Sheffield

[David Ashforth]

The Green Party have announced their 'Leading candidates' for the local elections. link

City ward - Douglas Johnson is seeking re-election. All three councillors in the ward are Greens and they got 62.5% of the vote here last year.  Cllr Johnson's re-election is more than likely.
Broomhill and Sharrow Vale - The Greens have two of the three seats with Labour's seat up for re-election in May. The Labour councillor, Michelle Cook, resigned from the council last week (link) for health reasons. The Greens got 58.5% last year and Brian Holmshaw is likely to make this an all Green ward. (If Brian does any more history walks (link) I recommend them, particularly the pubs and breweries ones   )
Nether Edge and Sharrow - Like Broomhill and Sharrow Vale ward, here the Greens have two of the three seats with Labour's seat up for re-election in May. Last month, Labour councillor Jim Steinke announced he wasn't seeking re-election (link). The Green candidate is Maroof Raouf, the party got 56.2% last year and he is likely to be elected.
Gleadless Valley - When the Liberal Democrats were the largest party in Sheffield (2008 - 2011) they had two of the three councillors here. But since then the ward has elected Labour councillors, that is until last year when a Green councillor was elected for the first time, and it wasn't a close result (49.8% to Labour's 31.6%). The previous year's figures were Labour 43.3% and Green 34.9%. The Green candidate is Declan Walsh.
Walkley - This ward used to be a marginal between Labour and the Liberal Democrats and represented by J.G.Harston . At last year's election the Labour majority was only 41, with the Greens in second place. All three councillors are Labour, who will need a new candidate as Olivia Blake is now the MP for Sheffield Hallam and so not seeking re-election in May. The Green candidate is Debbie Moon.
Hillsborough - Like Gleadless Valley, when the Liberal Democrats were the largest party in Sheffield they had two of the three councillors here, but unlike Gleadless Valley the Greens haven't won a seat here and all three councillors are Labour. Christine Gilligan Kubo is again the Green candidate. She was 532 votes behind Labour last year (25.3% to Labour's 37.3%). In 2018 she was 1,224 votes behind, but again in second place (20.7% to Labour's 46.8%). She also stood in Hillsborough in the elections before that, the 'all out' electons in 2016 following the boundary changes. So, she's hoping to make it fourth time lucky.

[J.G.Harston]

Feb 11, 2020 22:39:40 GMT David Ashforth said:

Walkley - This ward used to be a marginal between Labour and the Liberal Democrats and represented by J.G.Harston . At last year's election the Labour majority was only 41, with the Greens in second place. All three councillors are Labour, who will need a new candidate as Olivia Blake is now the MP for Sheffield Hallam and so not seeking re-election in May. The Green candidate is Debbie Moon.

I'll probably get told off for posting this, but last year I had a certain incentive to vote Green with my Walkley vote. So close......

[YL]

Let's update the ward profiles for 2020. Part 1/4:

Beauchief & Greenhill (3 Lib Dem)

Beauchief (pronounced "Beechiff") is a middle class suburban area around the abbey of the same name. Greenhill (pronounced "Grennel" by some, though as spelt by others) is a one-time Derbyshire village swallowed by 20th century urban expansion. In addition to these the ward contains the deprived fringe estates of Jordanthorpe, Batemoor and Lowedges, which when combined with Beauchief makes for a very polarised ward.

Political history: There was a ward called Beauchief from 1967 to 2004, which was safe Conservative until the early 1990s when it jumped to being safe Lib Dem. However it included less of the fringe estates than the current ward. The 2004 to 2016 incarnation usually voted Lib Dem, but became very close after 2010, and voted Labour in 2012 and 2015. Under slightly modified boundaries since 2016 it has consistently voted Lib Dem, reasonably comfortably.

Beighton (2 Lab, 1 Lib Dem; Lab defending)

This is essentially the northern part of the Mosborough Townships area, a New Town like area built on land taken over from Derbyshire County Council in the 1960s, and includes its shopping centre Crystal Peaks, Beighton proper (an old mining village), Sothall and Hackenthorpe. There's quite a bit of modern private detached housing, some council estates, especially towards Hackenthorpe, and some older terraced housing in Beighton proper.

