Residents have signed a petition, and have been campaigning to move to Inverell Shire Council for more than a year.

Armidale Regional Council mayor Simon Murray said all council is trying to do is bring everyone into the discussion.

“A change in boundary will affect everyone in the identified area, and it’s important that everyone is given plenty of opportunity to voice their opinion – not just those people who regularly participate in public conversations,” he said.

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Council announced it will take the consultation back to the drawing board last week, to the dismay of Tingha Citizen’s Association president Colleen Graham, who has championed the move to Inverell.

Ms Graham maintains 12 per cent of signatories on the petition are Aboriginal, and that they didn’t need special consultation because it’s an inclusive community.

Council wants to work with Aboriginal elders to arrange an information session just for that community.

“Aboriginal communities can typically be difficult to reach through traditional communication channels,” Cr Murray said.

“Tingha has a particularly high proportion of Aboriginal residents, so it’s essential to take steps to ensure the Aboriginal community has plenty of opportunity to find out about the proposed boundary alignment and the community poll.”

The new council was elected in September, and Cr Murray said he wants to make sure the proper steps have been taken before making a submission to the Local Government Minister Gabriel Upton.

Former administrator Ian Tiley had signed off on the move, along with Inverell Shire Council mayor Paul Harmon – but, no boundary adjustments can be made six months either side of an election.

While a public petition is valued feedback, council has no knowledge of how the petition signatures were collected or the information given to the people who signed it, Cr Murray said.

“For any issue as important as a boundary adjustment, council needs to be fully confident of the objectivity and accuracy of the information provided as part of any community feedback,” he said.

All property owners in the Tingha area identified to move to the Inverell Shire will receive a letter from the council with a poll question and a reply paid envelope.

A community information stall will be outside Tingha Town Hall on Friday June 8 from 2:30pm to 4:30pm.