Follow the Thread on - BOUNDARIES (3)

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FOLLOWING THE THREAD FROM ORIGINAL ARTICLES (Scroll down to see them)

Article Dates: Page 1

12th May 2015  Local electoral arrangements finalised for Rochford District Council

Article Dates: Page 2

27th July 2014 - New Ward Boundaries for Rochford District

15th Aug 2014 - Clock ticking for council ward boundaries consultation

Article Dates: Page 3

10th Sept 2014 - Last call for views on council ward boundaries

9th Jan 2015 - Still time to have your say on council shake up

2nd Feb 2015  Last chance to have your say on Rochford ward boundaries

Last call for views on council ward boundaries

10/9/14

There are just a few days left for local people to tell the independent Local Government Boundary Commission for England where they think new council ward boundaries should be drawn across Rochford.

View interactive maps of current ward boundaries at consultation.lgbce.org.uk

The Commission is carrying out an electoral review of Rochford which means re-drawing ward boundaries across the district. The Commission is asking local people for their views on new warding arrangements before it draws up its recommendations.

The Commission will consider all views put to it during the consultation and aims to publish draft recommendations for new ward boundaries for Rochford District Council in December.

In July, the Commission agreed that the council should continue to have 39 councillors in the future. It now aims to draw up ward boundaries that mean each of those councillors represents a similar number of voters and that the new wards reflect the interest and identities of local communities.

Max Caller, Chair of the Commission, said: “We will consider every submission we receive from local people before we draw up draft recommendations. We will then open another phase of consultation on those proposals in December. Don’t miss this chance to have your say on how your council is run.”

This phase of public consultation closes on 29 September 2014.

Consultation responses should be sent to:

                   The Review Officer (Rochford), Layden House, 76-86 Turnmill Street, London EC1M 5LG

Email: reviews@lgbce.org.uk      Follow the Commission on Twitter: @LGBCE

Go directly to the Commission’s consultation portal at: www.consultation.lgbce.org.uk

Link to dedicated web page for the Gloucester electoral review at: www.lgbce.org.uk/current-reviews/south-west/gloucestershire/gloucester

Notes:

1. The Local Government Boundary Commission for England is responsible for reviewing local authority electoral arrangements, defining boundaries for local elections and the number of councillors to be elected, as well as conducting reviews of local government external boundaries and structures.

2.  The aim of an electoral review is to provide for ‘electoral equality’; that means each councillor representing approximately the same number of electors. The Commission must also have regard to community identity and interests and providing effective and convenient local government.

3.  The types of questions the Commission is asking residents at this stage are:

 Do you have suggestions about where your ward boundaries should be?

 Which areas do you identify as your local community?

 Where do people in your area go to access local facilities such as shops and leisure activities?

4.  Residents have until 29 September 2014 to have their say about where ward boundaries for Rochford's 39 councillors should be drawn.  The Commission will then publish its draft recommendations in December 2014 and open a further phase of consultation with local people. New wards are scheduled to come into effect at the 2016 council elections.

5.  The Commission has announced that it is ‘minded’ to recommend 39 district councillors for Rochford but is not legally bound by that number in its final recommendations if a different number of councillors would deliver a better pattern of wards.

6.  For councils, like Rochford, that hold elections in three years out of every four, the Commission has a responsibility, set out in legislation, to devise a pattern of three-member wards across the whole authority. Such a ward pattern means that every elector would have the same opportunity to vote in local elections each time they are held. However, the Commission is able to move away from a uniform pattern of three-member wards – on a ward by ward basis - if it believes an alternative arrangement would better meet its other statutory criteria: to deliver electoral equality for voters, to reflect the interests and identities of local communities and to promote effective and convenient local government.

For further information contact the Commission’s press office on: 0207 664 8530/8534 or email: press@lgbce.org.uk

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Still time to have your say on council shake up

9/1/15

There is still time for local people to have their say on new council ward boundaries across Rochford.

View interactive maps of the proposals for Rochford at www.consultation.lgbce.org.uk

The independent Local Government Boundary Commission for England is currently consulting local people on its draft proposals for new ward boundaries across Rochford district. The consultation closes on 16 February 2015.

The Commission’s draft recommendations propose that Rochford District Council should have 39 councillors in the future: the same as the current arrangements. The proposals mean those councillors would represent 13 three-member wards across Rochford.

The recommendations propose changes to ward boundaries throughout the district.

Max Caller, Chair of the Commission, said: “We are asking local people to log on to our website or visit their local library to have a look at our proposals for new boundaries across Rochford. We are keen to hear what local people think of the recommendations and to tell us if they agree with the proposals. If you don’t agree with the boundaries we have drawn, we would like to hear your alternatives.  Our review aims to deliver electoral equality for voters in elections to Rochford District Council. This means that each councillor represents a similar number of electors so that everyone’s vote in council elections is worth roughly the same regardless of where you live. We also aim to ensure that the council’s wards reflect, as far as possible, the interests and identities of local communities. We will consider all the submissions we receive whoever they are from and whether your evidence applies to the whole of Rochford or just a part of the district.”

Local people can visit the Commission’s interactive consultation portal at www.consultation.lgbce.org.uk to look at detailed maps of the Commission’s proposals and get all the advice they need to make a submission during the consultation.

The full recommendations and detailed maps are also available on the Commission’s main website at www.lgbce.org.uk/current-reviews/eastern/essex/rochford. Hard copies of the Commission’s report and maps have also been made available to view at council buildings and libraries.

Write to: The Review Officer (Rochford), Local Government Boundary Commission for England. Layden House, 76-86 Turnmill Street

London EC1M 5LG

Or email: reviews@lgbce.org.uk    Follow the Commission on Twitter: @LGBCE

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Last chance to have your say on Rochford ward boundaries

2/2/15

View interactive maps of the proposals for Rochford at www.consultation.lgbce.org.uk

Time is running out for local people to tell the independent Local Government Boundary Commission for England what they think of proposals for new council ward boundaries across Rochford district.

The public consultation closes on 16 February 2015.

The Commission’s draft recommendations propose that Rochford District Council should have 39 councillors in the future: the same as the current arrangements. The proposals mean those councillors would represent 13 three-member wards across the district.

Max Caller, Chair of the Commission, said: “We are keen to hear local views about our boundary proposals before we finalise them in May.  We want to make sure ward boundaries across Rochford reflect the identities and interests of local communities as well as delivering electoral fairness for voters.   This is your last chance to have your say before we finalise the recommendations.”

Local people can have their say directly by visiting www.consultation.lgbce.org.uk.

The full recommendations and detailed maps are also available on the Commission’s main website at www.lgbce.org.uk/current-reviews/eastern/essex/rochford.

The Commission wants to hear as much evidence as possible in order to develop final recommendations for Rochford. If you would like to make a submission to the Commission, please write or email by 16 February 2015:

The Review Officer (Rochford)

Local Government Boundary Commission for England

Layden House

76-86 Turnmill Street

London EC1M 5LG

Or email: reviews@lgbce.org.uk

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