2001 No. 2442
LOCAL GOVERNMENT, ENGLAND
The District of Braintree (Electoral Changes) Order 2001
Made 4th July 2001
Coming into force in accordance with article 1(2)

Whereas the Local Government Commission for England, acting pursuant to section 15(4) of the Local Government Act 1992, has submitted to the Secretary of State a report dated November 2000 on its review of the district of Braintree together with its recommendations:
1992 c. 19.
And whereas the Secretary of State has decided to give effect, subject to one modification, to those recommendations:
Now, therefore, the Secretary of State, in exercise of the powers conferred on him by sections 17 and 26 of the Local Government Act 1992, and of all other powers enabling him in that behalf, hereby makes the following Order:
Section 17 is amended by section 39(4) and (5) of the Police and Magistrates' Courts Act 1994 (c. 29).

1 Citation, commencement and interpretation
1 This Order may be cited as the District of Braintree (Electoral Changes) Order 2001.
2 This Order shall come into force—
(a) for the purpose of proceedings preliminary or relating to any election to be held on 1st May 2003, on 15th October 2002;
(b) for all other purposes, on 1st May 2003.
3 In this Order—
“district” means the district of Braintree;
“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 for Transport, Local Government and the Regions marked “Map of the District of Braintree (Electoral Changes) Order 2001”, and deposited in accordance with regulation 27 of the Local Government Changes for England Regulations 1994; andany reference to a numbered sheet is a reference to the sheet of the map which bears that number.
S.I.1994/867, to which there are amendments not relevant to this Order.

2 Wards of the district of Braintree
1 The existing wards of the district shall be abolished.
See The District of Braintree (Electoral Arrangements) Order 1976 (S.I.1976/831).
2 The district shall be divided into thirty wards which shall bear the names set out in column (1) of Schedule 1.
3 The wards shall comprise the areas described in column (2) of that Schedule by reference to parishes or, where an area is not so described, the area designated on the map by reference to the name of the ward and demarcated by red lines; 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.
4 Where a boundary is shown on the map as running along a road, railway line, footway, watercourse or similar geographical feature, it shall be treated as running along the centre line of the feature.

3 Elections of the council of Braintree
1 The ordinary elections of all councillors of the district of Braintree shall be held simultaneously on the ordinary day of election of non-metropolitan district councillors in 2003 and every fourth year after 2003.
For the ordinary day of election of councillors of local government areas, see section 37 of the Representation of the People Act 1983 (c. 2), amended by section 18(2) of the Representation of the People Act 1985 (c. 50) and section 17 of, and paragraphs 1 and 5 of Schedule 3 to, the Greater London Authority Act 1999 (c. 29).
2 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.

4 Wards of the parish of Feering
The parish of Feering shall be divided into two parish wards which shall bear the names set out in column (1) of Schedule 2; each parish ward shall comprise the area of the district ward specified in respect of the parish ward in column (2) of that Schedule; and the number of councillors to be elected for each parish ward shall be the number specified in respect of the parish ward in column (3) of that Schedule.

5 Wards of the parish of Halstead
1 The existing wards of the parish of Halstead shall be abolished.
2 The parish shall be divided into four parish wards which shall bear the names Holy Trinity North, Holy Trinity South, St Andrew’s North and St Andrew’s South; and the wards shall comprise the areas designated on sheet 5 by reference to the name of the ward and demarcated by orange lines.
3 The number of councillors to be elected for the Holy Trinity North parish ward shall be two, for the St Andrew’s North parish ward shall be four, and for each of the Holy Trinity South and the St Andrew’s South parish wards shall be three.

6 Wards of the parish of Witham
1 The existing wards of the parish of Witham shall be abolished.
2 The parish shall be divided into four parish wards which shall bear the names set out in column (1) of Schedule 3; each parish ward shall comprise the area of the district ward specified in respect of the parish ward in column (2) of that Schedule; and the number of councillors to be elected for each parish ward shall be the number specified in respect of the parish ward in column (3) of that Schedule.

