Statutory Instruments
LOCAL GOVERNMENT, ENGLAND
Made
2nd December 2002
Coming into force in accordance with article 1(2), (3) and (4)
Whereas the Boundary Committee for England(1), acting pursuant to section 15(4) of the Local Government Act 1992(2), has submitted to the Electoral Commission(3) a report dated June 2002 on its review of the district of Wokingham together with its recommendations:
And whereas a period of not less than six weeks has expired since the receipt of those recommendations:
And whereas the Electoral Commission have decided to give effect, with modifications, to those recommendations:
1.—(1) This Order may be cited as the District of Wokingham (Electoral Changes) Order 2002.
(2) This Order, with the exception of articles 5, 6, 8, 9, 10 and 11 shall come into force—
(a)for the purpose of proceedings preliminary or relating to any election to be held on 6th May 2004, on 15th October 2003;
(b)for all other purposes, on 6th May 2004.
(3) Article 5 shall come into force—
(a)for the purpose of proceedings preliminary or relating to the election of a parish councillor for the parish of Arborfield and Newland to be held on 4th May 2006, on 15th October 2005;
(b)for all other purposes, on 4th May 2006.
(4) Articles 6, 8, 9, 10 and 11 shall come into force—
(a)for the purpose of proceedings preliminary or relating to the election of a parish councillor for the parishes of Earley, Shinfield, Twyford, Wokingham and Woodley to be held on 3rd May 2007, on 15th October 2006;
(b)for all other purposes, on 3rd May 2007.
2. In this Order—
“district” means the district of Wokingham;
“existing”, in relation to a ward, means the ward as it exists on the date this Order is made;
any reference to the map is a reference to the map marked “Map referred to in the District of Wokingham (Electoral Changes) Order 2002”, of which prints are available for inspection at—
(a)the principal office of the Electoral Commission; and
(b)the offices of Wokingham District Council; and
any reference to a sheet of the map is a reference to the sheet of the map which bears that number.
3.—(1) The existing wards of the district(6) shall be abolished.
(2) The district shall be divided into twenty-five wards which shall bear the names set out in column (1) of Schedule 1.
(3) The wards shall comprise the areas described in column (2) of that Schedule by reference to parishes or, where an area is not so described, the area designated on the map by reference to the name of the ward and demarcated by red lines; and the number of councillors to be elected for each ward shall be the number specified in respect of the ward in column (3) of that Schedule.
(4) Where a boundary is shown on the map as running along a road, railway line, footway, watercourse or similar geographical feature, it shall be treated as running along the centre line of the feature.
4.—(1) Elections of all councillors for all wards of the district shall be held simultaneously on the ordinary day of election of councillors in 2004(7)(8).
(2) The councillors holding office for any ward of the district immediately before 10th May 2004 shall retire on that date and the newly elected councillors for those wards shall come into office on that date.
(3) The order of retirement of councillors shall be as set out in Schedule 2.
(4) Where the number of councillors elected in 2004 for any ward of the district is two or more—
(a)the first to retire shall, subject to paragraphs (6) and (7), be the councillor elected by the smallest number of votes; and
(b)the second to retire shall, subject to those paragraphs, be the councillor elected by the next smallest number of votes.
(5) In the case of an equality of votes between any persons elected which makes it uncertain which of them is to retire in any year, the person to retire in that year shall be determined by lot.
(6) If an election of councillors for any ward is not contested, the person to retire in each year shall be determined by lot.
(7) Where under this article any question is to be determined by lot, the lot shall be drawn at the next practicable meeting of the council after the question has arisen and the drawing shall be conducted under the direction of the person presiding at the meeting.
5. The parish shall be divided into two parish wards which shall bear the names set out in column (1) of Schedule 3; each parish ward shall comprise the area of the district ward specified in respect of the parish ward in column (2) of that Schedule; and the number of parish councillors to be elected for each parish ward shall be the number specified in respect of the parish ward in column (3) of that Schedule.
6.—(1) The existing wards of the parish of Earley shall be abolished.
