St Helens is set to have new boundaries for council wards that better reflect "communities and local identities."
The Local Government Boundary Commission - the independent body that draws these boundaries - has reviewed St Helens to make sure councillors will represent about the same number of electors and that ward arrangements will help the council work effectively.
The Commission has now published final recommendations for changes in St Helens and said residents should be represented by 48 councillors - the same number as the council has currently.
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But that there will be 18 wards, two more than currently. There will be one one-councillor ward, four two-councillor wards, and 13 three-councillor wards, with the boundaries of most of the wards being changed.
Publishing the recommendations Professor Colin Mellors, Chair of the Commission, said: "We are very grateful to people in St Helens.
"We looked at all the views they gave us. They helped us improve our earlier proposals.
"We believe the new arrangements will guarantee electoral fairness while maintaining local ties."
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The commission received 115 comments to help decide the new wards.
Changes in response to what local people said include:
The Commission has moved the Hill Top area back into the Rainford ward based on the response of representatives regarding the identity of the local community.
The commission has also moved the Foxwood estate into Thatto Heath ward based on a submission from a local resident.
Council leader, Councillor David Baines said: "The new ward boundaries better reflect our communities and local identities, and that can only be a good thing.
"I want to thank everyone who took part in the consultation and I thank the Boundary Commission for their work.
"These new wards will be used for next year’s all-out elections when residents will be able to vote for all their local councillors in one go, and the council will be sending out information in due course to clarify the new process for all voters."
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The Commission has made further changes to its earlier proposals. Details can be found on its website here.
Parliament now needs to agree the changes. The new arrangements will then apply for the 2022 council elections.
