Electoral wards are to change under new set-up
A NUMBER of electoral wards in Bridgend county borough are set to fall after new arrangements were approved by the Welsh Government.
The number of wards will be reduced from 39 to 28, with 15 of those being multi-member wards, as proposed by the Local Democracy and Boundary Commission for Wales - a government-sponsored body that sets the boundaries of local councils.
Chief executive of the commission Shereen Williams said: “I’m delighted that the Welsh Government has accepted these recommendations with only minor modifications. These changes will mean greater electoral parity for the people of Bridgend.”
As part of the new set-up, the number of councillors in Bridgend will decrease by three, leaving the authority with 51 instead of 54 members.
This leaves an average of 2,096 electors per councillor.
The commission has reviewed the boundaries of each of Wales’ 22 local authorities in a bid to make them more democratic. The boundary changes will take place from the 2022 local government elections.
Under the new system in Bridgend, seven wards will elect two councillors while eight wards will elect three.
The nine retained wards that will see no changes under the reforms are:
Aberkenfig
Nant-y-moel
Blackmill
Ogmore Vale
Llangynwyd
Oldcastle
Maesteg East
Pen-y-fai
Maesteg West
Meanwhile Vale of Glamorgan council will expand in May next year with seven extra councillors bringing the total to 54.
Ward boundaries in the Vale were recently adjusted to make up for a changing population across the district.
The changes will affect 13 wards in the Vale, while the other 11 wards will remain unchanged. The changes are as follows.
St Augustine’s in Penarth will gain a third councillor. In Barry, Baruc will gain a third councillor while Cadoc will gain a fourth. St Athan will gain a second councillor.
The current Llandow/Ewenny ward includes Colwinston and Llangan, and is represented by one councillor. This ward will lose Ewenny and remain with just one councillor.
The current Llantwit Major ward includes Llanmaes and St Donats and is represented by four councillors. This ward would lose St Donats but remain with four councillors.
The current St Bride’s Major ward includes Wick and is represented by one councillor. This ward would expand to also include Ewenny and St Donats, and gain a second councillor.
The current Peterston-super-Ely ward includes Pendoylan, St Georgessuper-Ely and Welsh St Donats, and is represented by one councillor. This ward would lose St Georges-superEly and stay with just one councillor.
The current Rhoose ward includes Llancarfan, and is represented by two councillors. This ward would lose Llancarfan, but gain a third councillor.
The current Wenvoe ward includes St Nicholas and Bonvilston, and is represented by one councillor. This ward would lose St Nicholas and Bonvilston, and remain with one councillor.
A new ward would be formed called St Nicholas and Llancarfan, also including Bonvilston and St Georgessuper-Ely. This ward would be represented by one councillor.