2014 Wyre Forest District Council election

The 2014 Wyre Forest District Council election took place on 22 May 2014 to elect members of Wyre Forest District Council in Worcestershire, England. One third of the council was up for election and the council stayed under no overall control.[1]

Map of the results of the 2014 Wyre Forest District Council election. Conservatives in blue, UK Independence Party in purple, Labour in red, Health Concern in pink and independent in light grey. Wards in dark grey were not contested in 2014.

After the election, the composition of the council was

Background

Between the last election in 2012 and the 2014 election there were several changes in the political composition due to defections. Only weeks after the 2012 election, Offmore and Comberton councillor Rose Bishop defected from the Liberals to the Conservatives, taking the Conservatives to exactly half of the seats on the council, with 21 councillors.[3] However, in May 2013 the Conservative councillor for Aggborough and Spennells, John Aston, left the party to sit as an independent after failing to be backed by the Conservatives for the position of vice chairman of the council.[4] Also in May 2013 the Conservative councillor for Mitton, Mike Salter, left the party to become an independent, and then went on to join Health Concern later that year.[5]

Finally in March 2014, the councillor for Bewdley and Arley Julian Phillips quit the Conservative party to become an independent.[6] These changes meant that before the 2014 election there were 18 Conservative councillors, 9 Health Concern, 8 Labour, 3 Liberals and 3 independents in the Liberal and Independent group, and one other independent councillor.[7]

In April 2014 the council got a new leader after Conservative John Campion resigned and party colleague Marcus Hart was elected to succeed him.[8]

Candidates

14 seats were contested in 2014 with the successful candidates only being elected for one year as the whole council was being elected in 2015 after boundary changes.[7] The Conservatives defended 8 of the 14 seats, with 2 cabinet members standing for re-election, John Campion and Ian Hardiman, while the former Liberal councillor Rose Bishop defended Offmore and Comberton as a Conservative.[7] Of the remaining six seats contested, three were held by Health Concern, with Mike Salter defending Aggborough and Spennells for the party after his move from the Conservatives.[7] However councillor Howard Martin stood in Broadwaters for Labour after originally being elected for Health Concern in 2010.[7]

Independent John Aston stood in Aggborough and Spennells after his move from the Conservatives, while the final seat in Greenhill was held by Liberal Tim Ingham before the election.[7] However Ingham stood in Offmore and Comberton at the 2014 election, leaving Rachel Lewis to defend Greenhill for the Liberal Party.[7]

Meanwhile, the UK Independence Party did not have any seats before the election, but stood candidates for all 14 seats that were contested.[9] They were joined by the Conservatives, Health Concern and Labour in contesting every seat, while the Liberal Party, Green Party, Trade Unionist and Socialist Coalition and an independent contested some of the seats.[9]

Election result

The UK Independence Party gained five seats, to get the party's first councillors on Wyre Forest District Council and they came within 100 votes of overtaking the Conservatives in the share of the vote.[10][11] The gains came from the Conservatives in Franche and Oldington and Foley Park, from Labour in Broadwaters, in Mitton from Health Concern and in Greenhill from the Liberal Party.[10][12] Despite losing three seats the Conservative party remained the largest party on the council with 15 councillors, but Conservative cabinet member Ian Hardiman was defeated in Habberley and Blakebrook and the vice-chairman of the council Daniel McCann lost in Franche.[10]

Labour became the second largest party on the council with 9 seats after gaining seats in Habberley and Blakebrook and Areley Kings.[10] However they lost Broadwaters to the UK Independence Party and dropped to fourth in vote share with 18% of the vote.[10] Health Concern lost two seats to have seven councillors but won the third most votes, while the Liberals lost a seat in Greenhill to have two councillors.[10][11][12] Finally John Aston held Aggborough and Spennells as an independent, meaning there remained four independents on the council.[10] Overall turnout at the election was 36%.[10]

Following the election the unaffiliated independent councillor Julian Phillips joined the Liberal and Independent group, which then formed an alliance with the Conservatives to control the council.[13] Between the 15 Conservatives, 4 independents and 2 Liberals they controlled exactly half of the seats on the council.[13] Conservative Marcus Hart remained leader of the council, with the leader of the Liberal and Independent group Helen Dyke joining the council cabinet.[13]

