Parish and Town Councils Submissions to the North Somerset District Council Electoral Review
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Parish and Town councils submissions to the North Somerset District Council electoral review This PDF document contains 12 submissions from parish and town councils. Some versions of Adobe allow the viewer to move quickly between bookmarks. Click on the submission you would like to view. If you are not taken to that page, please scroll through the document. Kevin Barrett [email protected] Banwell Parish Council Parish clerk 14/05/2013 13:29 Banwell Parish Council comments that any changes to North Somerset's ward boundaries should provide for the parish to remain within the same ward as Winscombe and Sandford Parish Council as it is considered that Banwell has more in common with that parish than with the parishes further to the west bordering Weston-super-Mare. Knag, Daniel From: Fuller, Heather Sent: 04 June 2013 13:07 To: Knag, Daniel Subject: FW: Electoral review of North Somerset: Ward Boundaries Follow Up Flag: Follow up Flag Status: Flagged From: Barrow Gurney Clerk [mailto:[email protected]] Sent: 04 June 2013 12:53 To: Reviews@ Subject: Electoral review of North Somerset: Ward Boundaries With regard to the consultation on ward boundaries in North Somerset, the Barrow Gurney Parish Council wish to comment as follows: Barrow Gurney Parish Council has already expressed a concern about the overall reduction in the number of Councillors for North Somerset . However, recognising that the reduced number requires restructuring of the Wards, we have considered how the Parish's interests would be best reflected. Barrow Gurney is entirely rural in character and has a longstanding link, and common issues with the adjacent parish of Flax Bourton. Facilities such as secondary schooling, rail transport and leisure centre all tend to focus on Backwell; we believe that this linkage should continue. Links to other services vary according to their proximity to the different communities in the parish. As a predominantly rural community, located in the Green Belt, Barrow Gurney tends to share common cause with other small rural communities; an association with a predominantly suburban area such as Long Ashton seems less appropriate. In this respect, our existing position, as part of the Backwell Ward has served us well and our preferred option would be to remain part of that Ward. In the event of significant redrawing of Ward Boundaries, and if association with Backwell were no longer an option, our preference would be for an alignment that provided commonality with our neighbouring village communities such as Dundry and Winford. Yours Sincerely, Joanna van Tonder Clerk to the Barrow Gurney Parish Council Tel: 1 Gillian Rowley [email protected] Brockley Parish Council Parish clerk 12/05/2013 09:38 It is the strong preference of Brockley Parish Council that the parish of Brockley should remain with Backwell, with whom Brockley residents are very closely linked at community level (and dependent for doctors, dentists, church, post office, shops, etc.). If Backwell Ward can retain two councillors, so much the better, but the priority is to remain with Backwell. 2013 KENN PARISH COUNCIL Review Officer (North Somerset) Local Government Boundary Commission for England Layden House 76-86 Turnmill Street London EC1M 5LG [email protected] 24 May 2013 Dear Mr Knag ELECTORAL REVIEW OF NORTH SOMERSET Kenn Parish Council gave careful consideration at their recent meeting to the information provided regarding the current Electoral Review and their observations are as follows; BACKGROUND; Kenn is very much a rural village with many of its residents involved in the rural economies of farming, agricultural contracting etc. The parish and village very much has as its centre the community interests and resilience of a rural village, just a few example of these being; monthly Village Market held in the Village Hall, monthly News & Views newsletter distributed throughout the village, strong parish independence to work for and support their own community as a whole, existing local residents are all known to each other and new residents are welcomed and provided with a leaflet outlining village contacts and services etc, community events involving everyone and very often resulting in another photograph of residents for displaying on a section of wall for ‘Village Photos’ in the Village Hall. KENN PARISH COUNCIL COMMENTS; Kenn parish/village wishes to express to the Local Government Boundary Commission that it; most strongly identifies with the Yatton Ward, this ward having more of the rural nature which reflects the community of Kenn, and definitely does not identify with the urban aspects of neighbouring wards in Clevedon and Nailsea. It is felt that the Yatton Ward could be represented by 2 district councillors if the average electoral representation per councillor across the district is increased from the current approx 2,500 to +/- 3,500 (could also achieve