Consultation for new town council following petition

A petition to create a town council in Nottinghamshire has sparked a public consultation.

Campaigners had called for the creation of a town council in West Bridgford to give it a "loud and clear" voice ahead of an overhaul of councils across the country, which has since been paused by the government for a review.

The petition was signed by more than 2,800 residents, which prompted a community governance review to determine whether a new parish and associated town council should be created.

Rushcliffe Borough Council, which accepted the petition at a full council meeting on Thursday, said the first round of consultation would begin in November, with a decision due in 2027.

The West Bridgford Town Council Group, which was behind the campaign, needed 7.5%, or 2,385 electors, to trigger a review, the council said.

West Bridgford previously had an urban district council, which was abolished in 1974 when the borough council was created, while surrounding communities retained their town and parish councils.

Under plans announced in July as part of local government reorganisation (LGR), a new Greater Nottingham council would cover Nottingham and parts of Broxtowe, Gedling and Rushcliffe.

A second Nottinghamshire council would serve the remainder of Broxtowe, Gedling and Rushcliffe, alongside Ashfield, Bassetlaw, Mansfield and Newark and Sherwood.

These changes were scheduled to take effect in 2028, but the timeline is now unclear following the government's decision to pause and review LGR.

Steve Calvert, Labour councillor for the borough council and spokesperson for the campaign group, previously said some residents felt it was "not fair" that the suburb had not retained its smaller local authority.

He added reviving the idea of a town council was the "best way" of having a voice when West Bridgford became part of a larger authority.

Calvert, who represents the Abbey ward, previously said: "While West Bridgford has its own distinctiveness, it could be enhanced considerably by having a town council that could pull together the community groups and have a bit more creativity in the services they provide, so there are a lot of positives.

"But the real catalyst is the changes to local government, so [the town council] would certainly protect and enhance that distinctiveness."

However, the borough council, which was not in support of the bid, previously said a consultation would have "cost factors" that would affect taxpayers, and said the creation of a town council would also be costly.

Jonathan Wheeler, a Conservative councillor representing Gamston, said he believed the consideration of a town council was "premature".

"At the moment, I don't think now is the right time to be talking about a town council because we have the uncertainty of local government reorganisation," he said.

The councillor, who was also opposed to the LGR plans, said it was important to ensure residents knew the "full facts" about what a town council could mean, including the costs that could incur.

He added: "It's important to say not a single town council [in Rushcliffe] had elections in 2023 because not enough people put themselves forward to be town councillors and many others didn't have elections before that in 2019."

Wheeler said a town council could lead to a "potential democratic deficit", however he said he understood why people might want to explore the idea.

In a statement, the borough council said: "There will be two stages of consultation over the next 12 months with a decision at council in September 2027.

"Given the significance of this decision, good community engagement will be key with a Councillor Working Group to lead on the review and ultimately make a recommendation to full council."

Listen to BBC Radio Nottingham on Sounds and follow BBC Nottingham on Facebook, on X, or on Instagram. Send your story ideas to eastmidsnews@bbc.co.uk or via WhatsApp on 0808 100 2210.