A voluntary Electoral Review

Babergh has requested a review to be carried out alongside a compulsory review for Mid Suffolk.  Some council wards now have more electors than average, whilst some have fewer, usually because of housing developments over time. This means that votes don’t carry equal weight across the District, so occasionally the ward boundaries have to be re-aligned. It doesn’t just affect the wards with too many or too few electors – every ward is likely to be changed because of the knock-on effect.

n electoral review determines five things: the total number of councillors; the total number of wards; the boundaries of each ward; the number of councillors elected to each ward; and the names of each ward (e.g. Mid Samford, Dodnash.) Parishes will not be split. The Administration is known to be considering reducing the number of councillors.  Overall, the review must ensure effective decision making, have regard to how the council works with partners and undertakes scrutiny functions, and it must also meet representational requirements. Councillor numbers will be decided by the end of this year. The pattern in Mid Suffolk is likely to be mirrored in Babergh.

The review is primarily about electoral numbers, but the Commission say they will take account of both community identities and interests. A consultation on warding patterns will run from 10^th January to 20^th March 2017, with a further consultation on draft recommendations running from mid-June into August.  These will not necessarily engage with the public.

The new set-up will be in place for the next elections in 2019.  At present there is no plan to revive the complete merger that Babergh residents voted 60/40 against five years ago.

Another “call for sites”

The recent call for large land sites that could be made available for significant development resulted in the publication in May 2017 of the document known as the SHLAA – Strategic Housing Land Availability Assessment. Residents in the core villages will be aware of the developer interest this has already raised.  A further call for sites is currently in progress, but this time smaller plots will be considered.  The new site size threshold has been adopted to enable sites of at least 0.25ha, or capable of delivering 5 or more dwellings to come forward.  The ‘Call for Sites’ provides an opportunity for developers, landowners, Parish & Town Councils, individuals and other interested parties to register land within Babergh or Mid Suffolk districts to be considered as a potential allocated site in the Joint Local Plan. The Council is also providing an opportunity for landowners who wish to make a site or plot available for ‘self build’, an option that allows individuals to obtain planning permission to build a home of their own.  The deadline for submissions is 5:00pm on Friday 26th August 2016.