Wiltshire town attempts 'brazen land grab' from neighbour

Devizes, population 18,000, is to ask Wiltshire Council to redraw the parish boundaries to include land on its northern border.

The parish of Bishop's Cannings, population 3,000, has a commanding military base, minerals -in the shape of bags of quarried stone chippings from B&Q - and a Lidl.

Most importantly, says Devizes Town Council, many of the hundreds of people who live in the parish of Bishops Cannings don't even know they live there.

"They phone the town council when they want something done, and we have to tell them 'sorry, you don't live in Devizes'," Devizes Town Councillor Iain Wallis told the Local Democracy Reporting Service.

"Sometimes they get quite cross and tell us 'I know where I live'.

"It makes sense for this urbanised part of the parish of Bishops Cannings to be in Devizes."

At a meeting of Devizes Town Council on Tuesday, January 27 councillors voted to ask Wiltshire Council to redraw the boundaries to include North Fields, Cannings Hill, Corn Croft, Laywood, Wellington Drive and Marlborough Close in the town.

"This is a large urban area which identifies geographically, economically, and socially much more strongly with Devizes than the very rural parish of Bishops Cannings," Wiltshire Council will be told.

"Many residents in this area already believe they live in Devizes and tend to default to Devizes Town Council for service requests.

"They also access services in the town centre such as the Leisure Centre, which is subsidised by Devizes Town Council rate payers.

"If moving this area across, it would also be sensible to transfer the new industrial estates between Horton Road and the A361."

If approved, residents would live in a new Devizes North ward, with the existing Devizes North ward being renamed.

However, Bishops Cannings Parish Council refuses to surrender the land without a fight, and has issued a call to arms to parishioners prepared to protect its boundary.

An extraordinary meeting of the parish council will be held on Thursday, January 29 at the Hourglass pub, next door to Devizes Marina.

"The choice of location is deliberate," says the parish council. The pub - and the marina - are in the parish of Bishops Cannings.

"We are aware that Devizes Town Council is seeking to have the parish boundaries redrawn," the council also said.

"Bishops Cannings Parish Council would strongly oppose such an attempt. In our view, this would be a retrograde step, with adverse implications for all residents living within those areas.

"The extraordinary meeting at the Hourglass is an important opportunity for residents to learn more about this unsolicited and brazen attempt at a landgrab and to ask questions of your council. Residents are encouraged to attend."

Landmarks of Bishops Cannings

• The Grade I listed St Mary the Virgin Church sits in the heart of the village, and dates from the 12th century.
• The Crown Inn sits in the shadow of the church and is the village's sole pub. However, the Bridge Inn near Horton, the New Inn at Coate, and the Hourglass are all within the parish boundary.
• Le Marchant Barracks was built in 1878 and was a depot for the Wiltshire Regiment. It was sold by the Ministry of Defence in 2012 and converted into housing.
• The B&Q store was opened in Devizes in the 1980s by DIY chain Focus. The chain collapsed in 2011 and was acquired by B&Q.
• Devizes Marina opened in 1995 and offers mooring for around 90 narrowboats
• Lidl opened in 2004 and underwent an expansion and refurbishment in 2016