(2) The parish shall be divided into eight parish wards which shall bear the names Cutbush, Hawkedon, Hillside, Maiden Erlegh, Radstock, Redhatch, St Nicholas and Whitegates; and the wards shall comprise the areas designated on sheet (4) be reference to the name of the ward and demarcated by orange lines.
(3) The number of parish councillors to be elected for each of the parish wards of Cutbush, Hawkedon, Hillside, Maiden Erlegh, St Nicholas, Radstock and Whitegates shall be three, and for the parish ward of Redhatch shall be four.
7.—(1) The existing wards of the parish of Finchampstead shall be abolished.
(2) The parish shall be divided into three parish wards which shall bear the names Finchampstead North, Finchampstead South and Lower Wokingham; and each of the parish wards of Finchampstead North and Finchampstead South shall comprise the area of the district ward bearing the same name, and the Lower Wokingham parish ward shall consist of the rest of the parish.
(3) The number of parish councillors to be elected for the parish ward of Lower Wokingham shall be two, for the parish ward of Finchampstead North shall be seven, and for the parish ward of Finchampstead South shall be eight.
8.—(1) The existing wards of the parish of Shinfield shall be abolished.
(2) The parish shall be divided into five parish wards which shall bear the names Grazeley, Shinfield North, Shinfield Village, Spencers Wood and Three Mile Cross, and Spencers Wood South; and the wards shall comprise the areas designated on sheet 5 by reference to the name of the ward and demarcated by orange lines.
(3) The number of councillors to be elected for each of the parish wards of Grazeley and Spencers Wood South shall be two, for each of the parish wards of Shinfield North and Spencers Wood and Three Mile Cross shall be three, and for the parish ward of Shinfield Village shall be five.
9. The parish of Twyford shall be divided into two parish wards which shall bear the names set out in column (1) of Schedule 4; each parish ward shall comprise the area of the district ward specified in respect of the parish ward in column (2) of that Schedule; and the number of parish councillors to be elected for each parish ward shall be the number specified in respect of the parish ward in column (3) of that Schedule.
10.—(1) The existing wards of the parish of Wokingham shall be abolished.
(2) The parish shall be divided into nine parish wards which shall bear the names Emmbrook North, Emmbrook South, Evendons East, Evendons West, Norreys East, Norreys West, Sandy Bottom, Wescott East and Wescott West; and the wards shall comprise the areas designated on sheet (6) by reference to the name of the ward and demarcated by orange lines.
(3) The number of parish councillors to be elected for the parish ward of Sandy Bottom shall be one, for each of the parish wards of Wescott East and Wescott West shall be two, for each of the parish wards of Emmbrook North, Emmbrook South, Evendons East, Norreys East and Norreys West shall be three, and for the parish ward of Evendons West shall be five.
11.—(1) The existing wards of the parish of Woodley shall be abolished.
(2) The parish shall be divided into nine parish wards which shall bear the names Bulmershe, Coronation Central, Coronation East, Loddon Airfield, Loddon South, Loddon West, South Lake North, South Lake South and Warren; and the wards shall comprise the areas designated on sheet (4) by reference to the name of the ward and demarcated by orange lines.
(3) The number of parish councillors to be elected for the parish wards of Coronation Central, Loddon West and Warren shall be two, for each of the parish wards of Coronation East, Loddon Airfield, Loddon South, South Lake North and South Lake South shall be three, and for the parish ward of Bulmershe shall be four.
12.—(1) Elections of all parish councillors for the parishes of Remenham and Wargrave shall be held simultaneously on the ordinary day of election of councillors in 2006 and every fourth year after 2006.
(2) The ordinary elections of parish councillors for the parish of Ruscombe in 2003 shall not take place; and any such parish councillor holding office immediately before 5th May 2003 shall, unless he resigns his office or it otherwise becomes vacant, continue to hold office until the fourth day after the ordinary day of election of councillors in 2004.
(3) Elections of all parish councillors for the parish of Ruscombe shall be held simultaneously on the ordinary day of election of councillors in 2004 and every fourth year after 2004.
