It is inevitable that some councillors will not be happy with proposed boundary changes, the leader of Staffordshire County Council has said.
The comments from Cllr Alan White came as part of discussions around a planned submission to the the Local Government Boundary Commission for England (LGBCE).
Proposals would see some amendments to voting areas across the county, including in Lichfield and Burntwood, as part of a bid to even up the number of voters in each division.
Among the changes would be:
- St Matthew’s to move from Lichfield Rural West to Burntwood North.
- Expand Lichfield City North to include new areas near Collins Hill and Trent Valley Road.
- Lichfield Rural South to include new housing developments near Claypit Lane currently falling within Lichfield City South.
- Burntwood South to expand to include an area off Cannock Road.
Cllr White told a meeting of the county council’s corporate overview and scrutiny committee that striking a balance would always be difficult to achieve.
“There are councillors that are not happy with some of the proposals – that’s inevitable. Last time we did it we had the same thing happen.
“What we are trying to achieve as an authority in our submission is a set of proposals we can live with, accepting the fact that some councillors will never, ever be happy because they believe the boundary review should start with their division and work out rather than looking at the entire county and come up with a set of solutions.”
Cllr Alan White, Staffordshire County Council
Cllr Colin Greatorex, Conservative representative for Lichfield south, said some of the proposal would create closer ties to existing boundaries.
“We had some weird boundaries that weren’t coterminal with the district boundaries and this has been a fantastic opportunity to tidy that up.
“I sit on three different councils and it worries me and other colleagues that you have to remember which hat you’re wearing when speaking to residents. You can speak to them as their representative but in other areas you can’t.”
Cllr Colin Greatorex, Staffordshire County Council
The LGBCE plans will look to balance up the numbers with 10% either way of a set figure based on averages across the region.
But while Cllr Greatorex had drawn positives from some aspects of the plans, Cllr White – who represents the Lichfield Rural East division – admitted not all members would feel the same way.
“In a very large rural shire county it’s always difficult when you are constrained by district and borough boundaries and the need to meet the desired percentages.
“The diverse nature of some of our divisions – in my own I have a huge rural area and part of it that is in Tamworth – means we have to just compromise.
“Many councillors recognise that need and some don’t.”
Cllr Alan White, Staffordshire County Council
