Your voice, your community: Consultation opens on local representation

West Lancashire Borough Council is inviting residents, businesses and community organisations to have their say on future community representation arrangements across the Borough. 

The consultation seeks views on a range of options including the potential creation of a Parish Council for Westhead, Town Councils for Skelmersdale and Ormskirk, the introduction of Area Committees as part of future Local Government Reorganisation arrangements (currently under review) and retaining existing arrangements. 

Community representation empowers people to elect local residents to voice their views, make decisions on local services and influence larger district or county councils on planning, spending and public needs.   

Local people and stakeholders will be able to share their thoughts on whether community governance arrangements should be introduced and what form they could take by taking part in the consultation. 

The consultation forms part of the Council's commitment to understanding local views and ensuring communities have an opportunity to help inform future discussions. 

To make participation easier, separate surveys are available for Westhead, Skelmersdale and Ormskirk. Residents and stakeholders can complete one, two or all three surveys depending on the areas they wish to comment on. 

Councillor David Whittington, Leader of West Lancashire Borough Council, said: "Strong local representation is important to our communities and we want to understand what residents, businesses and organisations think about the options available.  

“This consultation is about understanding local preferences for what future community representation looks like, so please share your views with us." 

The consultation opens on 09 November 2026 and closes on 01 February 2027. For more information and to take part, click here.