Community review underway in Pembrokeshire as Local Democracy & Boundary Commission for Wales opens

THE Local Democracy and Boundary Commission for Wales has opened its initial consultation as the community review of Pembrokeshire gets underway.

Pembrokeshire is divided into 77 communities, all of which have their own town or community council.

The Community Review will look at all community boundaries in the county, with changes to those boundaries possible where a need is identified.

The boundaries of community wards could also be changed, along with the electoral arrangements of town or community councils, for example the number of councillors which are elected to councils.

Changes to community boundaries are most likely in areas where there have been significant changes in recent years, for example where a new housing estate has been built which crosses an existing community boundary.

However, changes could be made to any community boundaries in Pembrokeshire if responses to the Commission’s consultation indicate a need for change.

The Commission’s consultation is now open until December 17.

Email consultations@boundaries.wales or write to LDBCW, Hastings House, Cardiff, CF24 0BL.

The Commission will take account of all representations received during the consultation before publishing its Draft Proposals, which will be subject to a further consultation period.

At the October meeting of Pembrokeshire’s full council, members considered the first stage of the review, setting a size policy for town and community councils.

Following a series of meetings involving community, town and county councillors a proposal was put before the meeting of full council that any community council of under 480 electors could potentially be merged; the Boundary Commission for Wales making proposals on individual mergers on a case-by-case basis.

An amendment, put forward by Wiston community councillor David Howlett, giving the option for councils under 480 electors to merge with neighbouring councils if they wished, rather than the straightforward proposal was backed at that meeting.

He said that, for some councils, mergers may be suitable, but warned that some merged community councils could become “more of a land mass than a community”.