Plans for a separate Moorclose parish council have been thrown out by Allerdale council.

Allerdale councillors voted against a proposal by borough and county councillor Stephen Stoddart for the Workington estate to have its own parish council.

It came during a review of the number of councillors and areas covered by Workington Town Council.

Councillor Stoddart, who until recently was a town councillor, had submitted a petition to the council calling for a separate parish council for Moorclose.

But borough councillors voted against his request.

Instead, full council agreed with the recommendations of a working party, made up of the 15 councillors who represent Workington wards on the borough council.

They were that the number of Workington Town Council wards should drop from 11 to eight, and the number of town councillors fall from 30 to 25.

The review was carried out at the request of Workington Town Council and two rounds of public consultation were held on the issue.

There had been a proposal to integrate Winscales into the Workington Town Council area, but the Winscales community expressed a desire to keep its parish council and it was agreed that no changes should be made.

Allerdale council's recommendations will now be considered by the Local Government Boundary Commission for England, which will have the final say.

Borough councillors also agreed with recommendations for parish changes in Broughton, Embleton and Keswick.

They included Broughton Parish Council reducing from 13 councillors to 10, and Embleton Parish Council having one ward rather than the current three.

In Keswick the recommendations would see some homes in Underskiddaw Parish, part of St John's, Castlerigg and Wythburn Parish brought under the town council's remit.

The final say on these recommendations also rests with the Local Government Boundary Commission for England.

If approved, the changes would come into effect at the May 2019 elections.