Community Governance Review

A Community Governance Review (CGR) provides an opportunity to put in place strong, clearly defined boundaries, which reflect local identities and facilitate effective and convenient local government. It can take place for the whole or individual parts of the district to consider one or more of the following:

• Creating, merging, altering or abolishing parishes and towns
• The naming of parishes and the style of new parishes/town councils
• Electoral arrangements for parishes/town councils including:
  - the ordinary year of election
  - the number of councillors to be elected; and
  - the warding (if any) of the parish/town councils
• Grouping parishes under a common parish council or de-grouping parishes.

We are required to ensure that community governance within the area under review will be:

• Reflective of the identities and interests of the community in that area; and
• Effective and convenient
• In doing so, the CGR is required to take account of:
• The impact of community governance arrangements on community cohesion; and
• The size, population and boundaries of a local community or parish and town council.

We're asking the public, parish councils and any interested parties whether they feel their communities are suitably represented and whether there should be any changes made to current governance arrangements.

The council is required to consult with local government electors in  East Hertfordshire as well as other individuals and organisations who have an interest in the review. It is the responsibility of the council to undertake Community Governance Reviews under the provisions of the Local Government and Public Involvement in Health Act 2007.

What the review covers

The community governance review will look at the whole of the district and can consider:

• boundary alterations between existing parishes and towns
• creating, merging, altering or abolishing parishes
• the name of parishes and towns
• electoral arrangements
• grouping parishes under a common parish council or de-grouping parishes
• the size of a council

Notice of a Community Governance Review 

Terms of reference

The Terms of Reference for the Community Governance Review are available here.
The report was considered at the Full Council meeting on 16 October 2024. 
Maps of the current town and parish boundaries can be found here.

Draft recommendations 

Following the close of the first stage of the review on 6 January 2025, the Community Governance Review working group met to consider the submissions and proposals put forward and to make their recommendations to be considered by Full Council on 26 February 2025. 

A copy of the report considered by the Council can be view here and a summary of draft the proposals can be seen here.

Have your say

The consultation on the draft recommendations has now closed. All responses will be presented to the Community Governance Review working group to form the final recommendations which will be presented to the Council in July 2025. 

Timetable

The indicative timetable for the review is below. Depending on local circumstances some dates may change, although implementation ahead of May 2026 is anticipated.