Polling Districts Review 2023
Consultation has concluded
Each local authority is required to carry out reviews of the Polling Districts and Polling Places in its area.
The Electoral Registration and Administration Act 2013 requires the Council to conduct a review of the Borough’s polling districts and polling places every five years. The Council is also required to keep polling arrangements under review. A full review must be conducted between 1 October 2023 and 28 February 2025.
The review has been timed to take place as soon as possible within the given period as there are a combination of significant boundary changes across Maidstone Borough:
- Parliamentary Constituencies – these have been changed from 2 parliamentary constituencies to 3 parliamentary constituencies across Maidstone Borough as a result of the Boundary Commission for England’s review (see here for further information)
- Maidstone Borough Council Ward Boundaries (and some parish wards) – these have changed from 26 wards to 22 wards as a result of the Local Government Boundary Commission for England’s review (see here for further information)
- Parish Boundaries have changed as a result of Maidstone Borough Council’s Community Governance Review (see here for further information)
The new 2023/24 electoral register will be published on 1 December 2023 ahead of any UK Parliamentary Election that may be called, and the scheduled whole Maidstone Borough Council and Parish Council elections scheduled for May 2024.
What the Review Covers
The review covers the boundaries of polling districts and the locations of designated polling places. A Council’s area is divided into polling districts, one or more polling districts can make up a ward.
A polling district is a geographical area created by the sub-division of a UK Parliamentary constituency for the purposes of a UK Parliamentary election.
To determine polling districts a parish must not be in a polling district which has a part of either a different parish within it, or any un-parished part of the local authority area within it, unless special circumstances apply.
In practice separate polling districts are used for groups of electors with eligibility for different elections (for example voting in the same ward, but different parish). Relevant elections to consider when grouping electors are:
- UK Parliamentary Constituency
- County Division
- Borough Ward
- Parish and Parish Ward
A polling place is the building or area in which polling stations will be selected by the (Acting) Returning Officer. A polling place within a polling district must be designated so that polling stations are within easy reach of all electors from across the polling district(s).
The suitability of a polling place is assessed for its ability to hold one or more polling stations including accessibility, facilities for voters and, in particular, for those with a disability.
A polling station is the room or area within the polling place where voting takes place. Unlike polling districts and polling places which are fixed by the local authority (and part of this review), polling stations are chosen by the (Acting) Returning Officer for the election (and not part of this review).
Please Note - Community Governance Review Outcome
The Community Governance Review outcome has not yet been implemented as permission for a number of changes is required from the Local Government Boundary Commission for England. That permission is expected to be given during the review. Therefore, the proposals, particularly for polling districts, assume that consent will be given. In the event that consent is not given some polling districts will need to be split into smaller polling districts out of necessity.
How to get involved
Amongst those being consulted are the (Acting) Returning Officer, Parish Councillors, Ward Councillors, County Councillors, Local political associations, Local Members of Parliament, The Police & Crime Commissioner for Kent, and Disability Groups, but everyone can comment on their area or make suggestions.
The review commences on 10 October 2023 and the official Notice has been published. This Notice is displayed at the following locations, and it is also available on the Council’s website:-
| Maidstone House King Street Maidstone, Kent ME15 6JQ | Maidstone Town Hall Middle Row, High Street Maidstone, Kent ME14 1TF |
Scroll down to view the proposals by ward and give your feedback.
Surveys take 4 -8 minutes to complete.
Surveys close: 7 November 2023.
What happens next
All submissions must be made by 7 November 2023. The (Acting) Returning Officer’s comments will be published and available to view, alongside relevant maps, at Maidstone House as well as on the Council’s website.
At the end of this consultation, on 7 November 2023, all comments received will be considered alongside the draft proposals and a final report prepared and put before Extraordinary Council on 29 November 2023.
The final proposals, if approved, will be available to view on the Council’s website, at Maidstone House and at the Town Hall, Maidstone.
Please note part of the Parliamentary Constituencies that fall within the local authority administrative area of Ashford Borough Council, and Swale Borough Council, Tonbridge and Malling Borough Council and Tunbridge Wells Borough Council are not detailed on this Council’s website. Please contact the relevant council directly.
