Statutory reviews
Boundary changes
2023 UK Parliamentary Boundary Review
The Boundary Commission for England has commenced its review of parliamentary constituencies in England, in accordance with the Parliamentary Constituencies Act 1986 (as amended by the Parliamentary Voting System and Constituencies Act 2011 and Parliamentary Constituencies Act 2020).
The Boundary Commission for England has now published its final proposal for new constituency boundaries, increasing the number of constituencies in England from 533 to 543.
The Parliamentary Constituencies Order 2023 came into force on 29 November. The new parliamentary constituencies will take effect from the next UK Parliamentary General Election.
Details of the new constituencies are set out on the Boundary Commissions' website.
The timeline for this review is as follows:
Local Government Boundary Changes
The Local Government Boundary Commission was set up to carry out reviews of local authority electoral arrangements. It also has a role in reviewing local government structure and boundaries and carrying out parish reviews.
The last review concluded in November 2023 reducing the number of councillors from 93 to 76. These new boundaries will take effect from the 1 May 2025.
For more information on the last review please visit the LGBCE Commission website.
Community governance reviews
Community governance reviews (CGR) are carried out by principal councils to put in place or make changes to local community (parish) governance arrangements. CGR’s can be initiated by a
- valid petition from electors
- formal request from a parish council or a local member
- decision taken by the principal council itself if it feels a review is appropriate
Any petition must define the area to which the review is to relate, specify one or more recommendations which the petitioners wish that CGR to consider making and be signed by the following number of local government electors:
- less than 500 electors: 50% of the electors
- 500 - 2,499 electors: At least 250 of the electors
- more than 2,500: At least 10% of the electors
A CGR can consider several issues, including whether to:
- create a new parish whether to alter the boundary of an existing parish
- group several parishes together in a grouped parish council
The most recent reviews in West Northamptonshire took place between 2018 and 2020 on the unparished areas of Northampton Borough, Daventry and South Northamptonshire. These reviews were undertaken by the previous borough councils as part of the reform of local government in Northamptonshire. Results of the reviews can be seen below.
We are currently undergoing a new consultation on the Community Governance in the West Northamptonshire area.
Polling districts, places and station review
Daventry District Council, Northampton Borough Council and South Northamptonshire Councils carried out a review of polling districts, places and stations in 2019. The purpose of the review was to try to ensure that electors have reasonable facilities for voting and that they are accessible for everyone with a disability, if practicable.
Under electoral legislation, we must complete a review of all polling districts and polling places every four years. After each election we also review the staff and elector feedback of the location of polling stations to ensure that the premises we use have good access for all electors. The next scheduled review of polling districts and places is expected to take place in 2024.
The councils were required by law to carry out this review.
Last updated 27 December 2023