Residents pack into Wiltshire pub to oppose 'brazen land grab'

At an extraordinary meeting of Bishops Cannings Parish Council on Thursday, January 29 councillors voted to fight the move by Devizes Town Council.

Two nights earlier, Devizes' own civic leaders had voted to ask the Electoral Review Committee at Wiltshire Council to extend the boundary of the town to encompass the Northfields housing estate and other parcels of development land to its northern boundary.

They said the people of Northfields - who live in roads named after battle honours won by the Wiltshire Regiment including Ferozeshah and Anzio - identified as being from Devizes, and were often unaware that they lived in Bishops Cannings.

A hastily arranged extraordinary meeting of Bishops Cannings Parish Council attracted around 50 residents of the housing estate - making it "our best-attended meeting in many years."

The vast majority were in favour of staying in the parish of Bishops Cannings - the third largest parish in Wiltshire.

Council chairman Darren Bone told a packed function room at The Hourglass pub next door to Devizes Marina - which are both in the rural parish despite being in a heavily built-up area - of the work his council had done on behalf of the residents of Northfields.

Well-maintained play areas, lit footpaths, tree maintenance, and public defibrillators were all thanks to Bishops Cannings Parish Council, he said.

Before the boundary row, many people were unaware that urban parts of Devizes were actually in the parish of Bishops Cannings - Le Marchant Barracks, B&Q, and Lidl among them.

Bishops Cannings also includes the site of the motorcycle training school, where Aldi wants to open a new supermarket.

The huge parish contains three villages, two hamlets, and the Northfields estate. A shade over 2,000 residents live in the urban area, while 537 live in the rural part.

At Bishops Cannings School, more than 60 per cent of the pupils - representing over 100 families - come from the urban area.

Cllr Bone said Bishops Cannings Parish Council might change its name to include its urban residents - Bishops Cannings & Northfields was a suggestion.

"We are rural and we are urban," he said. "I think your parish council is delivering for you."

And there were gasps when he told residents that the £66.98 they pay per year to Bishops Cannings Parish Council as an element of their council tax would rise to £228.64 if they became citizens of Devizes - although council tax cannot be considered by Wiltshire Council as a reason for staying in, or leaving, a parish.

One resident told the meeting: "Our kids go to Bishops Cannings School, the only church I have used is in Bishops Cannings, and my community is Bishops Cannings. To say I identify as living in Devizes is wrong."

Another said: "We have a parish council that is looking after us. If we become part of Devizes the money would flow to the centre. It would not be spent here."

And another said: "Of the two other areas they want to take over, one will have new housing and the other is for industrial use. That's how they will get their extra tax."

But one resident told the meeting: "The only time you have come to this part of the parish is when you need us all."

Cllr Bone explained that by law, parish councils were not allowed to meet in pubs unless there were no other options. He said he would like to see a parish hub built in the urban area as part of the new development of affordable housing.

Cllr Philip Whitehead, who represents the Urchfont & Bishops Cannings division at Wiltshire Council, told the meeting: "From a Devizes Town Council point of view, when I look at this area I see budget.

"They will say you live in Devizes. I think this community is different from Devizes.

"If you want to keep your community, it's up to you - you have huge influence."

Submissions to the Electoral Review Committee must be made in February, and the committee will publish its draft recommendations in March.