee noted the two distinct villages involved, the proximity between them and the cost implications of having two separate polling districts for such few electors and supported the recommendation to merge the two polling districts.

Warminster Rural

The areas of Warminster North and Warminster Rural, were described as two distinct areas (IC1 and IC2), which currently both used the Warminster  Garrison as a polling venue.  ...  view the full minutes text for item 51.

To consider proposals to change the name of the parish of Lea & Cleverton.

The The Committee considered the proposals to change the name of the parish of Lea & Cleverton, as requested by the parish of Lea & Cleverton, which was located east of Malmesbury, within the Electoral Division of Brinkworth. The reason for the request was:

To properly represent the three habited areas that make up our parish

The Committee agreed to the proposal, noting the suitability, given there were  three  communities involved.

At the conclusion of discussion, it was;

Resolved

To recommend Full Council, to approve the following name changes:

The Parish of Lea & Cleverton be changed to the Parish of Lea, Garsdon, & Cleverton

To confirm the date of the next meeting as 13 December 2023.

The Committee note the date of the next meeting which was scheduled for 13 December 2023 at 10:00am.

Any other items of business which the Chairman agrees to consider as a matter of urgency.

There were no urgent items.