Wyre Forest local election result 2014[2][14]
Party Seats Gains Losses Net gain/loss Seats % Votes % Votes +/−
  Conservative 5 0 3 -3 35.7 26.2 6,715 -1.6%
  UKIP 5 5 0 +5 35.7 25.8 6,622 +22.5%
  Labour 2 2 1 +1 14.3 18.0 4,616 -8.0%
  Health Concern 1 0 2 -2 7.1 20.8 5,344 -10.4%
  Independent 1 0 0 0 7.1 3.3 836 -0.6%
  Liberal 0 0 1 -1 0 4.2 1,083 -1.2%
  Green 0 0 0 0 0 1.4 352 -0.9%
  TUSC 0 0 0 0 0 0.3 76 +0.3%

Ward results
Aggborough and Spennells[14]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Independent John Aston 836 43.4 -6.6
Conservative Andrew Tromans 330 17.1 +0.8
UKIP Thomas Wooldridge 309 16.0 +16.0
Health Concern Keith Robertson 248 12.9 -6.6
Labour Conan Norton 155 8.0 -2.5
Green Ronald Lee 50 2.6 -1.1
Majority 506 26.2 -4.2
Turnout 1,928 36.9 +5.5
Independent hold Swing
Areley Kings[14]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Labour Robert Lloyd 557 30.6 -17.8
UKIP Ian Jones 454 24.9 +24.9
Health Concern Nigel Thomas 412 22.6 -6.6
Conservative Kenneth Henderson 400 21.9 -0.4
Majority 103 5.7 -13.5
Turnout 1,823 38.9 +5.2
Labour gain from Health Concern Swing
Bewdley and Arley[14]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Conservative Stephen Clee 622 27.0 -14.1
Health Concern Derek Killingworth 583 25.3 -9.7
UKIP John Boden 565 24.6 +24.6
Labour George Court 408 17.7 -6.2
Green Phillip Oliver 122 5.3 +5.3
Majority 39 1.7 -4.4
Turnout 2,300 43.7 +8.8
Conservative hold Swing
Blakedown and Chaddesley[14]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Conservative Pauline Hayward 779 55.8 -22.8
UKIP Adrian Dawes 278 19.9 +19.9
Health Concern Louise Hinett 223 16.0 +16.0
Labour Bernadette Connor 116 8.3 -4.2
Majority 501 35.9 -30.2
Turnout 1,396 42.6 -6.3
Conservative hold Swing
Broadwaters[14]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
UKIP Paul Wooldridge 634 32.9 +32.9
Labour Howard Martin 476 24.7 -10.8
Health Concern Peter Young 453 23.5 -14.3
Conservative Sally Chambers 301 15.6 -1.3
Liberal Esther Smart 63 3.3 -1.6
Majority 158 8.2
Turnout 1,927 32.1 +4.6
UKIP gain from Labour Swing
Franche[14]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
UKIP Anthony Clent 572 28.9 +17.9
Conservative Daniel McCann 550 27.8 +2.6
Health Concern Caroline Shellie 475 24.0 -1.5
Labour Leroy Wright 353 17.8 -16.4
TUSC Nigel Gilbert 29 1.5 +1.5
Majority 22 1.1
Turnout 1,979 35.3 +4.1
UKIP gain from Conservative Swing
Greenhill[14]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
UKIP Martin Stooke 540 29.5 +29.5
Health Concern John Rayner 371 20.3 -11.8
Conservative Ruth Gregory 331 18.1 +0.9
Labour Mumshad Ahmed 275 15.0 -11.8
Liberal Rachel Akathiotis 176 9.6 -9.0
Green Victoria Lea 104 5.7 +0.4
TUSC Ingra Kirkland 34 1.9 +1.9
Majority 169 9.2
Turnout 1,831 30.4 +4.9
UKIP gain from Liberal Swing
Habberley and Blakebrook[14]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Labour Lynn Hyde 663 33.3 -3.1
Conservative Ian Hardiman 501 25.2 -3.9
UKIP Peter Willoughby 474 23.8 +13.9
Health Concern Anthony Greenfield 341 17.1 -5.3
TUSC Kevin Young 13 0.7 +0.7
Majority 162 8.1 +0.8
Turnout 1,992 38.1 +3.5
Labour gain from Conservative Swing
Lickhill[14]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Health Concern Dixon Sheppard 622 33.5 -19.4
UKIP Berenice Dawes 482 26.0 +26.0
Conservative David Little 466 25.1 -3.0
Labour David Keogh-Smith 285 15.4 -3.7
Majority 140 7.5 -17.3
Turnout 1,855 33.9 +4.9
Health Concern hold Swing
Mitton[14]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
UKIP John Holden 667 32.7 +32.7
Health Concern Michael Salter 595 29.2 -13.5
Conservative Tony Muir 460 22.6 -11.4
Labour Carol Warren 317 15.5 -1.2
Majority 72 3.5
Turnout 2,039 34.1 +6.1
UKIP gain from Health Concern Swing
Offmore and Comberton[14]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Conservative Rosemary Bishop 623 29.9 +13.9
UKIP William Hopkins 558 26.7 +26.7
Liberal Timothy Ingham 351 16.8 -26.8
Labour Keith Budden 300 14.4 -0.7
Health Concern Christopher Watkins 254 12.2 -13.0
Majority 65 3.1
Turnout 2,086 38.5 +6.1
Conservative hold Swing
Oldington and Foley Park[14]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
UKIP Michael Wrench 338 34.3 +19.4
Conservative Nichola Gale 244 24.8 -5.7
Labour Samuel Arnold 236 24.0 -5.9
Health Concern Susan Meekings 167 17.0 -5.2
Majority 94 9.5
Turnout 985 26.9 +4.3
UKIP gain from Conservative Swing
Sutton Park[14]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Conservative John-Paul Campion 517 27.7 -14.0
Liberal David Hollyoak 458 24.5 +24.5
UKIP Charlotte Stokes 398 21.3 +8.4
Health Concern James Lawson 230 12.3 -9.5
Labour Paul Connor 187 10.0 -10.1
Green Michael Whitbread 76 4.1 +0.6
Majority 59 3.2 -16.7
Turnout 1,866 32.9 +6.2
Conservative hold Swing
Wribbenhall[14]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Conservative Gordon Yarranton 591 36.1 +4.2
Health Concern Linda Candlin 369 22.6 -14.4
UKIP Maurice Alton 353 21.6 +21.6
Labour George Jones 288 17.6 -13.6
Liberal Michael Akathiotis 35 2.1 +2.1
Majority 222 13.6
Turnout 1,636 40.4 +8.5
Conservative hold Swing

