20 April 2022The Department for Levelling Up, Housing, and Communities (DLUHC) has opened a technical consultation on street re-naming in England.
The current system is based on legislation from the early 20th century, which has resulted in inconsistent and unclear procedures across England.
The government is considering creating legislation to ensure there is a common requirement across England for voting to be required for proposed changes of street names, and is interested in views on how this would be implemented.
DLUHC noted, ‘Local street names form part of the local identity that helps create a sense of pride in place; how they are changed forms part of the process that can build or reduce trust in local systems and institutions. The government is concerned that there are attempts to erase and cancel local heritage and that residents are not being properly consulted.
‘The government wishes to explore whether it would be possible to establish in law the democratic right of communities to be engaged and have their views taken into account. This raises important questions of who should vote – is it just the residents of the street or the wider community – and how. This consultation is designed to help build the evidence for future reforms and…future legislation.’1
You can access the online survey here.
The consultation runs until Sunday 22 May 2022.
