New Caerphilly council ward boundaries recommended
The Democracy and Boundary Commission Cymru has published its final recommendations for changes to council ward boundaries in Caerphilly.
The electoral review of Caerphilly examined the boundaries of council wards across the county borough with a view to ensuring that each council ward has a roughly equal ratio of electors to councillors.
The last review of Caerphilly council wards was completed in 2020, and a community review, looking at the boundaries and electoral arrangements of communities in the county, was completed in 2024.
Having completed their previous review of Caerphilly council wards just over 5 years ago, the Democracy and Boundary Commission Cymru looked to bring all wards to within 20% of the council average rate of electors to councillors.
Prior to the review, 4 of the existing wards fall outside of that range.
The review also took account of other factors, such as the rurality of wards, local ties, and the relative deprivation of wards as it develops its recommendations.
The Commission has recommended a council of 68 members, a slight decrease from the current 69 members, with a proposed county average of 1,982 electors per member.
The largest under-representation (in terms of electoral variance) within the recommendations is Crosskeys (26% above the proposed county average). At present, the largest under-representation is in Crosskeys (28% above the county average).
The largest over-representation (in terms of electoral variance) within the recommendations is Ynysddu (24% below the proposed county average). At present, the largest over-representation is in Ynysddu (23% below the county average).
The Commission is recommending 24 multi-member wards in the county consisting of: 12 two-member electoral wards, 10 three-member wards, and 2 four-member wards.
The Commission has submitted its final recommendations to Welsh Government. They will now decide whether to put these recommendations into effect by making an order.
If members of the public wish to comment on these recommendations, they should contact Welsh Government:
Elections Division
Welsh Government
Cathays Park
Cardiff
CF10 3NQ
Or by email to:
Etholiadau.elections@gov.wales
Commenting on the publication of its Final Recommendations, chief executive of the Democracy and Boundary Commission Cymru, Shereen Williams MBE OStJ said:
“The Commission wants to thank the residents of Caerphilly, and our local government partners, for the way they have engaged with this review.
The Commission’s aim was to ensure that people across the county are represented equally, that people’s votes carry the same strength, and that councillors are able to share a more equal workload.
“The previous electoral review for the Caerphilly was the first in several years, meaning that the Commission had to recommend significant changes to wards across the county.
“With reviews now happening more regularly, we’re glad to be in a position where the vast majority of wards are already within the target ratio of electors to councillors.
“This is reflected in the large number of wards which we’ve recommended no changes to at this review.”