Town and parish councillors are close to agreeing an alternative proposal to put before electoral officials regarding new electoral districts in the area.
It comes after a meeting in Shrewsbury last week of the Shropshire Association of Local Councils (SALC), who discussed controversial plans put forward by the Boundary Committee of England.
It would see part of the present Market Drayton East county council area joined with the parishes of Norton in Hales and Woore to form a new Market Drayton East division.
The proposal was described as mixing oil and water by a resident from the Fairfields Estate, which is in the town’s east division.
Gordon Hodgkiss, of Linden Way, Market Drayton, said: “It sounds like typical government planning which has been done without any thought or consultation.
“They are probably looking at numbers because Woore and Norton in Hales don’t have enough people to make up a council division.
“When you think of the location, it’s very difficult to boost the numbers of the two parishes so the Boundary Committee thought ‘what can we add onto them?’
“We are not going to have a voice where we need one in the town because our voice is going to be nine miles away.”
Town and parish councillors are to recommend that Market Drayton should become a town with three divisions, each served by one councillor.
This differs from the Boundary Committee’s plans, where the existing North and South divisions would be combined to form a new Market Drayton West county council seat.
Norton in Hales and Woore would join with Adderley, Moreton Say and Ightfield to become a new, rural division.
Councillor Ron Lucas, chairman of Norton in Hales Parish Council, said: “It was really a formality because we have, as a parish council, already decided to go with the SALC proposal.
“It’s an absolute nonsense to have Market Drayton East coupled with Norton in Hales and Woore.”
His views were supported by Moreton Say Parish Council chairman, Councillor Chris Dutton, which, under the Boundary Committee plans, would become part of the new Prees division.
“We have sent a letter saying why we object to being lumped in with Prees and eventually being swallowed up by Whitchurch,” Councillor Dutton said.
“The parishes lean towards Market Drayton, whereas Prees is over the other side of the A41 and really and truly lends itself to Whitchurch, rather than Market Drayton.”
Councils have until next Monday to submit their views before the Boundary Committee produces its final recommendations in October.
