THE number of councillors in Malvern Hills is set to be slashed under new plans.

As many as seven councillors will be cut from Malvern Hills District Council as part of new recommendations by the Local Government Boundary Commission.

All but one of the council’s wards would also be redrawn with the Kempsey ward staying the same.

The recommendation said that the number of councillors in Malvern Hills should be cut from 38 to 31 with the number of wards cut from 22 to 18.

The new merged wards in Malvern would include ‘Barnards Green and Link’, ‘Great Malvern and Pickersleigh’ and ‘Upper Howsell and West’ and the ‘Chase’, ‘Dyson Perrins’ and ‘Priory’ wards would be removed.

Other merged and renamed wards would include ‘Powick and the Hanleys’, ‘Upton and Ripple’, ‘Alfrick, Leigh and Rushwick’ ‘Hallow and Holt’ and ‘Castlemorton, 'Welland and Wells’.

Of the wards, four would be represented by three councillors, eight by two councillors and three by one councillor.

The plan by the Boundary Commission to cut numbers in Malvern Hills was revealed earlier this year with some of the proposed changes labelled a “dog’s dinner” by one sitting councillor.

The recommendations from the Boundary Commission now have to be approved by parliament and would come into effect for elections from 2023.

Professor Colin Mellors, chair of the commission, said: “We are very grateful to people in Malvern Hills.

"We looked at all the views they gave us. They helped us improve our earlier proposals.

“We believe the new arrangements will deliver electoral fairness while maintaining local ties.”