Consultation Document: Polling District and Polling Places Review for the Fenland Area of North East Cambridgeshire Constituency
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Consultation Document: Polling District and Polling Places Review For the Fenland Area of North East Cambridgeshire Constituency 2020 www.fenland.gov.uk Paul Medd Returning Officer Fenland District Council 1 Contents: Page Background.............................................................................................................. 3 Coronavirus Pandemic…………………………………………………………………… 3 Definitions................................................................................................................ 4 The Review Process................................................................................................ 4 Criteria for Polling Places and Polling Districts........................................................ 4 The Role of the Returning Officer............................................................................ 5 Other representations.............................................................................................. 5 Summary of Consultees: ........................................................................................ 5 Completion of the review ........................................................................................ 6 Challenge of review ................................................................................................ 6 Who may make a representation to the Electoral Commission? ............................ 6 Review by the Electoral Commission ..................................................................... 6 Proposal ................................................................................................................. 7 Representations ..................................................................................................... 7 SCHEDULE OF POLLING DISTRICTS AND POLLING PLACES..........8, 9, 10 & 11 Birch Ward............................................................................................................... 13 Slade Lode Ward..................................................................................................... 14 The Mills Ward......................................................................................................... 15-16 Wenneye Ward........................................................................................................ 17 March East Ward..................................................................................................... 18-19 March North Ward................................................................................................... 20-21 March West Ward ................................................................................................... 22-23 Benwick, Coates & Eastrea Ward............................................................................ 24-25 Bassenhally Ward ................................................................................................... 26-27 Lattersey Ward........................................................................................................ 28 St Andrews Ward..................................................................................................... 29 Stonald……… ........................................................................................................ 30 Clarkson Ward......................................................................................................... 31 Octavia Hill Ward .................................................................................................... 32-33 Kirkgate Ward......................................................................................................... 34 Medworth Ward........................................................................................................ 35 Peckover Ward........................................................................................................ 36 Staithe Ward ........................................................................................................... 37 Waterlees Village Ward.......................................................................................... 38-39 Doddington and Wimblington Ward......................................................................... 40-41 Elm & Christchurch Ward ....................................................................................... 42-43 Manea Ward............................................................................................................ 44 Parson Drove & Wisbech St Mary Ward................................................................. 45-46 Roman Bank Ward.................................................................................................. 47-48 Summary of Recommendations:.......................................................................... 49 - 51 2 Background The Representation of People Act places a duty on the Council to divide the District into polling districts and to designate polling places for each district. The Council also has a duty to keep those arrangements under review. In compliance with the Review of Polling Districts and Polling Places (Parliamentary Elections) Regulations 2006, every Council in England and Wales was required to undertake and complete a review of all of the polling districts and polling places in its area by 31 December 2007, which accordingly was undertaken in Fenland, and agreed by a full meeting of the Council in December, 2007. Subsequent reviews have taken place in 2014, 2016 and 2018. The last review in 2018 was the compulsory review, which was agreed by Full Council on 13 December 2018, and was undertaken at this time due to District and Town and Parish Council elections which took place on 2 May 2019 and the results of the Local Government Boundary Commission for England Review and Community Governance Review into some warding arrangements for Whittlesey. Although some polling districts, places and stations that lie within East Cambridgeshire District Council area fall within the North East Cambridgeshire Parliamentary constituency area, this review focuses solely on the Fenland polling districts and places. Coronavirus Pandemic The Coronavirus pandemic during 2020 has resulted in the Police and Crime Commissioner Elections due to take place on 7 May 2020 and all other elections during 2020 being postponed to 6 May 2021. On 6 May 2021, Fenland will have to administer not only the Police and Crime Commissioner elections, but also Cambridgeshire County Council and Cambridgeshire and Peterborough Combined Authority elections, together with any By-Elections that have arisen during the time that elections have been unable to be held. The pandemic has brought about a number of issues that need to be considered as it is not known what the circumstances will be regarding Coronavirus in May 2021. It is envisaged that there will still need to be some form of social distancing measures in polling stations, cleaning of polling booths between electors casting their votes, clear Covid-19 signage, designated way in and out, hand sanitizing stations as well as the need to manage the flow of electors through polling stations.. The current Electoral Commission guidance is that no more than 2,500 electors should be allocated to one polling station. However, to provide reassurance to local electors that the Council remains committed to enabling residents to be able to cast their vote in person at a polling station in a manner that is Covid secure, we have looked to reduce the number of electors allocated to each polling station. To undertake this, 75% of the number of in person electors has been calculated and 33% of potential new electors in empty or new properties added to this figure to identify polling district wards which need splitting so that less than 1,500 electors visit a polling station. This has resulted in 2 current polling district wards being spilt into two. We are also considering the potential for additional staff to manage the flow of electors through polling stations where the numbers visiting the polling station would be over 1,000. This could potentially result in 30 extra staff to support the elections in 2021. We will be undertaking a two part recruitment process to ensure that we have sufficient staff to resource the polling stations in May 2021. The first phase will commence now and depending upon the responses, a second phase will be undertaken in the New Year. 3 Where new or alternative polling stations have been identified, these will need to contacted to see if they are willing for us to use their premises as a polling station and a visit will need to be undertaken to see if the premises meets the required needs for a polling station. The review will also allow some amendments to current polling stations in Polling Districts wards to reflect polling stations that have been used successfully in recent elections, but are not currently the main or the alternative polling station. The wards of DA1, DA2 and DAB, EB1 and EB2 and RB1 and RB2 have also been redrawn to provide a similar number of in person electors who would attend each polling station within these wards and to attempt to provide the elector with a polling station, as far as possible, nearest to the locality that they reside in. Definitions a) Parliamentary Constituency The area designated by the Boundary Commission having separate representation in the House of Commons. This cannot be changed by the review. The division of the constituency into polling districts and places is the subject of the review. b) Polling