Political history: Until 2004, most of this area was part of a giant Mosborough ward. That ward elected an Independent in 1967 and a Tory in 1968, but after that was consistently Labour. Since the split, Beighton ward had also been consistently Labour, though it's shown more signs of a Tory vote than most other Sheffield wards (and they probably carried it in the 2019 General Election). UKIP also did quite well at times. Labour won all three seats in 2016, with a UKIP candidate next behind them. Since then, Labour held one seat in a by-election in which UKIP fell away and the Lib Dems came second. The Lib Dems narrowly held second ahead of the Tories in 2018, but then in 2019 they won for the first time.

Birley (3 Lab)

Like Beighton, this area was taken over from Derbyshire County Council in the 1960s. It's now a a mixture of private interwar areas like Charnock, with a lot of semi detached housing, and postwar council estates, some of which have had poor quality 1960s housing demolished recently.

Political history: A similar Birley ward existed from 1967 to 2004, and was usually Labour except in their nadirs of 1968 and 1999, when it voted Tory and Lib Dem respectively. The 2004 to 2016 version always voted Labour, and that has continued since 2016 under slightly modified boundaries; again there's been a significant UKIP vote.

Broomhill & Sharrow Vale (2 Green, 1 vacant (Lab); Lab defending)

Broomhill is a middle-class Victorian suburb (described by John Betjeman as "the prettiest suburb in England") which now has a large student population. The rest of the ward also has a large student population, and includes trendy Sharrow Vale and inner city ethnically mixed Broomhall, which includes a 1960s council estate which contrasts with the Victorian housing in the rest of the ward.

Political history: There's been a Broomhill ward of some sort since 1929, and it was a safe Conservative ward until the 1980s, when it became a Lab/Con marginal for a time before settling down to voting Lib Dem in the late 1990s. It used to extend further out into what is now Fulwood ward than this version, and Sharrow Vale was only added in 2016. The 2004 to 2016 incarnation was Lib Dem pre-Coalition but Labour took it in 2011 and 2012; the Greens moved into second place in 2012 and then won it in both 2014 and 2015. Under the new boundaries in 2016 Labour won two seats and the Greens one, but the Greens comfortably took one of the Labour seats in 2018 and held their own seat in 2019 by a landslide.

Burngreave (3 Lab)

Burngreave is an ethnically mixed inner city area north of the city centre. As well as Burngreave proper the ward extends north to include the Fir Vale/Page Hall area, also ethnically mixed with a lot of small pre-WW1 terraced houses which at one point were proposed for demolition under New Labour's "Pathfinder" scheme, the Northern General Hospital and parts of Shirecliffe, which is an interwar council estate. Deprivation levels are high throughout.

Political history: There's been a Burngreave ward since 1901. The ward hasn't always been as safe Labour as might be expected: it elected Tory councillors in 1967 and 1968, and in the 1970s became a Liberal stronghold. More recently, though, it has been safe Labour, staying with the party through their late 1990s nadir. In 2018 it had the highest Labour share in Sheffield.

City (3 Green)

This ward contains the City Centre, which, like many city centres, has a lot of modern apartment developments. It extends outside the Inner Ring Road to include Kelham Island (more apartments, but also real ale pubs and associated breweries) and, on the other side of the centre, part of Highfield (mostly Victorian terraces, and Bramall Lane football ground). Unsurprisingly, there are quite a lot of students and other low turnout groups.

Political history: This is the successor to the 2004 to 2016 Central ward, which generally voted Green except in 2004 (when it split three ways, electing one each of Lab, Green and Lib Dem) and when there's been a simultaneous General Election, when it has voted Labour. In 2016, cut down to not much more than the city centre, Labour won one seat and the Greens the other two; the Greens then took the Labour seat with a small majority in 2018 before holding their seat with a much bigger majority in 2019. Before 2004, there wouldn't be an obvious predecessor to the current ward: bits were in Sharrow (usually Labour), Castle (always Labour) and Netherthorpe (often Labour, but usually Lib Dem from the mid 1990s onwards).

Crookes & Crosspool (2 Lib Dem, 1 Lab; Lab defending)

This ward is on the hills to the west of the University of Sheffield and Hallamshire Hospital, and many of the people who live in it either work or study there. Crookes is mainly Victorian/Edwardian terraced housing, while Crosspool and Sandygate to the west are mostly interwar suburbia. Like the rest of the Hallam constituency, deprivation is low, but generally look elsewhere in Hallam for real poshness. One of its polling stations is Hallam FC's Sandygate ground, which for some definitions of "football ground" is the oldest football ground in the world.

