Cuddesdon and Denton
Creating a single parish ward
Impact on district and county council boundaries
None
This request came from Cuddesdon and Denton Parish Council.
Summary of other responses
These are set out in the engagement summary document.
To consult on a proposal to deward Cuddesdon and Denton Parish Council.
The submission from the parish council sets out that the two communities form an integrated community. The two wards came into existence with the creation of the parish council in 1962 when Cuddesdon Parish Council and Denton Parish Meeting became a single parish council. The guidance on community governance reviews states that warding of parish councils should be considered if:
a) the number, or distribution of the local government electors for the parish would make a single election of councillors impracticable or inconvenient; and
b) it is desirable that any area or areas of the parish should be separately represented.
The size of the electorate and distribution of communities does not present an issue for the delivery of elections which are currently held in the same location. The warding of parishes in largely rural areas is unusual. Whilst warding would be appropriate in circumstances where there are communities with separate identities that does not appear to be the case with Cuddesdon and Denton.
In terms of the number of councillors, the parish council has requested the retention of seven councillors.
As of 1 May 2022, Cuddesdon and Denton have 363 registered electors (285 in the Cuddesdon parish ward and 78 in the Denton parish ward).
The National Association of Local Councils (NALC) Circular 1126 recommends the following:
|
Electors |
Councillors |
Electors |
Councillors |
|
Up to 900 |
7 |
10,400 |
17 |
|
1,400 |
8 |
11,900 |
18 |
|
2,000 |
9 |
13,500 |
19 |
|
2,700 |
10 |
15,200 |
20 |
|
3,500 |
11 |
17,000 |
21 |
|
4,400 |
12 |
18,900 |
22 |
|
5,400 |
13 |
20,900 |
23 |
|
6,500 |
14 |
23,000 |
24 |
|
7,700 |
15 |
45,000 |
25 |
|
9,000 |
16 |
The table above suggests a parish council consisting of up to 900 electors should have seven councillors.
This council has applied the NALC guidance when considering requests to increase councillor numbers unless there are exceptional circumstances. The NALC recommends that the minimum number of members of a parish council should be seven, and that this number should apply to all councils with an electorate up to 900. In respect of Cuddesdon and Denton Parish Council’s request a council size of seven councillors is reasonable and maintains the current parish council size.