PENDLE residents have been given a final chance to have their say on changes to council ward boundaries.

Pendle Council has put forward its response to the Local Government Boundary Commission’s proposals for new wards, ward boundaries and ward names for the borough.

And people have until Monday to have their say on the Commission’s draft recommendations.

At a full council meeting councillors agreed to submit a number of representations based on the recommendations.

They want the commission to consider taking Old Laund Booth and Higham polling districts out of the proposed Brierfield West, Fence and Higham ward to create an additional single member ward to be called Fence and Higham.

And it has been suggested for polling district RA2 be taken out of the proposed Brierfield East and Clover Hill wards and added to the remainder of the Brierfield West ward to create a three member ward to be called Brierfield West.

Other suggestions include 280 electors to be moved out of the proposed new Bradley ward and into the new proposed Whitefield and Walverden ward and 1,075 electors to be moved out of the proposed new Whitefield and Walverden ward and into the Brierfield East and Clover Hill ward

The council’s representation for a single member ward for Fence and Higham would mean that 34 councillors would serve the council in future instead of the 33 proposed by the Commission.

It would be 15 fewer than the current number.

Council corporate director, Philip Mousdale, said: "The aim of the electoral review is to recommend and re-draw ward boundaries that mean each councillor represents approximately the same number of voters.

“The review also aims to ensure the ward boundaries reflect the interests and identities of local communities.”

Philip added that whatever the Commission’s final recommendations, the council will need to review its polling places and polling districts and will be inviting comments in the coming weeks.

The Boundary Commision's draft recommendations for Pendle can be found on its website.