Political history: This ward (just called Crookes before 2016, but the boundary changes were minor) was really a 2004 creation, and was safe Lib Dem pre-Coalition. A huge swing saw it go Labour in 2011, the Lib Dems held on in 2012, and Labour won again in 2014 and 2015; in 2016 both parties held their seats, though two of the councillors retired. In the tree-affected 2018 and 2019 elections, the Lib Dems first took one of the Labour seats before holding their own seat, and in 2019 the Greens nearly beat Labour into third. Before 2004, the largest part of the ward was in the old Hallam ward, which was consistently Conservative until their 1994 collapse and consistently Lib Dem thereafter. On the post-2004 boundaries, which would have been less favourable for them anyway, the Tories have fallen to fourth.

[YL]

Batch 2/4:

Darnall (3 Lab)

This ward contains Darnall, Tinsley and Attercliffe, including much of the old steel-making heartland of the Lower Don Valley. Its residential areas, maining in Darnall itself and Tinsley, are working class areas with a lot of terraced housing and a high Asian population. Much of the housing in the rest of the ward was demolished under slum clearance programmes in the 1960s and 1970s. It also includes the MeadowhellMeadowhall shopping centre.

Political history: Darnall, Attercliffe and Tinsley all had their own wards in the days before slum clearance, but since 1980 most of this area has been in a single Darnall ward. Wins for parties other than Labour have been rare, but the Lib Dems did win Darnall in 1999, and the Tories in 1968. In recent years Darnall has always voted Labour, and it's one of their strongest wards in the city.

Dore & Totley (3 Lib Dem)

Dore and Totley are one time Derbyshire villages annexed by the city in the 1930s. Dore has a reputation for being decidedly posh, Totley a bit less so but still mostly middle class. The ward also contains middle class suburban Bradway to the south and Whirlow (posh again), the tiny village of Ringinglow, some rural Peak District fringe and moorlands, and some of the western fringes of Ecclesall.

Political history: This was once the Tory stronghold you'd expect. The old Dore ward (which covered a similar area) was consistently Tory until 1994; after then it's usually voted Lib Dem but unlike anywhere in Sheffield still elected Tories occasionally, in 1996, 2000 and 2004. In recent years the Lib Dems have been very comfortable, getting their highest vote shares in the city here in 2018 and 2019. The Tories were still second until 2019, when the Greens narrowly beat them into third.

East Ecclesfield (2 Lab, 1 Lib Dem; Lab defending)

Ecclesfield is a large civil parish to the north of Sheffield, added to the city in 1974 and largely suburban. It contains a number of distinct communities, and two, Ecclesfield proper and Chapeltown, make up the bulk of this ward. The ward also extends south to include part of the large area of interwar council estates which make up much of north-east Sheffield, Ecclesfield parish not being quite big enough for two whole wards of its own.

Political history: This ward was created in this form in 2004; before that the area was in the bizarrely named "South Wortley" and "Chapel-Green" wards. Pre-2010, this was usually a Lib Dem area going back to the early 1980s, but Labour won it in 2010 and the Lib Dems didn't recover. The ward isn't always keen on Sheffield Labour, though, and found a new outlet for this by voting UKIP in 2014. In the 2016 all-ups both Labour and UKIP held their seats, but Labour took the UKIP seat in 2018, before in 2019 the ward returned to its old Lib Dem allegiance, although their winning share was only 31%.

Ecclesall (3 Lib Dem)

Ecclesall is a very middle class area in south-west Sheffield. The ward extends to include some neighbouring areas such as Greystones, Carter Knowle and Millhouses. Most of it consists of interwar suburbia, with some older housing in and around Greystones and also some more modern areas. Some areas are very wealthy, some merely comfortable. Almost everywhere in the ward is in a Super Output Area in the least deprived 10% in England.

Political history: There's been an Ecclesall ward since forever, although if you go back far enough most of the area of the current ward was rural and the votes mostly in areas closer to the city centre. Until 1994 it was generally a Conservative fortress, but they lost it in their collapse that year and it then turned into a Lib Dem fortress. Labour moved into second during the Coalition years, but they haven't really threatened to win, and in 2019 the Greens overtook them. The once dominant Tories have been fourth in recent years, with only 7% of the vote in 2019.

