Public Consultation

Review of Polling Districts and Polling Places

 

INTRODUCTION

 

Following each electoral event, the Returning Officer for the North Ayrshire Voting Area reviews all comments received from Electors, Candidates, Agents, Election staff and special interest groups and, where necessary, recommendations are made to North Ayrshire Council to change Polling Districts and Polling Places.

 

The Returning Officer is, however, required to undertake a more formal review of Polling Districts and Polling Places in the North Ayrshire voting every five years.  The Returning Officer has confirmed that the next formal review will commence on Monday 2 October 2023.

 

REVIEW TIMETABLE AND FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS

 

The Returning Officer is obliged to report any proposed changes and seek agreement from North Ayrshire Council.   The timetable for the review is therefore outlined below:

 

Notice of Review Published on Council Website and via Social Media Channels	Monday 2 October 2023
Notice of Review Published in Local Press	Week commencing Monday 2 October 2023
Public Consultation Opens	Monday 2 October 2023
Public Consultation Closes	Friday 30 November 2023
Returning Officer considers feedback from Public Consultation	November 2023 - February 2024
Final Consultation Opens	Friday 19 January 2024
Final Consultation Closes	Friday 9 February 2024
Returning Officer reports proposed changes and seeks approval from North Ayrshire Council	March 2024
Publication of Electoral Register	Scheduled publication – December 2024
Revised Polling Arrangements come in to force	First electoral event following Council approval.

 

The Returning Officer’s proposals are detailed below.  You can find out more about Polling Districts, Polling Places and this review by reading our Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs).

 

RETURNING OFFICER’S PROPOSALS

 

The Returning Officer is NOT currently proposing any changes to Polling Districts as part of this review. 

 

The Returning Officer is, however, proposing changes to some Polling Places.  This is due to some buildings currently utilised as Polling Places no longer being available.  The Returning Officer is also keen that, as far as possible, schools should remain open on Polling Day so as not to disrupt education provision. However, this may not always be possible due to a lack of alternative buildings in the immediate vicinity or due to the size and layout of a particular school.

The following table provides a summary of proposed changes by Ward.

 

Ward 1: North Coast		1 proposed change (Assessment)
Ward 2: Garnock Valley		1 proposed change (Assessment)
Ward 3: Ardrossan		No changes proposed.
Ward 4: Arran		No changes proposed.
Ward 5: Saltcoats and Stevenston		1 proposed change. (Assessment)
Ward 6: Kilwinning		No changes proposed.
Ward 7: Irvine West		No changes proposed.
Ward 8: Irvine East		No changes proposed.
Ward 9: Irvine South		No changes proposed.

 

Following the Returning Officer’s full consultation on Polling Districts and Polling Places which took place from 2 October 2023 to 30 November 2023, there have been two amendments to the initial proposals to polling places.  The proposals for change are as follows:

Current Polling Place	Proposed Polling Place
Kilbirnie Auld Kirk Hall, 2 Kirkland Road, Kilbirnie KA25 6HS	Ladeside Pavilion, 30 Kirkland Rd, Kilbirnie KA25 6HU
High Kirk Hall, 2A High Road, Stevenston KA20 3DN	Stevenston Library, 1 Main Street, Stevenston KA20 3AB

 

There are no changes to any of the Polling Districts.  Full details of the Polling Place Review can be seen below.

All views will be considered by the Council and should be returned either by email to elections@north-ayrshire.gov.uk or in writing to The Returning Officer, Chief Executive’s Office, North Ayrshire Council, Cunninghame House, Irvine, KA12 8EE.   The closing date for responses will be 4.30 p.m. Friday 9 February 2024.

Full details of the Returning Officer’s proposals are provided in the table of proposals.

 

In considering the suitability of potential premises to be used for Polling purposes, guidance issued by The Electoral Commission has been used.   The evaluation checklist for each proposed new Polling Place has been published.  Polling Places must be accessible for voters with disabilities and should either have either level access, a permanent ramped access or be capable of having a temporary ramp installed. 

 

Polling Places also require to have adequate internal and external lighting.  They should have sufficient space to display guidance notices and for motorised wheelchair manoeuvrability.  All of our Polling Stations already have both high and low level polling booths.  It is preferable if there is space for vehicle parking for disabled people.   The premises also require to have kitchen and toilet facilities for staff on duty on Polling Day.  The premises need to be available, usually exclusively, on Polling Day.

 

Following the consultation, the ​​​​representations and submission from the Returning Officer can be found below:

Representations
Submission by the Returning Officer

 

NEXT SCHEDULED POLL

 

The next scheduled Poll is the UK Parliamentary Election the date of which is still to be confirmed.

 

NOTE: By-elections may occur at any time and the Poll usually takes place within three months of the date of the vacancy occurring.

 

APPEALS AGAINST THE DECISION OF NORTH AYRSHIRE COUNCIL

 

Following approval of the new Polling Arrangements, an appeal can only be made on the grounds that the local authority’s review did not:

 

• meet the reasonable requirements of electors in the constituency
• take sufficient account of disabled access to polling places

RIGHT TO APPEAL

 

Following a review, certain persons have a right to appeal:

 

• 30 or more electors in the constituency in which the polling district and/or polling plan that is the subject of the appeal is situated
• a person who made representations under Schedule A1 to the Representation of the People Act 1983. This includes an elector in a constituency in the local authority’s area who previously made representations to the local authority
• a person who is not an elector in a constituency in the authority’s area but who The Electoral Commission thinks has either sufficient interest in disabled access to Polling Places in the area or particular expertise in disabled access to premises and facilities

Appeals should be made directly to the Electoral Commission.

 

If you are one of the persons mentioned above and would like to make an appeal which falls within one or both the grounds mentioned above, you can send your appeal to:

 

Legal Counsel
The Electoral Commission
3 Bunhill Row
London EC1Y 8YZ
Tel: 020 7271 0500
Email: appeals@electoralcommission.org.uk

 

On the outcome of an appeal, The Electoral Commission may:

 

• direct the local authority to make any alterations to the Polling Places designated by the review
• make alterations themselves, if the authority fails to make the alterations within two months of the direction being given

Read more information on making an appeal in the Electoral Comission's guidance: The polling place review appeals process Electoral Commission

 

FURTHER INFORMATION

 

For further information on this review please contact the North Ayrshire Council Election Team by email: elections@north-ayrshire.gov.uk