(4) The term of office of parish councillors elected in accordance with paragraphs (1) and (3) above shall be four years; and they shall retire on the fourth day after the ordinary day of election of councillors in the year of retirement and the newly-elected councillors shall come into office on the day on which their predecessors retire.
(5) Rule 8 of the Local Elections (Parishes and Communities) Rules 1986(9) (filling of casual vacancies) shall have effect, in the case of a casual vacancy occurring before 8th May 2004 in the office of a parish councillor for the parish of Ruscombe as if the references in paragraphs (1) and (4) of that rule to the day on which that councillor would regularly have retired were a reference to 8th May 2004.
13. Wokingham District Council shall make a print of the map marked “Map referred to in the District of Wokingham (Electoral Changes) Order 2002” available for inspection at its offices by any member of the public at any reasonable time.
14. The Electoral Registration Officer for the district shall make such rearrangement of, or adaptation of, the register of local government electors as may be necessary for the purposes of, and in consequence of, this Order.
15. The District of Wokingham (Electoral Arrangements) Order 1978(10) is revoked, with the exception of articles 5 and 6.
Signed by the members of the Electoral Commission
Pamela Gordon
Commissioner
2nd December 2002
Glyn Mathias
Commissioner
2nd December 2002
Neil McIntosh
Commissioner
2nd December 2002
Karamjit Singh
Commissioner
2nd December 2002
Sam Younger
Commissioner
2nd December 2002
Graham Zellick
Commissioner
2nd December 2002
Article 3
| (1) | (2) | (3) |
|---|---|---|
| Name of Ward | Area of Ward | Number of councillors |
| Arborfield | 1 | |
| Barkham | 1 | |
| Bulmershe and Whitegates | 3 | |
| Charvil | The parish of Charvil | 1 |
| Coronation | 2 | |
| Emmbrook | 3 | |
| Evendons | 3 | |
| Finchampstead North | 2 | |
| Finchampstead South | 2 | |
| Hawkedon | 3 | |
| Hillside | 3 | |
| Hurst | 1 | |
| Loddon | 3 | |
| Maiden Erlegh | 3 | |
| Norreys | 3 | |
| Remenham, Wargrave and Ruscombe | The parishes of Remenham, Ruscombe and Wargrave | 2 |
| Shinfield North | 1 | |
| Shinfield South | 3 | |
| Sonning | 1 | |
| South Lake | 2 | |
| Swallowfield | 1 | |
| Twyford | 2 | |
| Wescott | 2 | |
| Winnersh | The parish of Winnersh | 3 |
| Wokingham Without | 3 |
Article 4(3)
| (1) | (2) | (3) | (4) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Name of Ward | Number of councillors to retire in 2006 | Number of councillors to retire in 2007 | Number of councillors to retire in 2008 |
| Arborfield | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| Barkham | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| Bulmershe and Whitegates | 1 | 1 | 1 |
| Charvil | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| Coronation | 1 | 1 | 0 |
| Emmbrook | 1 | 1 | 1 |
| Evendons | 1 | 1 | 1 |
| Finchampstead North | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| Finchampstead South | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| Hawkedon | 1 | 1 | 1 |
| Hillside | 1 | 1 | 1 |
| Hurst | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| Loddon | 1 | 1 | 1 |
| Maiden Erlegh | 1 | 1 | 1 |
| Norreys | 1 | 1 | 1 |
| Remenham, Wargrave and Ruscombe | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| Shinfield North | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| Shinfield South | 1 | 1 | 1 |
| Sonning | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| South Lake | 1 | 1 | 0 |
| Swallowfield | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| Twyford | 0 | 1 | 1 |
| Wescott | 0 | 1 | 1 |
| Winnersh | 1 | 1 | 1 |
| Wokingham Without | 1 | 1 | 1 |
Article 5
| (1) | (2) | (3) |
|---|---|---|
| Name of Ward | Area of Ward | Number of councillors |
| Arborfield Cross | The district ward of Arborfield | 9 |
| Arborfield Green | So much of the district ward of Barkham as comprises part of the parish of Arborfield and Newland | 1 |
Article 9
| (1) | (2) | (3) |
|---|---|---|
| Name of Ward | Area of Ward | Number of councillors |
| Twyford North | The district ward of Twyford | 13 |
| Twyford South | So much of the district ward of Hurst as comprises part of the parish of Twyford | 2 |
(This note is not part of the Order
This Order gives effect, with modifications, to recommendations by the Boundary Committee for England, a committee of the Electoral Commission, for electoral changes in the district of Wokingham. The changes have effect in relation to local government elections to be held on and after 6th May 2004.