Firth Park (3 Lab)

Between the wars, Sheffield built a very large area of council housing in the north-east of the city. Three wards are dominated by this, and Firth Park is the middle one. The core of Firth Park proper, around the park, had been developed before that and perhaps has more in common with the north end of Burngreave, so this ward is slightly more diverse than its eastern and western neighbours.

Political history: Firth Park is another very long standing ward name, dating back to 1929. The last time it voted for a party other than Labour was for the Tories in 1968, so we're talking pretty safe. UKIP sometimes polled well here, especially in 2014, but the ward now looks safe Labour again.

Fulwood (3 Lib Dem)

This is another middle class suburban ward in the west of the city. Fulwood proper is a wealthy suburban area. Further in, Ranmoor is an area of big Victorian villas, and together with neighbouring Endcliffe has some big University accommodation complexes. Up on the hill, Lodge Moor is slightly less upmarket than the rest of the ward, and the ward also contains a large but thinly populated rural area, in the Mayfield Valley and Hallam Moors. As with the rest of Hallam, deprivation is generally very low.

Political history: Before 2004, most of this was in the old Hallam ward which had a similar political history to Ecclesall, Conservative before 1994 and Lib Dem thereafter. Since the new Fulwood ward was created in 2004, it's been consistently Lib Dem; as in Ecclesall Labour overtook the Tories for a distant second in the Coalition years but have now themselves been overtaken by the Greens.

Gleadless Valley (2 Lab, 1 Green; Lab defending)

The name refers to the valley of the Meers Brook, the old Yorkshire/Derbyshire boundary, and the ward contains areas on both sides of the valley. On the Derbyshire side we have Meersbrook, dominated by a park with good views over the city and with a bit of an "alternative" reputation, and on the Yorkshire side we have the terraced houses of Heeley and Olive Grove; further up the valley is the Council's 1950s showpiece Gleadless Valley estate, with the two (once three) tower blocks on the top of the hill at Herdings which can be seen from many parts of the city. Deprivation is highest in the Gleadless Valley estate and lowest in Meersbrook.

Political history: This ward was a 2004 creation. Before then, the most natural comparison would be to Heeley ward, which was Labour in the 1970s and 1980s but voted Lib Dem in most elections from 1994 onwards. Gleadless Valley was often very close in its early years but only actually voted Lib Dem in 2007 and 2008; it then turned solidly Labour. However, the presence of Meersbrook ensures a significant Green vote, the highest outside Central constituency, and after coming close in 2018 the Greens won the ward for the first time in 2019.

[YL]

Batch 3/4:

Graves Park (3 Lib Dem)

This ward is named after a large park in the southern suburbs, and contains Woodseats and Norton Lees to the north of the park and Norton proper to the south. Almost the entire ward is historically speaking in Derbyshire. Woodseats is dominated by pre-WW1 terraces, and much of the rest of the ward is inter-war semis and similar housing. For an urban area deprivation is mostly fairly low (but not Hallam low).

Political history: This is one of those wards which was created in 2004 and doesn't have an obvious predecessor. There was a Norton ward from 1980 to 2004, which usually voted Labour but voted Lib Dem from 1996 to 2000, but it wasn't that similar to this ward. If you go further back most of the area was in consistently Conservative Norton and Woodseats wards before 1967. Graves Park has always voted Lib Dem, though majorities have sometimes been small.

Hillsborough (3 Lab)

Hillsborough is, of course, best known for its football stadium, which was originally known as Owlerton Stadium (hence the club's nickname) and actually wasn't in Hillsborough ward until 2004. Much of the area is terraced housing close to the shops along Middlewood Road and Hillsborough Park; there are some more upmarket pockets and, in the west of the ward, the Wisewood council estate. There's also a large and distinctive block of 1930s flats called Regent Court, and a lot of industrial land along the floor of the Don valley stretching towards the city centre.

Political history: There's been a Hillsborough ward since the area was added to the city at the beginning of the 20th century. For much of that time it actually had a Conservative lean by Sheffield standards, and only really became safe Labour in the 1980s. It then went Lib Dem in the 1990s and back to Labour from 2002 onwards. In recent years, it's voted Labour except in 2007 and 2008, when the closure of Wisewood School was a major issue, and recently has been comfortably Labour; the Greens are now in second place.

