Waverley Borough Council is seeking your views on the second stage of its Community Governance Review of town and parish councils, which it is carrying out during 2022.
The review is a legal process to look at the governance arrangements of town and parish councils in the Waverley area and a way of ensuring that the views of Waverley residents and interested groups are represented. It considers options such as creating, merging, altering or abolishing parish councils, the naming of parish councils, electoral arrangements and more.
The council carried out a six-week consultation in January 2022 and received a number of submissions. Proposals from these submissions now form the basis of the second stage consultation and have now been included in the draft recommendations which can be viewed on the council’s website at www.waverley.gov.uk/CGR.
Proposals include:
- Reducing the size of Farnham Town Council from 18 to 16 councillors and changing the town wards to be coterminous with the Borough wards (these were changed recently in the Boundary Commission Electoral review of Waverley)
- Reducing the size of Godalming Town Council from 20 to 18 councillors and changing the town wards to be coterminous with the Borough wards
- Increasing the number of councillors on Alfold PC due to the increase of the projected electorate due to the Dunsfold development
- A variety of boundary changes to parishes which will affect a number of residents in those areas
- Witley PC requested to be renamed Witley and Milford Parish Council
A six-week consultation is being carried out between 3 May and 10 June 2022 asking for your views on – or alternative proposals to - these draft recommendations.
Councillor Paul Follows, Leader of Waverley Borough Council, said:
"I would like to thank all those who responded. Careful consideration was given to all the submissions we received and the consultation survey now contains all the proposals that, in the view of the Council, should go forward to the second stage of consultation. I would urge interested parties to have a look at these draft recommendations and have their say so that we can make sure the views of those who live in the borough are properly represented.”
Recommendations will be considered by Full Council at its meeting on 19 July 2022 with final recommendations published in August 2022.
Full information on the Review, further details on how to make a written representation and a copy of the Terms of Reference can be viewed and downloaded from Waverley Borough Council - Community Governance Reviews.
Those wishing to make a written representation, can return it via email to cgr@waverley.gov.uk or post it to: Electoral Services, Waverley Borough Council, The Burys, Godalming GU7 1HR