THE scrapping of area forums and the creation of new area partnerships by Barnsley council will be a waste of time, effort and money according to a Hoyland councillor.

The Hoyland and Milton area forum is to be replaced with the Southwest area partnership which will be made up of the two Hoyland wards and the two Penistone wards.

The forums were set up in 2000 and last year they were changed from monthly to six weekly meetings due to a lack of attendance.

The merger is part of a council reshuffle of public meetings which they say will improve public engagement.

But Coun Mick Brankin, Independent for Hoyland Milton, said it was unfair to expect people from Hoyland to travel to Penistone for a meeting.

Speaking at a council meeting last week Coun Brankin said: "Why should I have to go out to Penistone for a meeting? What a waste of time, effort, and money."

The nine area forums that meet to discuss local issues will be replaced by five area partnerships - Southwest, North, Central, Southeast and Northeast.

The proposed Southwest area will come into operation from July 1.

Leader Coun Steve Houghton said: "This is not a cost cutting exercise. No costs are to reduce. It's a matter of managing existing resources more effectively.

"It's the next step in the modernisation of the council - to get services to respond more quickly and effectively in their local areas."

The Chronicle understands the community support fund, £29,000 per ward, will still be allocated within each ward and will not be affected by the merger.

Coun Roy Miller, cabinet spokesman for customer and neighbourhood services, said: "An area conference, open to the public, will be held annually in each of the five new area neighbourhoods, which span the borough.

"These will encourage debate on local priorities, generate ideas for improvement and empower people to take action.

"At ward level, three engagement events a year will take place, again open to the public, partners and businesses. The format of these will vary widely to appeal to a greater range of people.

"There are many other ways for people to get involved in their communities, from borough-wide to village and street level."

The council is also proposing a face-to-face survey with all residents.