Have your say: Community Governance Review 2025

This is the anticipated schedule for each stage of the Community Governance Review.

A Community Governance Review provides an opportunity to establish strong, clearly defined boundaries across the district. It can consider one or more of the following for the whole or part of the district:

• Creating, merging, altering, or abolishing parishes. For example, combining parts of existing parishes, two or more parishes or separating parts of a parish/parishes.
• Naming parishes and determining the style of new parishes. Currently, no parish councils in South Staffordshire are grouped with others, but the review can consider creating such groupings. Grouping smaller parishes under a shared council can help them operate more effectively while maintaining their individual identities - though this would only happen with the consent of the parishes involved.
• Electoral arrangements for parishes (including the ordinary year of election, council size, number of councillors, and parish warding)
  • Ordinary year of election - Parish council elections are held every four years.
  • Council size – The number of councillors to be elected to the council by local electors in each parish reflecting the population, local geography, budget and capacity. Councils must have at least five councillors (Local Government Act 1972), but larger councils can have more. The right number depends on the area’s size and needs.
  • Parish Warding – Wards are smaller parts of a parish, each with their own elected councillors. These may be considered when there are too many voters for one election to work well or there are different areas within the parish should be represented separately.
• Grouping parishes under a common parish council or de-grouping parishes
• Other types of local arrangements, including parish meetings. 

The council must ensure that community governance within the review area reflects the identities and interests of the community and is effective and convenient. 

The review will also consider the impact of community governance arrangements on community cohesion and the size, population, and boundaries of local communities or parishes.

The council believes parish councils play an important role in terms of community empowerment at the local level. The council wants to ensure parish governance in South Staffordshire continues to be robust, representative and effective to the parish's area. 

This is an opportunity to review the electoral arrangements of parishes – the warding arrangements and the allocations of councillors – remain appropriate, equitable and readily understood by their electorate. 

There are 27 parish councils in South Staffordshire, and they can help on a number of local issues including being responsible for local services such as community centres, allotments and war memorials. Parish councils play a crucial role in the delivery of the 2024-2028 Council Plan priority of empowering our communities by representing their parish to provide local level support. The review will assess whether the existing parish council governance is appropriate, inclusive of all parishes, capable of meeting new challenges we face and financially equitably.

The current projections in the below document cover the five-year period from the 1^st July 2025 and anticipate delivery of sites that already have planning permissions, or allocation status in our Local Plan. 

Community Governance Review - projected 5-year forecast

This is the latest planning permission data that the council currently has available including emerging Local Plan sites which are currently going through examination.

Sites which have planning permission only

Sites which have planning permission and sites which are allocated in the emerging Local Plan

Acton Trussell, Bednall & Teddesley Hey

Bobbington 

Bilbrook 

Blymhill & Weston under Lizard 

Brewood & Coven 

Codsall

Cheslyn Hay

Dunston & Coppenhall

Essington 

Enville

Featherstone & Brinsford

Great Wyrley

Hatherton

Himley

Huntington 

Kinver

Lower Penn

Lapley, Stretton & Wheaton Aston

Pattingham & Patshull 

Penkridge 

Perton

Saredon

Shareshill

Swindon

Trysull & Seisdon 

Wombourne 

The population in South Staffordshire is projected to increase from 111,530 people in 2022 to 116,573 people in 2032.

Population change is projected by looking at births and deaths (natural change) and people moving in and out of areas. In South Staffordshire, our projections show that between 2022 and 2032:

• More deaths than births mean that the population is projected to decrease by 5,632, with 8,596 births and 14,228 deaths in South Staffordshire between 2022 and 2032. This means natural change would decrease the population in South Staffordshire by 5.0%, compared with an increase of 0.2% in England.
• Net internal migration (people moving to and from other local authorities in England) is projected to increase the population by 10,735, with 71,027 people moving to the area and 60,292 people moving from the area between 2022 and 2032. This would increase the population in South Staffordshire by 9.6%.
• Net cross-border migration (between UK nations) is projected to reduce the population by 587, with 1,431 people moving to the area and 2,019 people moving from the area between 2022 and 2032. This would decrease the population in South Staffordshire by 0.5%.
• Net international migration is projected to increase the population by 521, with 1,268 people moving to the area and 747 people moving from the area between 2022 and 2032. This would increase the population in South Staffordshire by 0.5%, compared with an increase of 6.5% in England.

Age profile in South Staffordshire in 2032

The median age in South Staffordshire is projected to fall from 48 years in 2022 to 47 years in 2032. In England, the median age is projected to be 41 years in 2032. In 2032, 27% of the population in South Staffordshire are projected to be aged 65 years or over, up from 24% in 2022.

How will the number of young people change in South Staffordshire?

In 2032, 18% of people are projected to be aged 18 years and under, around the same as in 2022.

More details can be found on the Subnational population projections for England - Office for National Statistics webpage.

The council will publish full details on its website, and display key documents at the council offices.

This review is deemed to have commenced on the date of the publication of this Terms of Reference notice, dated 1st July 2025, and will be conducted over 12 months.