Manor Castle (3 Lab)

This is named after Sheffield Manor (or what's left of it), home for a time to Mary Queen of Scots, and now surrounded by a large council estate known simply as "the Manor" and with a bit of a reputation in the rest of the city. The ward also includes the not dissimilar Wybourn, and the famous (and listed) enormous Brutalist blocks of Park Hill, part way through a refurbishment programme. There's also a small area of Victorian villas on leafy streets between Park Hill and Norfolk Park, a bit of a contrast from the rest of the ward.

Political history: Much of this ward has been in a Labour-voting ward consistently since the 1920s. Before 2004, there were separate Manor (covering the Manor estate) and Castle (covering Wybourn, Park Hill and part of the city centre, including the site of Sheffield Castle) wards, which were basically merged with a few areas being removed. Both were utterly safe Labour fortresses, held comfortably even in 1968 and 1999, and since 2004 Manor Castle has continued in that vein.

Mosborough (2 Lib Dem, 1 Lab; Lab defending)

This is the southern part of the Mosborough Townships area, covering Mosborough village itself, a Derbyshire mining village annexed by the city in the late 1960s, and various late 20th century developments near it, including Halfway, which some wag decided should be a tram terminus. Like Beighton it is a mix of private detached housing, modern council estates, and some older housing in Mosborough village.

Political history: Since the old Mosborough ward was split in 2004, this ward had usually voted Labour, except for a double vacancy election in 2008 when it elected two Lib Dems. More recently, like the rest of the south-east of the city, it had some relatively high UKIP votes, but they hadn't really threatened to win. Then, in a bit of a surprise, there was a by-election in September 2016 in which one of the Lib Dems who had been elected in 2008 stood again and won, giving the Lib Dems their only seat in the east of the city; she successfully defended that seat in 2018 and the Lib Dems took another in 2019. As with Beighton it seems likely that the Tories carried it in the General Election.

Nether Edge & Sharrow (2 Green, 1 Lab; Lab defending)

Nether Edge is a Victorian leafy (meaning that the trees issue has been particularly salient here) suburb with a lot of stone villas, but also some areas of smaller terraced housing, especially in the east towards Abbeydale Road, where there is a large Asian community. Some parts, especially in Brincliffe, are really quite upmarket. Sharrow is a very ethnically diverse inner city area with a mix of Victorian terraces and some more modern council housing; it merges into Nether Edge in the south. The ward also contains part of Highfield, which is similar to Sharrow.

Political history: Until 2004 there were separate Nether Edge and Sharrow wards, covering areas outside as well as inside this new ward. Nether Edge was a Conservative stronghold until going Labour in 1984, after which it never went Tory again but became a Lib Dem ward in the 1990s; the 2004 to 2016 version was Lib Dem pre-Coalition and Labour from 2011 onwards, though note a very strong Green second place in 2015. Sharrow sometimes voted Conservative in the distant past, but from 1970 onwards was solid Labour; in 2004 Sharrow became part of Central ward which usually voted Green. In the 2016 all-ups, the new ward elected two Labour councillors and one Green; one of the Labour councillors resigned in 2017 over the trees issue and Labour narrowly held the seat over the Greens in the by-election, but then Green councillor and tree campaigner Alison Teal held her seat with a large majority in 2018 and the Greens easily took a second seat in 2019.

Park & Arbourthorne (3 Lab)

Arbourthorne is a large inter-war council estate on the hills south-east of the city centre. To its north is the large Norfolk Park, which is partially surrounded by an area which was developed in the 1960s with a large number of tower blocks, and then redeveloped more recently with low rise housing and the tower blocks being blown up. To the south is Gleadless, which has a rather quiet suburban feel with a lot of interwar semis and is the only part of the ward less deprived than the English median. The area was in the former deer park of Sheffield Manor, which explains the Park part of the name.

Political history: The ward covering most of this area was called Park before 2004 and Arbourthorne between 2004 and 2016. After the 1920s, Park was generally safe Labour (held in 1968) but it voted Lib Dem in 1999 and 2000; the 2004 to 2016 Arbourthorne always voted Labour, and the name change hasn't changed that. In 2019, Labour's winning share was under 40%, but the opposition was so split that it was still a reasonably comfortable win.

