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Concerns about Council plans to redraw boundaries in Windsor – Blog

RBWM intends to carve up Windsor and the Borough and drastically reduce the number of Councillors representing you from May 2019 but, you can have your say by 4 December 2017.

RBWM proposes to reduce the number of Councillors from 57 to 43 (25% reduction) and also, redraw boundaries in Windsor and rename Wards of the Borough which could see, for example, Dedworth split and a super-size ward covering Eton, Eton Wick, Datchet and Horton.

Any changes agreed with the Boundary Commission will be put in place from the May 2019 local elections but you can also have your say as, RBWM’s proposal will be considered along with proposals from you, the residents (organisation and individuals).

Notes 

  • The full name of the Boundary Commission is “the Local Government Boundary Commission for England” (LBGCE)
  • You can download and crib from the submissions of the WWRA and Cllr. Da Costa, using the links towards the end of this blog post

 

RBWM’s current proposals are worrying – The Boundary Commission have said they want to hear from you

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Summary

The Boundary Commission have said they want to hear from you about your ideas on (they need you);

  • What is your community (because they don’t know)? and,
  • How you could be better represented?

 

Remember, RBWM’s current proposals are worrying and would;

  1. Weaken communities and towns by splitting them or artificially join them with other distinctly different areas or towns
    1. Sawyers Close and Vale Road communities grafted on to Clewer Village and Hatch Lane
    2. Eton Wick joined to Eton, Datchet & Horton to create a super ward
    3. Old Windsor joined across the bridgeless Thames to Wraysbury
  2. Reduce the chance that your community’s needs will be represented by people who understand or care about you
    1. Will someone who understands Horton care about Eton Wick?
  3. Affect your ability to be represented by ordinary “people-centred” residents,
    1. but rather, as the Independent vote from each area would be split it is likely to
    2. foist party focused politicians on you by default rather than local people whom you know
  4. Reduce the chance of effective scrutiny and accountability at a time when we need it most
    1. Due to the massively increased workload on councillors with bigger, more complex reports for fewer councillors
    2. SO less time and chance of calling out the problems and poor behaviours that need improving – things could slip through the net unchallenged

To counter this, and so prevent democracy being eroded, it is very important that you tell the Boundary Commission;

  • What you regard as your community locally and
  • Express any concerns about the proposals could affect representation, accountability and services that you benefit from
  • You can off course say more than this.

Feel free to use our guide below together with the information at the Boundary Commission’s website and its dedicated pages to RBWM.

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“Get in touch” – Make sure you say something

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Boundary Commission guidance for you – click to download

How to have your say

Go to the Boundary Commission’s dedicated RBWM webpages at

When preparing your response, remember to;

  • Give your reasoning
    • I/We will publish the responses of others to help you
  • Make it relevant
    • Include the three main criteria of the Boundary Commission, as set out below
  • Get in touch
    • Make sure you say something
    • Respond by 4 December 2017

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RBWM’s proposed new boundaries in Windsor, combined and annotated to show irregularities

RBWM’s proposed ward maps of Windsor

RBWM’s proposed new boundaries in Windsor, combined and annotated to show irregularities

 

 

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Key issues for the Boundary Commission (for you to include)

The Boundary Commission states that key issues to consider are..

  • Delivering electoral equality for local voters
    1. This means ensuring that each local councillor represents roughly the same number of people so that the value of your vote is the same regardless of where you live in the local authority area.
    2. In other words, the same number of voters per councilor irrespective of the needs of an area
  • Reflecting the interests and identities of local communities
    1. This means establishing electoral arrangements which, as far as possible, maintain local ties and where boundaries are easily identifiable.
  • Promoting effective and convenient local government
    1. This means ensuring that the new wards or electoral divisions can be represented effectively by their elected representative(s) and that the new electoral arrangements as a whole allow the local authority to conduct its business effectively.
    2. In addition, we must also ensure that the pattern of wards reflects the electoral cycle of the council as shown below…

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This looks like a divide and control strategy but, you can intervene

Key concerns that affect residents and the quality of democracy

  • Dedworth is being split up with a key area of Sawyers Close and Vale Road, being amalgamated with the distinctly different Clewer & Clewer Village i.e. separated from the rest of Dedworth including Smiths Lane and the pubs, clubs, churches & Dedworth schools
  • The new names do not reflect the community – let’s make things better!
  • The Boundary Commission’s first rule of “equality” will fail (you) in the 2019 elections as voter numbers will be very different from the guestimated 2023 figures being used for calculations.
  • West Windsor councilors could be overloaded as voter numbers could be far higher due to the substantial development, not included in the figures, already underway in West Windsor, key developments at locations such as Teradyne, Sandown House, Squash Club et… so, Dedworth’s Independent/WWRA Councillors possibly being further overloaded
  • Councillors workload, especially that of the critical Indpenendents who actually check things, will vastly increase as Councillor numbers will reduce by 25% BUT the stuff they check i.e. what the council is responsible for, doesn’t change
  • There will be too much to do and too little time so, reports will not be effectively scrutinized so, poor decisions and behaviour are more likely to go un-noticed.
  • The Council is outsourcing more and more services through complex arrangements with joint venture companies (with their own legal interests) over which Councillors have no direct influence i.e. it will be more difficult to get information and to understand the intricacies and implications of these new Joint Ventures especially with fewer Councillors
  • Creating wards of unrelated communities could prevent local people from being elected as they would not be known in the other areas. This would allow the vote of a local Independents (for each community) to be split and so national political party candidates to be elected, who are necessarily more focused on their party and not you
  • Creating wards of unrelated communities will probably result in one of more communities not being effectively represented by people who understand them and are from their community i.e. some communities could be favoured over you.
  • This looks like a divide and control strategy but, you can intervene

 

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Remember

  1. The Boundary Commission officers have said to us that they want to hear from you
  2. Tell them about your community and the services you use
  3. Tell the Boundary commission by 4 December 2017
  4. Tell them on-line at https://consultation.lgbce.org.uk/node/10380
  5. Email them: reviews@lgbce.org.uk
  6. The fight for justice and good goes on every year

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Copies of WWRA & Cllr Da Costa’s submissions, to consider

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Accountably yours,

Wisdom

WWRA Councillor, Wisdom Da Costa, Clewer North, Windsor

 

 

Caveat

This post is part of Cllr Wisdom Da Costa’s regular series of Blogs to inform and empower local residents; as he promised in his election leaflet

The views expressed in this article are not necessarily the views of the West Windsor Residents Association (WWRA).