THE parishes of Wotton under Edge and Kingswood have reached an agreement on proposed ward boundary changes in the area.

As part of a review of the parish electoral arrangements within the district, Stroud District Council put forward to plans concerning a strip of land located in the middle of the two parishes last summer.

Wotton Town Council had objected to the proposals, which included transferring Katharine Lady Berkeley School and Wotton Community Sports Foundation from the Wotton Parish ward into the neighbouring Kingswood ward instead.

SDC voted in favour of the plans in July, but on December 19, representatives from the two parishes and Stroud District Council got together to discuss the recommendations and find a compromise.

In a joint statement, Wotton Town Council and Kingswood Parish Council said: “Subject to the agreement of the Boundary Commission, most of the existing “Wotton South” parish ward, including KLB School and the small field south of KLB, will move into Kingswood Parish with the Wotton Community Sports Foundation site and the hamlet of Wortley remaining in Wotton.

“Under the agreement, the strong links between KLB School and the community of Wotton will remain unchanged.

“Wotton mayor Roger Claydon and Kingswood chairman David Rockey said that they were pleased that an agreement had been reached, and that the result would be good for the both the communities of Wotton under Edge and Kingswood.

“This amendment was voted on and confirmed by Stroud District Council at their meeting on 19th December 2019.

“This amendment will now be reviewed by the Boundary Commission for England.

“It will be for them to decide if this proposed new boundary arrangement is acceptable and agree to its implementation.

“In addition, WTC and KPC have agreed to liaise on matters on the boundary between the two councils.

“The two councils are looking forward to working together in the future to achieve the best possible outcomes for their respective communities.”