Malmesbury Town centre may no longer be part of the Malmesbury electoral division.

The Local Government Boundary Commission  is carrying out an electoral review of Wiltshire Council, and is recommending a boundary change that would see the centre of Malmesbury be part of the Sherston division.

Every electoral review aims to recommend division boundaries that mean each councillor represents the around the same number of voters.

However the bizarre recommendation would mean the Town Hall, the Cross Hayes car park, and the High Street would all fall outside the Malmesbury division.

Within the orange-lined area is the proposed Malmesbury North Parish Ward and outside of it is Malmesbury South Parish Ward.

According to a report published by the commission: "The council (Wiltshire Council) recognised that the town of Malmesbury has now grown too large to sustain a single division which provides good electoral equality and that anticipated housing development will exacerbate this situation by 2024.

"The council proposed that this be addressed by including part of the Tetbury Hill area, including a site of a substantial proposed housing development, in the surrounding Sherston division.

"We propose that the High Street area of Malmesbury be added to Sherston division as we consider that the communities at Burton Hill and Milbourne are more likely to engage with this part of Malmesbury than Tetbury Hill or with any other community in Sherston division."

Voters in Wiltshire are being asked their views on the new plan to divide up the county for local election.

A 10-week public consultation on the recommendations made by the commission has began and will end on April 15.

The consultation is open to anyone who wants to have their say on new council divisions, division boundaries and division names across Wiltshire.

Professor Colin Mellors, chair of the commission, said: “We are publishing proposals for a new pattern of divisions across Wiltshire and we are keen to hear what local people think of the recommendations.

“Over the next 10 weeks, we are asking local people to tell us if they agree with the proposals or if not, how they can be improved.

“Our review aims to deliver electoral equality for local voters.

"This means that each councillor represents a similar number of people, so that everyone’s vote in council elections is worth roughly the same, regardless of where you live.

“We also want to ensure that our proposals reflect the interests and identities of local communities across Wiltshire and that the pattern of divisions can help the council deliver effective local government for local people.

“We will consider all the submissions we receive, whoever they are from and whether your evidence applies to the whole county or just a part of it.

The commission wants to hear as much evidence as possible to develop final recommendations for Wiltshire.

If you would like to make a submission to the commission, please email reviews@lgbce.org.uk by April 15.

Alternatively, you can write to:

The Review Officer (Wiltshire)

Local Government Boundary Commission for England

1st Floor, Windsor House

50 Victoria Street

London SW1H 0TL