This Order may be cited as the Borough of Warrington (Parishes and Electoral Changes) Order 1997.

For the purposes of articles 5, 6 and 7, this Order shall come into force on 6th May 1999, except that for the purpose of all proceedings preliminary or relating to an election of a parish councillor of the parishes of Great Sankey, Winwick and Burtonwood to be held on or after that date those articles shall come into force on 10th October 1998.

In this Order—

• “the borough” means the borough of Warrington;

• “existing”, in relation to a ward, means the ward as it exists on the date this Order is made;

• any reference to the map is a reference to the map prepared by the Department of the Environment, marked “Map of the Borough of Warrington (Parishes and Electoral Changes) Order 1997”, and deposited in accordance with regulation 27 of the Local Government Changes for England Regulations 19944; and

• any reference to a numbered sheet is a reference to the sheet of the map which bears that number.

The areas marked A on sheet 5 shall be transferred from the parish of Appleton to the parish of Stretton.

The areas marked B on sheet 5 shall be transferred from the parish of Stretton to the parish of Appleton.

The existing wards of the borough5 shall be abolished.

The borough shall be divided into twenty-four wards which shall bear the names set out in column (1) of Schedule 1 and the number of councillors to be elected for each ward shall be the number specified in respect of the ward in column (3) of that Schedule.

Each ward shall comprise the areas (being the areas of parishes or parish wards) specified in column (2) of the Schedule opposite the name of the ward or, where no area is so specified, the area designated on the map by reference to the name of the ward and demarcated by red lines.

Where a boundary is shown on the map as running along a road, railway line, footway, waterway or other similar geographical feature, it shall be treated as running along the centre line of the feature.

Subject to the following provisions of this article, the election of councillors for wards of the borough shall be by thirds.

Elections of all councillors for wards of the borough shall be held simultaneously on the ordinary day of election of councillors in 19976.

The councillors holding office for any ward in the borough immediately before 5th May 1997 shall retire on that date and the newly elected councillors for any such ward shall come into office on that date.

The order of retirement of councillors shall be as set out in Schedule 2.

Where the number of councillors elected in 1997 for any ward of the borough is two, the first to retire shall, subject to paragraphs (7) and (8) below, be the councillor elected by the smaller number of votes.

In the case of an equality of votes between any persons elected which makes it uncertain which of them is to retire in any such year, the person to retire in that year shall be determined by lot.

If an election of councillors for any ward is not contested, the person to retire in each such year shall be determined by lot.

Where under this article any question is to be determined by lot, the lot shall be drawn at the next practicable meeting of the council after the question has arisen and the drawing shall be conducted under the direction of the person presiding at the meeting.

In each year in which a councillor for a ward in the borough retires in accordance with paragraphs (4) to (9) above an election of a councillor for that ward shall be held on the ordinary day of election of councillors in that year; and the term of office of councillors elected at such an election shall be three years.

Except as otherwise provided in the foregoing paragraphs of this article, the term of office of councillors shall be four years and all councillors shall retire on the fourth day after the ordinary day of election of councillors in the year of retirement and the newly elected councillors shall come into office on the day on which their predecessors retire.

Paragraphs (2) to (5) of article 7 of the Cheshire (Boroughs of Halton and Warrington) (Structural Change) Order 1996 (election of councillors in 1997 and subsequent years)7 shall be deleted.

The existing wards of the parish of Great Sankey shall be abolished.

The parish shall be divided into three parish wards which shall bear the names Great Sankey North, Great Sankey South and Whittle Hall and each parish ward shall comprise the area of the ward of the borough bearing the same name.

The number of councillors to be elected for each ward shall be five.

The existing wards of the parish of Winwick shall be abolished.

The parish shall be divided into two parish wards which shall bear the names set out in column (1) of the following Table, each parish ward shall comprise the areas specified in column (2) of that Table opposite the name of the ward and the number of councillors to be elected for each parish ward shall be the number specified in respect of the ward in column (3) of that Table—

The ordinary elections of parish councillors for the parishes of Birchwood, Hatton, Stockton Heath, Stretton and Walton (“the relevant parishes”) in 1999 shall not take place; and any such parish councillor holding office immediately before 10th May 1999 who would, but for this paragraph, have retired on that date shall, unless he resigns his office or it otherwise becomes vacant, continue to hold office until 8th May 2000.

Elections of all parish councillors for the relevant parishes shall be held simultaneously on the ordinary day of election of councillors in 2000 and 2003 and every fourth year after 2003.

The term of office of any parish councillor so elected shall be, in the case of the parish councillors elected in 2000, three years and, in any other case, four years.

Rule 8 of the Local Elections (Parishes and Communities) Rules 19868 (filling of casual vacancies) shall have effect, in the case of a casual vacancy occurring before 8th May 2000 in the office of a parish councillor for a relevant parish, as if the references in paragraphs (1) and (4) of that rule to the day on which that councillor would regularly have retired were a reference to 8th May 2000.