Larger Eastleigh Town Council takes shape
Recommendations on wards and councillor numbers endorsed
Borough Councillors have endorsed recommendations to create a larger decision-making body for the centre of Eastleigh town and the area to the immediate north.
The community governance review (CGR) to merge the existing Eastleigh Town Council and Boyatt Wood Parish Council was given the go-ahead over the summer following detailed public consultation that attracted more than 600 responses.
Residents’ and stakeholders’ views were then sought on the number of councillors and the boundaries and makeup of electoral wards for the council, which represents the first tier of local democracy.
The recommendations will go to the meeting of the Full Council on 17 November and, if agreed, the newly created authority will be named Eastleigh Town Council. It will have 22 councillors across seven wards. The names of the wards are Blenheim and Barton Park; Boyatt Wood East; Boyatt Wood West; Brookwood; Cable; Chestnut, and Nightingale and North Stoneham.
Strengthening town and parish councils means that householders are represented by elected councillors who are responsible for more tightly drawn local areas than the much larger unitary authorities that will be introduced under Local Government Reorganisation (LGR).
The election for seats on the new council will take place next year (May 2026).