Significant differences will be in place for Worcester City Council elections when the polls open in May 2024.
Major changes will be made to the electoral ward boundaries, following a review by the Local Government Boundary Commission for England (LGBCE). The LGBCE’s recommendations are currently awaiting Parliamentary assent.
This means that some residents will be voting in a different ward to the one they last cast their vote in.
The LGBCE has recommended that the number of city councillors remains at 35 but that these are split across 16 wards, instead of the current 15.
The main changes to Worcester’s electoral wards are:
- The current Cathedral ward will be split in two
- The current Gorse Hill and Warndon wards will be merged
- The boundary between the current wards of Bedwardine and St John are being significantly changed to allow the creation of a new ward
Some wards are also being renamed, and there are minor boundary changes between most of the remaining wards.
Further information is available on the LGBCE website.
Explore the changes to the ward boundaries in the interactive map
All-out elections
Worcester City Council has also, following a public consultation, resolved to adopt a new system for whole-council elections from May 2024. This will replace the current system, whereby one-third of councillors are elected in each of three years out of a four-year period, with one in which all councillors are elected once every four years.
This process has been conducted in line with section 34 of the Local Government and Public Involvement in Health Act 2007.