Richmond (3 Lab)

This ward is a working class area in the south-east of the city. It includes Woodthorpe, a council estate which is something of a continuation of the Manor, and also includes Richmond itself, Intake and the south-west part of Handsworth, which include more council housing but also areas of private housing, much of which is inter-war semis. Deprivation is generally high but less so in Handsworth and parts of Intake.

Political history: The main pre-2004 predecessor would be Intake, which was usually a Labour ward but voted Conservative in the late 1960s and Lib Dem in 1998, 1999 and 2000. Since 2004, Richmond has always voted Labour, though there were some high UKIP votes at times and in 2018 it was the Tories' best ward in the city.

[YL]

Batch 4/4:

Shiregreen & Brightside (3 Lab)

Shiregreen makes up the north-eastern part of the large area of inter-war council estates in north Sheffield. The ward also contains the older housing of Brightside and hilly Wincobank, site of an old hill fort. This is a working class area, with all except for parts of Wincobank having high deprivation levels.

Political history: Before 2004 most of this area was in the Brightside and Nether Shire wards. This area was solidly Labour going back to the 1920s (including 1968 and 1999), except for a blip when Brightside voted Lib Dem in a 1992 by-election. The solid Labour representation has continued, though UKIP nearly broke it in 2014, and they were over 30% again in 2019.

Southey (3 Lab)

Southey Green, Fox Hill, the western part of Parson Cross and part of Shirecliffe make up most of this ward, and are the western end of the north Sheffield inter-war council estates. One area which feels a bit different is Birley Carr, close to the border with Hillsborough at Wadsley Bridge, which has some older terraced housing, and is the only part of the ward without high deprivation levels.

Political history: The obvious pre-2004 predecessor to this ward was Southey Green, and that was utterly safe Labour. Parts would have been in the old Owlerton ward, which was capable of being not Labour on rare occasions (Tory in 1968, Lib Dem in 1998, the elected councillor then falling out with the Lib Dems and ending up in the continuity Liberals). Since 2004 Southey ward has always voted Labour, but UKIP have often done well and came close in 2014.

Stannington (3 Lib Dem)

Stannington is a village which has been swallowed by the city but still has something of its own identity (including a brass band) and remains in the large civil parish of Bradfield. The ward also includes much of the rest of Bradfield parish, which is largely rural Peak District fringe with scattered small settlements including High and Low Bradfield themselves, Dungworth and Hollow Meadows, the slightly bigger village of Worrall, and the area of Loxley with its Robin Hood associations, and extends west across uninhabited moorland to the Derbyshire border at Back Tor. It also includes an area outside the parish between Stannington proper and Hillsborough, including the 1960s council flats of Deer Park and Liberty Hill, which are the one area in Hallam constituency with high deprivation levels, and neighbouring Woodland View.

Political history: This ward was created in this form in 2004, and has always voted Lib Dem, though Labour cut the majority to just 5 in 2011. From 1974 to 2004, most of it was in South Wortley, which was a Lab/Con marginal in the 1970s before settling down as a usually Alliance/Lib Dem area from the early 1980s.

Stocksbridge & Upper Don (2 Lab, 1 Ind (ex-UKIP); Ind/UKIP defending)

Stocksbridge must be the place within the city boundaries which fits in least as part of the city. It's a Pennine town which shares Sheffield's steel industry history but feels a bit isolated. Stocksbridge shares its town council with middle class Deepcar and the hill village of Bolsterstone, and the ward also includes the northern part of Bradfield parish, including the settlements of Oughtibridge and Wharncliffe Side in the Don valley and a large area of uninhabited Dark Peak moors, as well as small settlements such as Midhopestones and Wigtwizzle in the Peak District fringe. The extreme point of the ward at Swains Head in the Dark Peak is closer to Stalybridge in Greater Manchester than it is to most of Sheffield.

Political history: From 1974 to 2004 Stocksbridge has its own ward, which usually voted Lib Dem but was capable of voting Labour. From 2004, Stocksbridge & Upper Don voted Lib Dem pre-Coalition, but they lost to Labour in 2011 and 2012. As with Ecclesfield, there's a tendency not to like Sheffield Labour, and in recent years UKIP were often the beneficiaries of this, winning the ward in both 2014 (when the Lib Dems, defending the seat, came sixth) and 2015, and holding both those seats in 2016; the other seat remained Labour. In the last couple of elections, Labour have won, but with relatively low winning shares, and it is the most obvious target for the Tories, who were second in 2018. (UKIP regained second place in 2019.)

