Agenda and draft minutes

To receive any apologies for absence.

Apologies for absence were received from Councillors Roger Seabourne, Ian Morris, and Narinder Sian (Cllr Chris Mitchell substituted for Cllr Sian).

To confirm, as a correct record, the minutes of the Regulatory Services Committee meeting held on 6 December 2023.

The Committee approved the minutes of the meeting held on 6 December 2023 and authorised the Chair to sign them as a correct record.

Items of other business notified under Council Procedure Rule 30 to be announced, together with the special circumstances that justify the consideration as a matter of urgency. The Chair to rule on the admission of such items.

There was no other business.

To receive any Declarations of Interest.

There were no Declarations of Interest.

To consider a report by the Committee and Electoral Services Manager detailing the results of the 5-year statutory review of polling districts and polling places within Three Rivers District Council.

The Committee considered a report of the Returning Officer summarising the outcome of the statutory review of polling places in the Three Rivers area.

Katharine Simpson, Committee and Electoral Services Manager, presented the report. During her presentation, Ms Simpson stated that the Council’s Elections Team wished to place on record its thanks to the staff and parents of those schools that were used as polling stations.

In concluding her presentation, Ms Simpson stated that there was one additional recommendation that she wished the Committee to consider viz. given that a general election would be called within the next 12 months, that it be recommended to Full Council that, should a polling station not be available at short notice, that the Returning Officer have delegated authority to designate a suitable alternative venue as a polling station.

In the subsequent discussion, the following points were raised.

a)    Regarding the additional recommendation that the Returning Officer be given delegated authority to designate alternative venues as polling stations, it was proposed, and Agreed by Ms Simpson, that any exercise of the Returning Officer’s delegated authority, if approved by Full Council, would be carried out in consultation with Ward Councillors.

b)    Polling stations that were not within the corresponding polling district were selected on their geographical proximity to the polling district, the preference being for those polling stations to be as near to the boundary of the polling district as possible.

c)     Because there would be a general election this year, it was proposed that now was not the time to start changing polling stations as residents would be familiar with the venues that were currently used as polling stations.

d)    Regarding the use of Arnetts Hill School as a polling station, and the desire not to use schools as polling stations if possible, any alternative venue for a polling station would have a consequential detrimental effect in terms of the proximity of polling stations to the polling district for residents in Rickmansworth Town Ward and Penn & Mill End Ward.

Therefore, it was preferable to continue with the use of Arnetts Hill school as a polling station.

e)    Regarding the use of Christchurch in Chorleywood North and Sarratt Ward, it was noted that there were four separate polling stations within the building and that, during a general election when voter turnout was higher than for other elections, the polling station could become busy. However, the elections officers who had managed the venue as a polling station for many years had not expressed any concerns about its suitability as a polling station, and there had been no concerns expressed by voters about the venue’s ability to accommodate four polling stations.

f)      Regarding the proposal that, without mitigating circumstances, no more than 2,250 voters should be allocated to a single polling station, it was noted that there were three polling districts, Chorleywood South and Maple Cross; Penn and Mill End; and Gade Valley, which had polling places (Maple Cross Club, Barn Lea Hall and Tannerswood, respectively)  ...  view the full minutes text for item RG25/21