Review of polling district and polling places in the district of Wyre Forest: full review, proposals and outcome

Background
Timetable
Executive summary
Definitions of terms
The Review
Wyre Forest District Council’s Proposals
Polling Districts, Places and Stations information
How to respond
Outcome

1.0 Background

The Electoral Registration and Administration Act 2013 amended the Representation of the People Act 1983 and introduced a change to the timing of compulsory reviews of UK Parliamentary polling districts and places. The review must be started and completed between October 1, 2023, and 31 January 2025.

2.0 Timetable

The review for Wyre Forest District Council started on 2 October 2023 until 22 November 2023, with the options of completing an online survey or responding in writing or email. The final Report was considered at full council on 13 December 2023.

3.0 Executive summary

1. This review proposes creating a new polling district within the Wyre Forest Rural Ward, to accommodate the Lea Castle development. For the time being, these electors would need to vote at the existing polling place in Cookley. A community governance review will be required in future to consider the impact of Lea Castle on governance of the Wolverley and Cookley parish area.
2. The review also sets out proposals for changes to the pattern of polling places in the district of Wyre Forest. It seeks views on moving the polling place for OFC-3 and OFC-4 polling districts to a neighbouring building. In the MI-SN1 polling district in Stourport, it is proposed to transfer a small number of voters from one polling place to another nearby, because of capacity constraints at the existing polling place. Due to changes in the Electoral Commission’s guidance on the size of electorate allocated to a polling station, and several large areas of development outlined in our local plan, consideration will need to be given at several polling places to providing two smaller polling stations rather than the existing larger one.
3. The proposed changes are summarised below. The full proposals are set out later in the report, including Appendix A. The proposed changes would be implemented from 1 March 2024 and would apply to any elections or by-elections held on or after that date.

4.0 Definitions of terms

The definitions of the terms for the items being reviewed are:

• A 'polling district' is a geographical subdivision of an electoral area such as a district ward within which a polling place is designate.
• A 'polling place' is defined as the building or area in which a polling station resides.
• A 'polling station' is the room or area within a polling place where voting takes place. Unlike polling districts and polling places which are fixed by the local authority, polling stations are chosen by the (Acting) Returning Officer.

5.0 The Review

The review requires the council to:

• Seek to ensure that all the electors in the constituency have such reasonable facilities for voting as are practicable in the circumstances.
• Seek to ensure that so far as is reasonable and practicable, the polling places they are responsible for are accessible to all electors, and when considering the designation of a polling place, must have regard to the accessibility needs of disabled persons.
• Seek to ensure that polling places are within their polling district unless special circumstances make it desirable to designate an area outside the polling district.

The (Acting) Returning Officer is required to decide how many polling stations are needed for each polling place and to allocate electors to the polling stations in such a manner he thinks most convenient.

The following is not considered as part of the review:

The changing of any district ward boundaries (which can only be done by statute following an electoral review carried out by the Local Government Boundary Commission). This review is concerned only with the administrative subdivision of a ward into polling districts which are then assigned polling places.

or

• The changing of polling districts in areas which are also aligned with parish boundaries and therefore cannot be amended during this review (these can only be amended during a Community Governance Review).
• The Council is keen to receive representations from any interested individual, group or organisation, particularly those with expertise in access for persons with any type of disability, on alterations to current electoral arrangements. Representations should, wherever possible, include suggested alternative premises which may be used for polling purposes. Any elector within the authority or within the Wyre Forest parliamentary constituency may make a representation.

6.0 Wyre Forest District Council’s Proposals

Wyre Forest District Council are made the below proposals.

7.0 Polling Districts, Places and Stations information

View information on the current polling districts, places and stations including their electorate.

View map of the Polling Districts and Polling Places.

8.0 How to respond

There was the option of completing an online survey or responding in writing or email. The Consultation had 60 responses of which 54 were responses to the online survey. The overall response generally supported the proposals although different views were expressed on most issues.

9.0 Outcome

Following Full Council on Wednesday 13 December 2023, the below outcomes were decided