Walkley (3 Lab)

Walkley is a very hilly area north-west of Sheffield city centre, with a lot of Victorian terraces on steep streets. It tends to get more upmarket and less deprived as you go west up the hills; some of the lower areas in the east of Walkley were slum clearance areas where more modern council housing has replaced the terraces. There are also a few areas of Victorian Land Society development, with slightly larger houses and big gardens. The ward also includes working class Upperthorpe and Netherthorpe between Walkley and the city centre and a very studenty area on the fringe of the city centre.

Political history: There has been a Walkley ward for a long time, since at least 1901. Before the 1990s it was generally a Labour voting area, though like some other areas it did vote Conservative a couple of times in the 1960s. In the 1990s, it became a Labour/Lib Dem marginal, voting Lib Dem more often than not. After major boundary changes in 2004, it continued as a Lib Dem leaning marginal until 2010, but since then it's always voted Labour, and the Greens have now moved into second, only narrowly missing out in 2019. J.G.Harston was a councillor here from 1999 to 2010, and Sheffield Hallam's new MP Olivia Blake is the retiring councillor this year.

West Ecclesfield (2 Lib Dem, 1 Lab; Lab defending)

This ward contains the western part of Ecclesfield parish, with the main communities being Grenoside, an old village now absorbed into the edge of Sheffield's urban area and whose signs advertise its sword dancing tradition, and the more modern community of High Green beyond Greno Woods. Unlike East Ecclesfield it's entirely within the parish. Most of the ward is fairly low deprivation but there are some very high deprivation pockets in High Green.

Political history: Before 2004 Grenoside was in South Wortley and High Green was in "Chapel-Green", both of which were usually Lib Dem. This ward was Lib Dem up to 2010, narrowly Labour in 2011 and 2012, UKIP in 2014, and Labour again in 2015; in the 2016 all-ups both Labour and UKIP held their seats, but Labour's second seat was only thanks to a drawing of lots after a tie with UKIP's second candidate. The Labour candidate who didn't get elected was a mysterious character called Jared O'Mara. In 2018 and 2019, the ward returned to its pre-Coalition ways and voted Lib Dem; there was still a large UKIP share in 2019 and the ward presumably voted Tory in the General Election.

Woodhouse (3 Lab)

Woodhouse is an old village east of Sheffield which has now merged into the eastern edge of the urban area. The ward also includes most of neighbouring Handsworth, also a former village which has merged into the city. These are mixed but largely working class suburban areas, though Handsworth generally is better off than Woodhouse.

Political history: This largely corresponds to the pre-2004 Handsworth ward. That ward was one of those places which was almost always Labour but voted Conservative in 1967 and 1968; it stayed Labour in the 1990s. Since 2004, Woodhouse has consistently voted Labour, though as in a few places UKIP came close in 2014 and have had some strong results since.

[iang]

Feb 23, 2020 21:00:49 GMT YL said:

Batch 4/4:

Shiregreen & Brightside (3 Lab)

Shiregreen makes up the north-eastern part of the large area of inter-war council estates in north Sheffield. The ward also contains the older housing of Brightside and hilly Wincobank, site of an old hill fort. This is a working class area, with all except for parts of Wincobank having high deprivation levels.

Political history: Before 2004 most of this area was in the Brightside and Nether Shire wards. This area was solidly Labour going back to the 1920s (including 1968 and 1999), except for a blip when Brightside voted Lib Dem in a 1992 by-election. The solid Labour representation has continued, though UKIP nearly broke it in 2014, and they were over 30% again in 2019.

Southey (3 Lab)

Southey Green, Fox Hill, the western part of Parson Cross and part of Shirecliffe make up most of this ward, and are the western end of the north Sheffield inter-war council estates. One area which feels a bit different is Birley Carr, close to the border with Hillsborough at Wadsley Bridge, which has some older terraced housing, and is the only part of the ward without high deprivation levels.

Political history: The obvious pre-2004 predecessor to this ward was Southey Green, and that was utterly safe Labour. Parts would have been in the old Owlerton ward, which was capable of being not Labour on rare occasions (Tory in 1968, Lib Dem in 1998, the elected councillor then falling out with the Lib Dems and ending up in the continuity Liberals). Since 2004 Southey ward has always voted Labour, but UKIP have often done well and came close in 2014.

