Change to consultation plans

     

Everyone on the electoral roll in the parishes of New Romney and Lydd will be given a chance to have their say about the creation of a separate parish for Greatstone.

Shepway District Council, which is carrying out a community governance review, has halted its current public consultation and will be looking at ways of ensuring every elector has a chance to make their views known.

The council sent questionnaires to every home likely be affected by the creation of a new parish council in September but has decided instead to look at giving all electors a say.

Chief Executive, Alistair Stewart, said the public consultation was a vital part of the governance review process and it was important for the council to get it right.

"I acknowledge that the original method we chose to gauge public opinion was not robust enough. A few people had told us they were unhappy about the process and I decided to call a halt to it. The council will now be looking at ways it can give everyone on the electoral roll a chance to have a say. A new electoral register is due to be published in the next few weeks which give us the most up-to-date information."

A report will be prepared for a meeting of the Personnel and General Purposes Committee outlining options for the new consultation.

Councils like Shepway now have the responsibility to carry out reviews of parish councils. A final decision on whether or not a new parish council is created for Greatstone will be made by a full Shepway Council meeting.