7 Revocation
The District of Braintree (Electoral Arrangements) Order 1976 is hereby revoked.
Signed by authority of the Secretary of Statefor Transport, Local Government and the Regions
Alan Whitehead Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, Department for Transport,Local Government and the Regions 4th July 2001

SCHEDULE 1 NAMES AND AREAS OF WARDS AND NUMBERS OF COUNCILLORS
article 2
(1) Name of Ward	(2) Area of Ward	(3) Number of Councillors
Black Notley and Terling		2
Bocking Blackwater		3
Bocking North		2
Bocking South		2
Bradwell, Silver End and Rivenhall	The parishes of Bradwell, Rivenhall and Silver End	2
Braintree Central		3
Braintree East		3
Braintree South		3
Bumpstead	The parishes of Helions Bumpstead, Steeple Bumpstead and Sturmer	1
Coggeshall and North Feering		2
Cressing and Stisted	The parishes of Cressing and Stisted	1
Gosfield and Greenstead Green		1
Great Notley and Braintree West		3
Halstead St Andrew's		3
Halstead Trinity		2
Hatfield Peverel	The parish of Hatfield Peverel	2
Hedingham and Maplestead	The parishes of Castle Hedingham, Gestingthorpe, Great Maplestead, Little Maplestead, Sible Hedingham and Wickham St Paul	3
Kelvedon		2
Panfield	The parishes of Bardfield Saling, Great Saling, Panfield and Shalford	1
Rayne	The parish of Rayne	1
Stour Valley North	The parishes of Belchamp Otten, Belchamp St Paul, Belchamp Walter, Borley, Bulmer, Foxearth, Liston, Ovington, Pentlow and Tilbury Juxta Clare	1
Stour Valley South	The parishes of Alphamstone, Bures Hamlet, Great Henny, Lamarsh, Little Henny, Middleton, Pebmarsh and Twinstead	1
The Three Colnes	The parishes of Colne Engaine, Earls Colne and White Colne	2
Three Fields	The parishes of Finchingfield, Great Bardfield and Wethersfield	2
Upper Colne	The parishes of Ashen, Birdbrook, Ridgewell, Stambourne and Toppesfield	1
Witham Chipping Hill and Central		2
Witham North		2
Witham South		3
Witham West		3
Yeldham	The parishes of Great Yeldham and Little Yeldham	1

SCHEDULE 2 WARDS OF THE PARISH OF FEERING NAMES AND AREAS OF WARDS AND NUMBERS OF COUNCILLORS
article 4
(1) Name of Ward	(2) Area of Ward	(3) Number of Councillors
Feering North	The district ward of Coggeshall and North Feering	1
Feering South	The district ward of Kelvedon	8

SCHEDULE 3 WARDS OF THE PARISH OF WITHAM NAMES AND AREAS OF WARDS AND NUMBERS OF COUNCILLORS
article 6
(1) Name of Ward	(2) Area of Ward	(3) Number of Councillors
Chipping Hill and Central	The district ward of Witham Chipping Hill and Central	3
North	The district ward of Witham North	3
South	The district ward of Witham South	5
West	The district ward of Witham West	5

(This note is not part of the Order)
This Order gives effect to recommendations by the Local Government Commission for England for electoral changes in the district of Braintree. The changes have effect in relation to local government elections to be held on and after 1st May 2003.
The modification relates to the name of one of the proposed new wards. The Secretary of State has decided that the ward for which the Commission suggested the name of “Great Notley” shall be called “Great Notley and Braintree West”.
Article 2 abolishes the existing wards of the district and provides for the creation of 30 new wards. That article and Schedule 1 also make provision for the names and areas of, and numbers of councillors for, the new wards.
Article 3 provides for the election of all councillors of the district of Braintree to take place in 2003 and every 4 years after that year.
Articles 4 to 6 make electoral changes in the parishes of Feering, Halstead and Witham.
Article 7 revokes the District of Braintree (Electoral Arrangements) Order 1976.
The areas of the new district and parish wards are demarcated on the map described in article 1(3). Prints of the map may be inspected at all reasonable times at the offices of Braintree District Council and at the offices of the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions, 2nd Floor, Ashdown House, 123 Victoria Street, London SW1E 6DE.