Agenda item

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

Public Participation

Roger Budgen spoke on behalf of St Paul Malmesbury without Parish Council

David Briggs spoke on behalf of St Paul Malmesbury without Parish Council

Cllr Gavin Grant and Cllr Martin Smith also summarised their proposal regarding the boundary between Malmesbury and St Paul Malmesbury Without, and updated the Committee on the outcome of discussions held between the joint Malmesbury Town and St Paul Malmesbury without Parish Council working group which had not been able to reach a consensus.

Following a summary of the process to date and an update on received responses and submissions, the Committee considered and discussed the additional proposals as detailed in the report.

A proposal from Brokenborough Parish Council, regarding a change to the proposed boundary line around Hyam Farm was also discussed.

Brokenborough

The Committee discussed the reason behind the request, to consolidate the associated buildings and land of Hyam Farm together within one single parish, that being Brokenborough parish due to a historic connection and an access route.

The committee agreed to remain with its earlier recommendation to use the water course as the boundary line, as it was felt this was unlikely to change over time, whereas a farm and its associated land and buildings may be divided up a in the future. 

The Committee determined to confirm the part of Draft Recommendation 8 which related to Brokenborough.

Malmesbury Boundary Review

The Committee discussed the amended proposal submitted by Malmesbury Town Council (MTC) for a change to the boundary line to the south of Malmesbury Town and the separate proposal jointly submitted by Councillors Martin Smith and Gavin Grant, which included a smaller residential area to the south of the town and an industrial area containing an Aldi and a Garden Centre, to the north.

The Committee considered the reasoning provided by those making submissions against the statutory criteria. They also noted previous consultation responses from residents living in the areas in question and noted that almost all were in objection to a transfer into the town. They noted the many comments received regarding residents being  well served by the governance arrangements provided by the parish council.

The committee determined to cease any further consideration of a boundary review for Malmesbury and concluded that the extensive work and the consultations already carried out, had not been able to reach a solution which would improve community cohesion or local governance, and accordingly withdrew its initial draft recommendation for the area.

Malmesbury Town Warding

The Committee discussed its previous proposal to amend the warding for Malmesbury Town, noting that the Town Council had been in support of increasing the warding to create a more even distribution, when considered as part of the earlier boundary review proposals.

The Committee determined to recommend an increase from two to four wards for the town with a total of 17 councillors and noted that further consultation would be required on the minor change to the ward boundaries before being determined at the next meeting.

Malmesbury St Paul without – un-warding

The Committee discussed the original request made by St Paul Malmesbury Without parish council, to remove the warding and retain 12 councillors.

The Committee determined to recommend that Malmesbury St Paul without be un-warded and have 12 councillors.

It was;

Resolved

1)    To confirm that Council be proposed to approve the warding for Derry Hill & Studley.

2)    For a further additional consultation to take place on the warding of Malmesbury Town.

3)    To delegate to the Director, Legal and Governance, in consultation with the Chairman, the preparation of a detailed Final Recommendations document for consideration by Full Council