'Expensive, drawn out and careless': Tories blast Telford boundary reviews as council responds to ‘bureaucracy’ claim
Conservatives have criticised a review of parish and town council boundaries in Telford and Wrekin as “expensive, drawn out and careless with residents’ concerns.”
But Telford & Wrekin Council says the review is being done by using “existing council resources, with minimal costs limited to promotional materials for public drop-in sessions.”
Just days before a key meeting this Thursday (Sept 4), the Telford & Wrekin Tories claim the boundary review is a ‘mixed bag’ which has failed to address “key issues raised by local people.”
Local Conservatives Rachael Tyrrell (Priorslee) and Stephen Burrell (Edgmond) have expressed their delight at the outcome of the review for their respective wards. Priorslee is set to get its own council while Edgmond Parish Council is set not to be merged.
But Hadley Parish Councillor Stuart Parr says the council has not provided him with the cost of a previous review process in 2024. The Tory group has concluded that this “confirms what residents already suspect: that the review has already wasted money and dragged on unproductively.”
The group has also hit back at comments from Labour Deputy Leader Councillor Richard Overton (St George’s) who told a meeting that the process is “not an attack, because no-one’s actually doing anything yet to anybody. It was actually a consultation on the proposals.”
A spokesperson for the Telford & Wrekin Conservatives said this showed “why residents feel that this process is already a done deal.
“Instead of recognising the real impact these proposals could have, Labour shrugs them off as if nothing is happening. That’s not leadership, that’s just paying lip service.”
The Tories say that concerns also remain about the scale and cost of proposals in Great Dawley and Wellington.
Conservatives warn these councils risk becoming “large, expensive and unwieldy”, recreating the Urban District Councils abolished in the 1970s.
A spokesperson said: “This review must be about strengthening local communities, not building costly bureaucracies. Local accountability and value for money have to be the guiding principles. Some parish councils will remain unchanged, others will merge or disappear altogether but whatever the outcome, residents must come first, not Labour’s bureaucracy.”
But a Telford & Wrekin Council spokesperson said the review has been conducted in line with the law and even if Wellington Town Council expanded under current proposals it would still be “significantly smaller” than neighbouring Shrewsbury.
A spokesperson for the Labour controlled authority said: “The Community Governance Review has been conducted in line with legislation and guidance, considering relevant criteria while excluding matters like council tax precepts, which fall outside its scope.
“It has been delivered using existing council resources, with minimal costs limited to promotional materials for public drop-in sessions.”
The spokesperson said the consultation took place in two stages – an initial call for feedback on current arrangements, followed by a two-month consultation on proposed changes.
“Over 1,600 responses were received and considered in forming the recommendations,” they said.
“As a result, Great Dawley Town Council would gain several streets and approximately 200 electors, a 2.25 per cent increase.
“Wellington Town Council’s area would grow to around 20,200 electors—still significantly smaller than councils like Shrewsbury Town Council, which has around 76,000 electors.”
