Kirklees wards are headed for boundary changes under new proposals

Other changes are proposed to Kirklees’ political map, which will shape Huddersfield and Dewsbury.

This comes as part of the electoral review by the Local Government Boundaries Commission, which aims to ensure that Kirklees Council can effectively carry out its duties in all wards. It also aims for councilors to represent a similar number of voters, creating “electoral equality”.

Under the latest draft, the Golcar ward would be abolished and the Crosland Moor and Netherton ward spread into a newly formed Crosland Moor ward and a ‘Newsome and Netherton’ ward. Huddersfield town center would move from Newsome to Dalton and Colne Valley would split in two.

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Previously, plans saw Huddersfield divided into five wards – Huddersfield Central, North, East, West and South – but this does not feature in the latest proposals.

A consultation period starts today (30 July) and will run until 10 September 2024, focusing on changes to the Huddersfield and Dewsbury areas. Final recommendations for the entire borough will then be published on 7 January 2025.

We have summarized the newly published draft proposals below:

Almondbury and Dalton

If the latest plans are adopted, the Dalton ward will expand to cover Huddersfield town centre. It was previously proposed that Dalton ward would cease to exist and be absorbed between the new Huddersfield East ward and a revamped Almondbury ward.

Almondbury ward would remain unchanged under the latest proposals.

Ashbrow

Another ward that would not have been in the original drafts is Ashbrow. Now, under the new proposals, Ashbrow would remain as it currently is, covering the north end of Huddersfield from Fartown to Bradley.

Colne Valley East and Colne Valley West

Under the original draft, the Colne Valley ward would not have seen any changes, but now, the area would be split into two wards – East and West.

Colne Valley East would take on Golcar – which would no longer exist as a ward in its own right – along with Cowlersley, Milnsbridge and Paddock. Paddock was previously located in Greenhead Ward.

As for Colne Valley West, this would cover Linthwaite, Marsden and Slaithwaite.

Crosland Moor and Newsome and Netherton

The latest proposals would see Crosland Moor become a stand-alone ward comprising Folly Hall and Springwood in addition to the Crosland Moor area.

Newsome and Netherton will be combined to form a new ward covering the two areas.

Kirkburton and Dewsbury South

As was the case under the original proposals, the Kirkburton ward would also include the villages of Briestfield and Whitley Lower, which are currently in the Dewsbury South ward.

The villages have historically been part of Dewsbury but are said to match the character of the existing villages of Kirkburton.

Lindley and Greenhead

The new project would see the Lindley ward grow past New Hey Road and cover parts of Longwood Edge and Lamb Hall Roads. The ward would no longer cover the area around Reinwood Junior School, which will be moved to the Greenhead ward.

Greenhead would also lose Paddock to new Colne Valley East.

Mirfield, Dewsbury East, Dewsbury West and Heckmondwike

Dewsbury West would gain part of the current Mirfield ward east of Crosley Lane if the new proposals go ahead. The Dewsbury West section would also extend eastwards towards the town’s railway station, gaining part of Dewsbury East. Moorend would have been part of the Heckmondwike Ward.

A link to the consultation is as follows: https://www.lgbce.org.uk/all-reviews/kirklees

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