Several purple cartoon people in a group

On Thursday 10 October, Waikirikiri Selwyn District Council indicated it will largely retain the existing representation structure and move away from its initial proposal for change, following public feedback.

The Council held deliberations today following last month’s hearings on its representation review where the Council considered feedback from 613 submissions on its initial proposal, including 35 people who spoke to their submissions.

After considering the feedback, the Council today voted to maintain the current four existing ward boundaries agreed before the 2022 election and increase the number of councillors for the Rolleston Ward from three to four to reflect population growth.

The four wards will have dual names reflecting the geography of the District and the Malvern Community Board was supported to remain in place.

The Council had initially consulted on a proposal to reduce the number of councillors from 10 to eight; enlarging the Springs Ward to include West Melton and including Burnham and West Rolleston school in the Rolleston Ward.

Mayor Sam Broughton says today’s vote was democracy in action and is another good example that the council listens to the voice of the community.

“Consultation is all about hearing from our community and hearing what people support and don’t support in proposals as we work.

Those we heard from were clear about wanting to ensure that we had strong rural representation. It is important that councils listen and respond to the community and that is what we have done.”

The Council also voted to support introducing dual names for the wards, with local rūnaka gifting names that reflect the area’s history and geography of Tawera Malvern, Kā Mānia Rolleston, Te Waihora Ellesmere, and Kā Puna Springs.

“The new dual names allow a richness of reflecting our unique heritage in Waikirikiri Selwyn. They speak to our history whether we are tangata whenua or tangata tiriti and people can choose to use the name that speaks most to them,” Mayor Broughton says.

The adjusted proposal will be put forward for adoption at the 23 October Council meeting and the Council will then publicly notify the adopted proposal.

Once the Council has notified its final proposal, it is subject to appeal. The Local Government Commission will consider any appeals and will make a final determination, if required by April 2025.

All councils must review their representation arrangements at least every six years. Selwyn last undertook a representation review in 2021, in preparation for the 2022 elections.

Since that time, Selwyn’s population has grown rapidly, but unevenly across the district meaning changes were required to ensure an even spread of representation for the population.

Mayor Broughton pointed out that an additional councillor will have no impact on ratepayers or the remuneration costs, as the same total remuneration provided by the Local Government Commission in the new structure would be shared among one more councillor.

Last modified: 11 Oct 2024 10:45am