the reduction of 10 district councillors from 61 to 51). This may also result in election cost savings, bearing in mind current turn out at polling stations. Yours sincerely Eleanor Wade Clerk to Kenn Parish Council Parish Clerk – Eleanor Wade [email protected] www.kenn-pc.org.uk Knag, Daniel From: Eleanor Wade <[email protected]> Sent: 04 June 2013 21:01 To: Reviews@; Knag, Daniel; Metheringham, Jessica Subject: Additional comments - Kenn Parish Council, North Somerset Follow Up Flag: Follow up Flag Status: Flagged Kenn Parish Council considered this item for the second occasion at their meeting last evening and I have been asked to write again on two further matters; (1) further Parish Council comments/observations and (2) a request on behalf of Kenn residents. Further comments - the following comments are in addition to Kenn Parish Council's letter sent on 24 May 2013. (1) Kenn Parish Council is greatly concerned at reports in the local press that Clevedon may be putting forward proposals which would include the parish of Kenn within their ward boundaries, therefore, the additional comments the Parish Councillors would like to make are; 1.1 The river Blind Yeo is recognised as a significant boundary marker between urban Clevedon and rural Kenn. Even Clevedon councillors, in their comments to past planning policy documents, have advocated that the river should not be breached by urban development. 1.2 There is a real concern in Kenn that if they were subsumed into Clevedon by ward boundary alterations that in future Kenn could be seen to be a suburb of Clevedon and as such would start the encroachment of development over the river boundary. 1.3 Kenn reiterates that it would wish to see the current Yatton Ward boundary retain as it is currently, and while it is happy with its District Councillors, Kenn feels the ward could be represented by 2 members rather than the current 3. 1.4 Kenn feels Clevedon should concentrate on reviewing its own internal ward boundaries and not look to other/independent parishes to solve their issues of low electorate ratio number to councillor. Request - on behalf of Kenn residents; (2) Kenn residents have been busy over the last few weeks limiting the impact of a large music event on the village, this event took place last weekend. The villagers therefore have just begun to look at the impact of the Ward Boundary review. They are endeavouring to get their comments to you in time but would request, if possible, any late observations could still be considered. Regards, Eleanor Wade, Kenn Parish Clerk -- Eleanor Wade, Kenn Parish Clerk, Tel: - Web: www.kenn-pc.org.uk _________________________________________________________________ This email, along with any files transmitted with it, originates from Kenn Parish Council and is for the intended recipient only. It may contain sensitive material and should be handled accordingly. If you are not the intended recipient you may not copy, use, disclose, distribute, or print it to anyone else. If you have received this in error please notify the sender immediately. Any views expressed in this message are those of the individual sender, except where the sender states with authority they are the views of Kenn Parish Council. 1 Knag, Daniel From: Fuller, Heather Sent: 22 May 2013 08:55 To: Knag, Daniel Subject: FW: Electoral Review of North Somerset Follow Up Flag: Follow up Flag Status: Flagged From: L ALLDAY ] Sent: 21 May 2013 16:48 To: Reviews@ Subject: Electoral Review of North Somerset Comments of Kingston Seymour Parish Council (Yatton Ward) The Parish Council is strongly in favour of remaining part of Yatton Ward as presently constituted and with its present boundaries. KSPC is aware of at least two proposals which would remove Kingston Seymour form Yatton Ward; one to group it together with a number of other small villages (not all geographically contiguous) and another to absorb it (with Kenn) into south Clevedon. The first of these makes no sense at all from a service provision point of view or any other - it would make for a very fragmented Ward with Members having to engage with a variety of different systems and regimes. The second would be unacceptable as it would damage long historic and geographic associations and the cohesion of our community. The current Ward boundary is also the boundary of the combined ecclesiastical parishes of Yatton Moor (Yatton, Kenn and Kingston Seymour) and Cleeve & Claverham which together form one Team Minstry - this functions as a social and economic entity as well as an ecclesiastical one. In addition almost all the children in this parish (around 70) attend or expect to attend primary school in Yatton and secondary school in Backwell. Their social networks are therefore focused primarily in that geographical direction and not towards Clevedon. Councillors appreciate that the proposed reduction in the number of councillors in North Somerset from 61 to 51 would almost certainly result in the reduction in the number of Ward members for Yatton from 2 to 1.