Heybridge
MALDON DISTRICT COUNCIL COMMUNITY GOVERNANCE REVIEW 2025
HEYBRIDGE PARISH
What is a Community Governance Review?
A Community Governance Review is a review of the whole or part of the District to consider one or more of the following:
- Creating, merging, altering or abolishing parishes;
- The naming of a parish and the style of a new parish (i.e. whether to call it a “village”, “community” or “neighbourhood” with the council similarly named as a “village council”, “community council” or “neighbourhood council”);
- The electoral arrangements for parishes (including council size, the number of councillors to be elected to the council, and parish warding), and
- Grouping parishes under a common parish council or de-grouping parishes.
The District Council is required to ensure that community governance within the area under review will be:
- reflective of the identities and interests of the community in that area; and
- is effective and convenient.
In doing so, the Community Governance Review is required to take into account:
- The impact of community governance arrangements on community cohesion; and
- The size, population and boundaries of a local community or parish.
The Government has emphasised that recommendations made in a Community Governance Review ought to bring about improved community engagement, more cohesive communities, better local democracy and result in more effective and convenient delivery of local services.
Why are we carrying out this Community Governance Review?
The Heybridge Parish Council has requested a review of its electoral arrangements to change the parish boundary between Heybridge and Great Totham to include the North Heybridge Garden Suburb wholly within the Parish of Heybridge. The areas affected are shown in Annex 1. The number of properties affected is 832.
What is the area the subject of this Review?
The parishes of Heybridge and Great Totham are located across the Heybridge East, Heybridge West and Great Totham Wards of Maldon District Council. They are also located within the Heybridge and Tollesbury Electoral Division of Essex County Council and form part of the Maldon Parliamentary Constituency.
What are we consulting on?
We are consulting the public on the Parish Council’s request referred to above, which is -
To change the parish boundary between Heybridge and Great Totham to include the North Heybridge Garden Suburb wholly within the West Ward of the Parish of Heybridge.
If approved, it is proposed that the change will come into effect on the date of the next scheduled Parish Council elections on 7 May 2027.
For the purposes of this review, we are also required by law to make recommendations on other related “electoral arrangements” in respect of Heybridge Parish Council, as follows:
- the year in which ordinary elections of parish councillors are to be held;
- the division (or not) of the parish into wards for the purpose of electing parish councillors;
- the number and boundaries of any such wards;
- the number of parish councillors to be elected for any such ward;
- the name of any such ward.
In relation to (a) above, Maldon District Council proposes that no change be made to the year of ordinary elections, as they currently coincide with District Council elections and elections to other Parish Councils in the District.
In relation to (b) to (e) above, the Parish of Heybridge is already warded for electoral purposes. The District Council proposes that, irrespective of the outcome of this community governance review, no change be made to the existing warding arrangements..
We would therefore like to know what YOU think of the proposals to:
-
to change the parish boundary between Heybridge and Great Totham to include the North Heybridge Garden Suburb wholly within the West Ward of the Parish of Heybridge; and
-
to make no other changes to the electoral arrangements for Heybridge Parish including the existing warding arrangements.
Electorate Forecast
For the purpose of this review, account has been taken of the potential increase in electorate by 1500 arising from the number of properties and proposed to be added to the Parish of Heybridge which represents the current planned growth of Heybridge in this particular location.
How to let us know your views
Any representations on this matter above must be in writing and should be sent to:
Claire Hawken
Head of Elections and Democratic Services
Maldon District Council
Princes Road
Maldon
Essex CM9 5DL
by no later than 5pm on 23 December 2025
Alternatively, you may send your representations by email to: elections@maldon.gov.uk
Please ensure that you state your name and address clearly on any representations submitted. Please note that any submissions received after 5pm on 23 December 2025, or any representations submitted anonymously, will not be taken into account.
Please also note that the consultation stages of a Community Governance Review are public consultations. In the interests of openness and transparency, the Council will make available for public inspection full copies of all representations it takes into account as part of this review.
What happens next?
In arriving at its final recommendations, the District Council will take account of the views of local people and any other person or body who appears to have an interest in the Review by judging them against the criteria set out in the Local Government and Public Involvement in Health Act 2007 and associated government guidance.
The District Council will take steps to notify consultees of the outcome of the review by publishing all decisions taken, together with reasons, on the Council’s website (and ask Heybridge Parish Council to publish the same on their website), through general press releases, and by placing key documents on public deposit at the District Council’s offices and with the Parish Council.
If any change to the electoral arrangements for Heybridge Parish Council is approved, a Community Governance Reorganisation Order will be made to give effect to the change.
A timetable for the Community Governance Review
A Community Governance Review must, by law, be concluded within a 12-month period which in this instance runs from when the terms of reference of the Review have been published. The Review will be concluded when the District Council publishes its final recommendations. The timetable for this Community Governance Review is as follows
5 June 2025 – District Council agreed the principle of instigating a Review.
28 October 2025 - District Council published Terms of Reference and timetable.
Eight-week consultation period begins with local people and interested parties.
23 December 2025- Closing date for consultation period.
22 January 2026 – Performance Governance and Audit Committee to consider consultation submissions and publish final recommendations.
Properties affected shown in blue
