Review of polling stations across Telford and Wrekin set to start this month

Telford & Wrekin Council has already addressed the boundaries of a new patchwork of town and parish councils across the borough.

Next on the agenda is a review of all the polling districts and stations.

The next-all out elections in the borough will be in May of 2027 and the plan is to have the new arrangements in place before then.

There are currently 102 polling districts in the borough as a whole: 56 in the Telford parliamentary constituency and 46 in The Wrekin.

The council’s boundary review committee is set to meet next Wednesday (February 11) to start the process of an interim review. The last five-yearly statutory review was held in November 2023.

A public consultation to ask members of the public for their views is set to be held from February 23 to April 6 before the full council is asked to adopt changes.

Council officers are set to tell councillors that they try to avoid the use of schools or temporary buildings as polling stations wherever possible.

But, they added: “Regrettably, given the need to provide a polling station in every polling district, there are some occasions when the use of schools or Portakabins is unavoidable due to a lack of suitable buildings in those areas.

“This interim review provides us with a further opportunity to address those

instances where we haven’t been able to avoid their use.

“It should be noted, however, that during some elections the planned polling stations have not been available for use and, therefore, it has been necessary to revert to either a school building or the use of a [portable building] on a temporary basis.”

Officials say that the cost of the review will be delivered from existing budgets.