Community governance review – Witherley

What is a community governance review?

A community governance review is a process to provide an opportunity to review and make changes to governance arrangements for town and parish councils and parish areas. This is to ensure they continue to reflect local identities and facilitate convenient and effective local government.

Community governance reviews are undertaken in accordance with the Local Government and Public Involvement in Health Act 2007.

Why is the council undertaking the review?

The council is carrying out a review because a valid petition had been received from residents of Ratcliffe Culey within the parish of Witherley.

The petition asked for:

• Ratcliffe Culey to be removed from the parish area of Witherley before 31 March 2026
• A new parish council to be formed for the settlement of Ratcliffe Culey with five elected representatives
• The parish council to have a new name

In accordance with the Local Government and Public Involvement in Health Act 2007, the council must undertake a review because the petition contained sufficient valid signatures (at least 37.5% of the relevant electorate in cases where this is fewer than 500 electors).

Because Ratcliffe Culey is within an existing parish, any changes to the status of Ratcliffe Culey would affect the entire parish of Witherley. Therefore, the review must cover the whole of the parish.

The parish of Witherley includes:

• Atterton
• Fenny Drayton
• Ratcliffe Culey
• Witherley

The review officially started upon validation of the petition.

A further petition was subsequently received from residents of Fenny Drayton which is within Witherley Parish. The petition requested “a community governance review for the establishment of a new parish council for the rural settlement of Fenny Drayton separating from Witherley, Ratcliffe Culey and Atterton”.

As the whole of Witherley Parish was subject to the review which had already started, the council had taken the petition into consideration as part of this review.

More information about the community governance review, including a timetable, can be found in the full terms of reference.

What has happened so far

The terms of reference for the review were approved by Council on 19 February 2026. A period of consultation took place between 23 February and 3 April 2026, following which a working group of councillors analysed the results of the consultation and prepared recommendations for Council. At its meeting on 9 June, Council agreed to consult again via a stage 2 consultation. A second period of consultation took place between 23 June and 31 July 2026. View the four options for Witherley parish on which we consulted.

The results of the second stage consultation showed clear support for independent governance arrangements for Witherley and Atterton, Fenny Drayton and Ratcliffe Culey.

However, while there was clear support for creating a Witherley & Atterton Parish Council and a Fenny Drayton Parish Council, it was not clear if the initial recommendation for Ratcliffe Culey, a parish meeting, was the preferred governance arrangement.

The member working group therefore decided further clarification on Ratcliffe Culey residents’ preferences is needed before making final recommendations to Council.

This consultation

This stage of the consultation is running from 30 September to 21 October 2026.

This consultation is to seek more information on which type of independent governance arrangement Ratcliffe Culey residents think will provide the most convenient local government and best reflect their community identity – a parish council or a parish meeting.

Have your say in the third stage of Witherley's review

What will happen next

At the end of the consultation, the member working group will make final recommendations to Council. The final recommendations will be put to Council on 27 October 2026.

Should any changes to the structure of Witherley parish be approved, they will come into effect in May 2027.

Last updated: 05/10/2026 09:30