Community Governance Review - Draft Recommendation 2(h) - Corby, Parish Wards

Overview

Summary of Proposal

The full response submitted by Corby Town Council has the submission ref: CGR 10. Response from a local resident copied below.

The Town Council recommends that the internal parish ward boundaries are changed. Their proposal recommends that the four existing wards are redefined to create 5 additional wards. The town council proposes there should be 9 parish wards in total.

The Town Council suggests the proposed new wards are configured as follows:

• Corby West - the town council proposes dividing this ward into three separate parish wards with boundaries predominantly following Studfall Avenue and Willowbrook Road. The proposal also recommends a change to the external boundary to take in part of Cottingham Parish on the western side of Uppingham Road.
• Kingswood – the recommendation from the Town Council is to divide this ward into two separate parish wards with a boundary running along Jubilee Avenue, Gainsborough Road and Colyer Avenue.
• Lloyds – the proposed boundary for this ward incorporates the proposed changes to the eastern Corby parish boundary with the adjoining parishes. It also realigns the internal parish ward boundary with properties on Rockingham Road before following the line of the railway.
• Oakley – The proposal recommends splitting the ward into two separate parish wards. One covering the Great Oakley area and the other covering the Oakley Vale estate.

New Ward for West Corby Sustainable Urban Extension (SUE) – a new ward is proposed for the West Corby SUE development area, utilising the A6003 as the internal boundary with Kingswood Ward. A revised external boundary with the parish of Middleton is also proposed (proposal ref: Corby Town Council Proposal Ref: Corby_Middleton).

View the full submission (CGR 10, page 1) by Corby Town Council. 

View a map (Draft Recommendation 2h, page 7) of the proposal.

Observations

The above suggestions for new parish wards result in multiple instances of parish wards being split by NNC electoral areas. Recommendations amending the boundaries should be mindful of Local Government Boundary Commission for England (LGBCE) guidance regarding the coterminosity of principal area and parish ward boundaries and the terms of reference for the review. Creating parish wards that are split by principal area electoral boundaries is not consistent with LGBCE guidance.

Retaining the same boundaries as the North Northamptonshire Council ward boundaries would ensure coterminosity of boundaries. Any minor adjustments could be presented as consequential amendments to the LGBCE for consideration.

Internal parish ward boundaries could be reconfigured to create smaller wards that more accurately reflect local communities, whilst still ensuring coterminosity with NNC ward boundaries.

Representation from a local resident: Oakley and Danesholme should be totally separate from the rest of Corby, the population, culture, identity and location are similar to Priors Hall ie nothing in common with mainstream Corby.

While the Town Council submitted proposals to create additional parish wards, no recommendations were made regarding the naming of these wards. During informal discussions following the close of the consultation period, it was suggested that ward names reflecting the individual estates within the town would provide a more meaningful and recognisable identity for local electors.

Draft Recommendation (Recommendation 2h) - Corby Parish Wards

h) That the warding pattern for Corby Town Council be as per the map attached at Appendix D be taken forward for further consultation.

(i) Representations are sought in respect of potential ward names and alternative warding pattern configurations that do not result in parish wards being split by North Northamptonshire Council ward boundaries.

(Please note that a new ward for Corby West SUE was not recommended by Democracy and Standards Committee on 20 July 2027)

Reason(s) for recommendations - A warding pattern comprising smaller parish wards within the boundaries of the existing North Northamptonshire Council wards would more accurately reflect established community identities and local interests, including those highlighted in a resident’s representation regarding the arrangements for Oakley and Danesholme. Such a warding pattern would also support effective and convenient local governance by providing more focused representation that aligns closely with recognised communities.

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