Agenda Item No____15_________
Review of polling arrangements for Gunthorpe Appeal 2012
Summary:
The Returning Officer is required every four years to undertake a
review of polling districts and polling places within the Council’s
administrative boundaries and to make any recommendations for
change. In 2011 the Returning Officer recommended that the
Council approve the merger of polling districts UN4 Gunthorpe
(North) and UM4 Gunthorpe (South) to make one polling district
of UM4 Gunthorpe. This recommendation was agreed by Full
Council on 19 October 2011.
Following the conclusion of the polling review in 2011 the
Electoral Commission received an appeal from Gunthorpe Parish
Council regarding the closure of the polling place and station in
the polling district of UN4 Gunthorpe (North).
The Returning Officer has reviewed the representation and
listened to the Parish Council regarding the current provision
and location of the one polling station within Gunthorpe Parish.
She considers it most important that electors have accessibility
to a polling station. As a result of the review the Returning Officer
is willing to re-instate the polling place and polling station as
requested by Gunthorpe Parish Council in UN4 Gunthorpe
(North) and recommends that the Council agrees to re-instate the
polling districts of UN4 Gunthorpe (North) and UM4 Gunthorpe
(South) to enable this to happen.
Conclusions:
The Returning Officer has shared the proposed change with the
Polling Review Working Group, Cabinet Member Tom Fitzpatrick, and
the Local Member for Wensum Ann Green.
Recommendations:
Council is RECOMMENDED to approve the following change of
Polling Districts, effective from 16 October 2012:
• Polling District UM4 Gunthorpe (South) and Polling District UN4
Gunthorpe North (Bale) be re-instated
and to NOTE that the Polling Places and Stations will be as follows:
UM4 Gunthorpe (South) - Gunthorpe Village Institute, Swanton Road,
Gunthorpe and
UM5 Gunthorpe (North) - Bale Village Hall, Sharrington Road, Bale
The electors in the re-instated polling districts of UN4 Gunthorpe
(North) and UM4 Gunthorpe (South) will be designated to vote in
the relevant re-instated polling places and stations as above.
Cabinet member(s):
Ward(s) affected:
Councillor Tom Fitzpatrick
Wensum
Suzanne Taylor, Electoral Services Manager
01263 516046
suzanne.taylor@north-norfolk.gov.uk
Contact Officer, telephone number,
and e-mail:
Introduction
1.
The Electoral Administration Act 2006 (EAA 2006) introduced for all polling districts and
polling places to be reviewed by each Council by the end of 2007 and then every 4 years
thereafter. Under the provisions of the Representation of the People Act 1983 it is the
Council’s duty to fix polling districts and to designate polling places within those districts
and it is the Returning Officer’s duty to determine the polling stations within the polling
places at which polling is to take place. The Council delegated the designation of polling
places to the Returning Officer (RO) in May 2008.
A polling district is a geographical sub-division of an electoral area, i.e. an area in the
constituency for which the electors vote together at the same polling place such as a UK
Parliamentary constituency, a European Parliamentary electoral region, a ward or an
electoral division. Polling districts are identified by three digits that distinguish the polling
district and that, together with the elector’s number from the register of electors for that
district, make up the elector’s distinctive and unique electoral registration number.
A polling place is a readily identifiable place within the polling district to which the
electors will go to vote. However, as there is no legal definition of what a polling place is
the area could be defined as tightly as a particular building or as widely as the entire
polling district.
A polling station is the building or part of a building where the actual process of voting
takes place. It is located within the polling place and must be designated by the
Returning Officer for the particular polling district. The extent of the polling station will
depend upon local circumstances
The review process
2. Following receipt of the appeal from Gunthorpe Parish Council to the Electoral
Commission and subsequent notification to the Returning Officer a short review was
carried out.
3. The intention is for the review to be completed in time for any alterations to be made to
polling districts in the next revised edition of the Register of Electors which is published
on 16 October 2012.
Implications stemming from the review
4. The following implications should be noted
•
Financial
The intention in the original polling review was to generate a net saving of around
£600 every four years at each district-wide election.
•
Sustainability
There are no implications regarding sustainability
•
Risk
There are no additional risk factors associated with the review.
arrangements will be publicised to ensure public awareness.
•
The revised
Equality
There are no implications regarding equality
Conclusions and recommendations
5.
The Returning Officer has shared the proposed change with the Polling Review
Working Group, Cabinet Member Tom Fitzpatrick and the Local Member for Wensum
Ann Green.
6.
Council is RECOMMENDED to approve the following change of Polling Districts,
effective from 16 October 2012:
•
Polling District UM4 Gunthorpe (South) and Polling District UN4 Gunthorpe
(North) be re-instated
and to NOTE that the Polling Places and Stations in Gunthorpe will be as follows:
UM4 Gunthorpe (South) - Gunthorpe Village Institute, Swanton Road, Gunthorpe and
UM5 Gunthorpe (North) - Bale Village Hall, Sharrington Road, Bale
The electors in the re-instated polling districts of UN4 Gunthorpe (North) and UM4
Gunthorpe (South) will be designated to vote in the re-instated polling places and stations as
above.