Derbyshire Dales is set to have new boundaries for its council wards.
The Local Government Boundary Commission is the independent body that draws these boundaries. It has reviewed Derbyshire Dales to make sure councillors will represent about the same number of electors, and that ward arrangements will help the council work effectively.
The Commission has published final recommendations for changes in Derbyshire Dales. It says residents should be represented by 34 councillors. This is five fewer than the existing arrangements.
Those councillors should represent 21 wards: 13 single-councillor wards, three two-councillor wards and five three-councillor wards. This is four fewer wards than there are now.
The boundaries of 17 wards have been changed in the Commission’s final recommendations; three will stay the same.
Publishing the recommendations Professor Colin Mellors, Chair of the Commission, said:
“We are very grateful to people in Derbyshire Dales. We looked at all the views they gave us. They helped us improve our earlier proposals.
“We believe the new arrangements will guarantee electoral fairness while maintaining local ties.”
A total of 252 people and organisations made comments to help decide the new wards.
Changes in response to what local people said include:
- Middleton by Wirksworth and Wirksworth parishes have been reunited in a smaller Wirksworth ward which excludes half the Carsington Water area.
- Youlgrave and Bakewell are now one and two-councillor wards, respectively.
The Commission has made further changes to its earlier proposals. Details can be found on its website.
Parliament now needs to agree the changes. The new arrangements will then apply for the May 2023 council elections.