References
  1. "Wyre Forest". BBC News Online. Retrieved 19 April 2015.
  2. "Results Elections 2014". The Times. NewsBank. 24 May 2014. pp. 88–89.
  3. Tomaney, William (23 May 2012). "Wyre Forest district councillor switches from Liberal to Conservative Party". The Shuttle. Retrieved 21 April 2015.
  4. Brown, Cadisha (30 May 2013). "John Aston quits Tories in bust-up over vice-chairman role at council". The Shuttle. Retrieved 21 April 2015.
  5. Tomaney, William (4 October 2013). "Former Tory joins Health Concern". Redditch & Alcester Advertiser. Retrieved 21 April 2015.
  6. Tomany, William (14 March 2014). "Councillor Julian Phillips leaves the Conservative Party". The Shuttle. Retrieved 21 April 2015.
  7. Tomaney, William (25 April 2014). "Former leader John Campion one of eight Tories defending Wyre Forest seat next month". The Shuttle. Retrieved 21 April 2015.
  8. Tomaney, William (21 April 2014). "New council leader pledges to give quality for money". The Shuttle. NewsBank.
  9. Tomaney, William (12 May 2014). "Parties vie for your votes at election day". The Shuttle. NewsBank.
  10. Tomaney, William (23 May 2014). "Wyre Forest political spectrum shifted as UKIP makes gains (From Kidderminster Shuttle)". The Shuttle. Retrieved 21 April 2015.
  11. Tomaney, William (28 May 2014). "Tories clung to top spot by fewer than 100 votes in district elections". The Shuttle. NewsBank.
  12. "Elections 2014". The Shuttle. Retrieved 21 April 2015.
  13. Tomaney, William (10 June 2014). "Wyre Forest Tories form ruling political alliance with Liberal and Independent group". The Shuttle. NewsBank.
  14. "2014 Results Breakdown". Wyre Forest District Council. Retrieved 19 April 2015.
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