Representation Review Initial Proposal 2021

Help us decide how many Councillors and community board members there are, how they’re elected, and what communities they represent.

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Consultation has now closed

Consultation on the Representation Review Initial Proposal 2021 has now closed. People were able to provide feedback from 20 March to 16 May2021.

During this time we heard from 226 individuals and groups. You can read their feedback(external link) as part of the Hearings Panel agenda.

The Hearings Panel met on Monday 24 May to hear submitters.  You can read the minutes of the hearings(external link) which include the Panel’s deliberations. Feedback has resulted in significant changes to the final proposal. You can read more about the changes on Newsline.(external link)

The Council confirmed its final proposal for the representation arrangements for the 2022 and 2025 local body elections at its meeting on 18 June 2021. You can read the staff report(external link), which includes updated maps of the proposed wards and community board areas.  You can also watch the meeting(external link) in our video library.

Appeals and Objections opened on 25 June 2021 and were referred to the Local Government Commission.

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We’re reviewing our representation arrangements, such as ward boundaries and the make-up and
naming of our community boards, to ensure we’re providing fair and effective representation for our communities. Everyone should have equitable access to their local councillor or community
board member.

The Local Electoral Act 2001 requires each ward to represent a similar amount of people, with no more than +/- 10 per cent difference between them.

Our initial proposal is to:

•  Keep 16 councillors elected under the ward system, plus the mayor elected at large, to provide effective representation to Christchurch residents and ratepayers.
  This allows councillors to keep a direct connection with the communities they represent.

• Keep 16 wards, with some adjustment to boundaries to reflect current communities of interest and meet fair representation requirements (+/- 10 per cent).
  This is to account for growth in some parts of the city and ensure that each elected member represents roughly the same number of people.
• Reduce urban community boards from six to five, so that they represent three wards each (we currently have a mix of three-ward and two-ward boards).
  This is the best way to provide fair representation, and ensures that all urban boards have equal populations and resources.
• Keep the Banks Peninsula Ward and the Banks Peninsula Community Board.
  This reflects the isolated nature of the ward and its distinct communities with common interests and issues.
• Formally use te reo Māori community board names in conjunction with the current ward names that describe the community board areas they represent.
  This recognises our bi-cultural relationship and formalises the use of the names.

You can download the full proposal [PDF, 4.4 MB] for more detail.

Due to growth in some of our suburbs, we’re required to adjust some of the existing ward boundaries to ensure we meet the fair representation requirements. Ward boundaries must use whole ‘meshblock’ areas as defined by Stats NZ, so small amendments may not always be possible. The proposed boundaries of each ward are shown in this map(external link). 

 

Council representation

The population that each Council member will represent must be within +/- 10 per cent, but there can be exceptions for considerations about communities of interest. For example, the population of the Banks Peninsula ward falls outside the range, but the Council considers that as a geographically isolated community with distinct communities of interest, Banks Peninsula warrants its own ward. See the table below.

Community Board representation

It is proposed that six community boards be elected. Five urban community boards with six members, two from each ward. Each urban community board will also have three councillors, one from each ward, making a total of nine members.
Te Pātaka o Rākaihāutu/Banks Peninsula Community Board will have seven members. The councillor elected from the Banks Peninsula ward will also be appointed to the community board, making a total of eight members. The population that community board members of each subdivision/ward will represent is shown below:

Community Board	Ward / subdivision	Population	Community Board Members	Community Board population	Pop. per Community Board Member	Councillors	Population per councillor	+/- %
Waitai/ Coastal-Burwood-Linwood Community Board	Burwood	25,380	2	77,040	12,840	1	25,380	3
	Coastal	26,490	2			1	26,490	7
	Linwood	25,170	2			1	25,170	2
Waimāero/Fendalton-Waimairi-HarewoodCommunity Board	Fendalton	26,410	2	79,490	13,248	1	26,410	7
	Harewood	26,570	2			1	26,570	8
	Waimairi	26,510	2			1	26,510	8
Waipuna/Hornby-Halswell-Riccarton Community Board	Halswell	22,970	2	75,710	12,618	1	22,970	-7
	Hornby	25,710	2			1	25,710	4
	Riccarton	27,030	2			1	27,030	10
Waipapa/Papanui-Innes-Central Community Board	Central	23,260	2	75,520	12,587	1	23,260	-6
	Innes	25,990	2			1	25,990	5
	Papanui	26,270	2			1	26,270	7
Waihoro/Spreydon-Cashmere-Heathcote Community Board	Cashmere	26,700	2	77,250	8 12,875	1	26,700	8
	Heathcote	25,470	2			1	25,470	3
	Spreydon	25,080	2			1	25,080	2
Te Pātaka o Rākaihautū/Banks Peninsula Community Board	Akaroa	1950	2	9,400	1,343	1	9,400	-62
	Lyttelton	3080	2
	Mt Herbert	3130	2
	Wairewa	1240	1

Communities of interest

The 16 wards reflect the following identified communities. Communities of interest that occur in more than one ward are marked in bold. 

Ward	Communities of interest
Banks Peninsula	Akaroa, Barrys Bay, Birdlings Flat, Diamond Harbour, Duvauchelle, French Farm, Gebbies Valley, Governors Bay, Little River, Lyttelton, Port Levy, Purau, Rapaki, Takamatua, Wainui
Burwood	Aranui, Avondale, Avonside, Bexley, Bottle Lake, Burwood, Dallington, Marshland, Parklands, Richmond, Shirley, Wainoni
Cashmere	Beckenham, Cashmere, Cracroft, Hillsborough, Huntsbury, Kennedys Bush, Lansdowne, St Martins, Somerfield, Sydenham, Westmorland
Central	Christchurch Central, Edgeware, Linwood, Merivale, Phillipstown, Richmond, St Albans
Coastal	Bexley, Bottle Lake, Brooklands, Kaianga, Marshland, New Brighton, North New Brighton, Parklands, Pegasus Bay, South New Brighton, Southshore, Spencerville, Waimairi Beach
Fendalton	Bryndwr, Burnside, Fendalton, Ilam, Merivale, St Albans, Strowan
Halswell	Aidanfield, Halswell, Hillmorton, Hoon Hay, Kennedys Bush
Harewood	Avonhead, Belfast, Bishopdale, Broomfield, Bryndwr, Casebrook, Harewood, Kainga, McLeans Island, Northwood, Redwood, Russley, Yaldhurst
Heathcote	Clifton, Ferrymead, Heathcote Valley, Hillsborough, McCormacks Bay, Moncks Bay, Mount Pleasant, Opawa, Redcliffs, Richmond Hill, Saint Martins, Scarborough, Sumner, Sydenham, Taylors Mistake, Waltham, Woolston
Hornby	Hei Hei, Hornby, Hornby South, Islington, Middleton, Sockburn, Templeton, Wigram, Yaldhurst
Innes	Belfast, Edgeware, Kainga, Mairehau, Marshland, Redwood, Richmond, Shirley, St Albans
Linwood	Aranui, Avonside, Bexley, Bromley, Ferrymead, Linwood, Wainoni, Woolston
Papanui	Bishopdale, Bryndwr, Casebrook, Mairehau, Northcote, Papanui, Redwood, St Albans, Strowan
Riccarton	Avonhead, Ilam, Middleton, Riccarton, Russley, Sockburn, Upper Riccarton
Spreydon	Addington, Hillmorton, Hoon Hay, Somerfield, Spreydon, Sydenham
Waimariri	Avonhead, Burnside, Ilam, Russley, Upper Riccarton

 

What happens next

Have your say

It’s really important that you have your say – you have an opportunity once every six years to let us know what you think
about our representation arrangements.

Hearings

All submissions will be considered by a hearings panel made up of all councillors. All submitters will have the opportunity to present to the hearings panel.

Final proposal

After considering all feedback, the Council will develop and approve a final proposal in mid–late June 2021.

Objections and appeals

The Local Government Commission will consider any appeals or objections, along with any representation arrangements outside +/- 10 per cent range and make a final determination before early April 2022.