Burnley Council to be subject of boundary review

The number of councillors and the political map in another East Lancashire borough is to be reviewed.

The Local Government Boundary Commission for England is set to examine the size and ward make up of Burnley Council.

The review will look at:

* total number of councillors needed to run the authority efficiently;

* the number of wards;

* number of councillors per ward;

* ward boundaries; and

* ward names.

The review, expected to be officially launched shortly, would take effect at the local elections in May 2027.

Burnley currently has 45 councillors across 15 three member wards.

The borough’s last electoral and boundary review to place in 2000.

It is the latest East Lancashire borough to be reviewed since 2017.

A similar review is currently under way in Hyndburn following similar exercises in Blackburn with Darwen, the Ribble Valley, Pendle and Rossendale in a bid to make sure each vote in local elections carries equal weight.

Burnley Council’s Tory group will move a motion at the authority’s Full Council meeting on December 4 asking for the review to consider replacing the current system of electing one third of councillors for a four-year period with annual polls and the fourth year left without borough elections.

Lancashire County Council elections normally take place in the ‘fallow’ year.

Instead they want Burnley council and the boundary commission to look at electing every councillor in an ‘all-out’ election every four years to save money.

Under the proposed review there would have to be all-out elections on the new ward map in May 2027.

Meetings in preparation for the review have already started with all councillors briefed earlier this month.

Key dates in the boundary commission review include work to decide on the size of the council running until July next year, the development of new ward boundaries of the council taking place from July 22 to September 29 2025, before draft recommendations are published on January 13 2026 for a public consultation running March 23.

The commission will publish its final recommendations report and new ward map on June 30 2026 so the necessary Parliamentary procedures can take place in time for elections on the new boundaries in May 2027.

Conservative group deputy leader Cllr Jamie McGowan who is proposing the all-out election motion, said: “The proposed change would see all councillors elected in a single year rather than spread over four years.

“The move comes as the Local Government Boundary Commission for England starts a review into wards sizes with a shake-up of the boundaries that elect local councillors.

“Under plans set out to councillors this month, there will be all out elections to elect the whole council in 2027 regardless.

“Under the current electoral cycle, Burnley Council spends approx. £450,000 on borough elections every four years. These new proposals would reduce the cost to £150,000 over the same period.

“It’s more than just about the £300,000 saving we would see by making this change. It’s about bringing us in line with how other local authorities are run.

There are some big changes potentially coming down the line with local council boundaries up for review and so if we are to do this then now is the time.”

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