The modifications relate to the boundary between Arborfield and Barkham district wards; the boundary between Bulmershe and Whitegates, and Maiden Erlegh district wards; the boundary between Coronation and Sonning district wards; the boundary between Norreys East and Norreys West parish wards of Wokingham parish; the naming of Sonning district ward; the naming of Arborfield Cross and Arborfield Green parish wards of Arborfield and Newland parish; and the naming of Warren parish ward of Woodley parish.
Article 3 abolishes the existing wards of the district and provides for the creation of 25 new wards. That article and Schedule 1 also make provision for the names and areas of, and numbers of councillors for, the new wards.
Article 4 makes provision for a whole council election in 2004 and for reversion to the established system of elections by thirds in subsequent years. Schedule 2 provides for the order of retirement of councillors.
Articles 5 to 11 make electoral changes in the parishes of Arborfield and Newland, Earley, Finchampstead, Shinfield, Twyford, Wokingham and Woodley.
Article 12 provides for the elections of certain parish councils in the district.
Article 14 obliges the Electoral Registration Officer to make any necessary amendments to the electoral register to reflect the new electoral arrangements.
Article 15 revokes the District of Wokingham (Electoral Arrangements) Order 1978 (S.I. 1978/1640), with the exception of articles 5 and 6.
The areas of the new district and parish wards are demarcated on the map described in article 2. Prints of the map may be inspected at all reasonable times at the offices of Wokingham District Council and at the principal office of the Electoral Commission at Trevelyan House, Great Peter Street, London SW1P 2HW.
The Boundary Committee for England is a committee of the Electoral Commission, established by the Electoral Commission in accordance with section 14 of the Political Parties, Elections and Referendums Act 2000 (c. 41). The Local Government Commission for England (Transfer of Functions) Order 2001 (S.I. 2001/3962) transferred to the Electoral Commission the functions of the Local Government Commission for England.
1992 c. 19. This section has been amended by S.I. 2001/3962.
The Electoral Commission was established by the Political Parties, Elections and Referendums Act 2000 (c. 41). The functions of the Secretary of State, under sections 13 to 15 and 17 of the Local Government Act 1992, to the extent that they relate to electoral arrangements within the meaning of that Act, were transferred with modifications to the Electoral Commission on 1st April 2002 (S.I. 2001/3962).
This section has been amended by S.I. 2001/3962 and also otherwise in ways not relevant to this Order.
This section has been amended by S.I. 2001/3962.
See the District of Wokingham (Electoral Arrangements) Order 1978 (S.I. 1978/1640), as amended by the Wokingham (Parishes) Order 1986 (S.I. 1986/570), the Berkshire (Structural Change) Order 1996 (S.I. 1996/1879) and the Local Government Changes for England (Parish Elections) Order 1998 (S.I. 1998/544).
Article 4 provides for a single election of all the councillors and for reversion to the system of elections by thirds, as established by articles 5 and 6 of the District of Wokingham (Electoral Arrangements) Order 1978 (S.I. 1978/1640), as amended by the Berkshire (Structural Change) Order 1996 (S.I. 1996/1879).
For the ordinary day of election of councillors of local government areas, see section 37 of the Representation of the People Act 1983 (c. 2), amended by section 18(2) of the Representation of the People Act 1985 (c. 50) and section 17 of, and paragraphs 1 and 5 of Schedule 3 to, the Greater London Authority Act 1999 (c. 29).
S.I. 1986/2215, to which there are amendments not relevant to this Order.