Stannington (3 Lib Dem)

Stannington is a village which has been swallowed by the city but still has something of its own identity (including a brass band) and remains in the large civil parish of Bradfield. The ward also includes much of the rest of Bradfield parish, which is largely rural Peak District fringe with scattered small settlements including High and Low Bradfield themselves, Dungworth and Hollow Meadows, the slightly bigger village of Worrall, and the area of Loxley with its Robin Hood associations, and extends west across uninhabited moorland to the Derbyshire border at Back Tor. It also includes an area outside the parish between Stannington proper and Hillsborough, including the 1960s council flats of Deer Park and Liberty Hill, which are the one area in Hallam constituency with high deprivation levels, and neighbouring Woodland View.

Political history: This ward was created in this form in 2004, and has always voted Lib Dem, though Labour cut the majority to just 5 in 2011. From 1974 to 2004, most of it was in South Wortley, which was a Lab/Con marginal in the 1970s before settling down as a usually Alliance/Lib Dem area from the early 1980s.

Stocksbridge & Upper Don (2 Lab, 1 Ind (ex-UKIP); Ind/UKIP defending)

Stocksbridge must be the place within the city boundaries which fits in least as part of the city. It's a Pennine town which shares Sheffield's steel industry history but feels a bit isolated. Stocksbridge shares its town council with middle class Deepcar and the hill village of Bolsterstone, and the ward also includes the northern part of Bradfield parish, including the settlements of Oughtibridge and Wharncliffe Side in the Don valley and a large area of uninhabited Dark Peak moors, as well as small settlements such as Midhopestones and Wigtwizzle in the Peak District fringe. The extreme point of the ward at Swains Head in the Dark Peak is closer to Stalybridge in Greater Manchester than it is to most of Sheffield.

Political history: From 1974 to 2004 Stocksbridge has its own ward, which usually voted Lib Dem but was capable of voting Labour. From 2004, Stocksbridge & Upper Don voted Lib Dem pre-Coalition, but they lost to Labour in 2011 and 2012. As with Ecclesfield, there's a tendency not to like Sheffield Labour, and in recent years UKIP were often the beneficiaries of this, winning the ward in both 2014 (when the Lib Dems, defending the seat, came sixth) and 2015, and holding both those seats in 2016; the other seat remained Labour. In the last couple of elections, Labour have won, but with relatively low winning shares, and it is the most obvious target for the Tories, who were second in 2018. (UKIP regained second place in 2019.)

Walkley (3 Lab)

Walkley is a very hilly area north-west of Sheffield city centre, with a lot of Victorian terraces on steep streets. It tends to get more upmarket and less deprived as you go west up the hills; some of the lower areas in the east of Walkley were slum clearance areas where more modern council housing has replaced the terraces. There are also a few areas of Victorian Land Society development, with slightly larger houses and big gardens. The ward also includes working class Upperthorpe and Netherthorpe between Walkley and the city centre and a very studenty area on the fringe of the city centre.

Political history: There has been a Walkley ward for a long time, since at least 1901. Before the 1990s it was generally a Labour voting area, though like some other areas it did vote Conservative a couple of times in the 1960s. In the 1990s, it became a Labour/Lib Dem marginal, voting Lib Dem more often than not. After major boundary changes in 2004, it continued as a Lib Dem leaning marginal until 2010, but since then it's always voted Labour, and the Greens have now moved into second, only narrowly missing out in 2019. J.G.Harston was a councillor here from 1999 to 2010, and Sheffield Hallam's new MP Olivia Blake is the retiring councillor this year.

West Ecclesfield (2 Lib Dem, 1 Lab; Lab defending)

This ward contains the western part of Ecclesfield parish, with the main communities being Grenoside, an old village now absorbed into the edge of Sheffield's urban area and whose signs advertise its sword dancing tradition, and the more modern community of High Green beyond Greno Woods. Unlike East Ecclesfield it's entirely within the parish. Most of the ward is fairly low deprivation but there are some very high deprivation pockets in High Green.

Political history: Before 2004 Grenoside was in South Wortley and High Green was in "Chapel-Green", both of which were usually Lib Dem. This ward was Lib Dem up to 2010, narrowly Labour in 2011 and 2012, UKIP in 2014, and Labour again in 2015; in the 2016 all-ups both Labour and UKIP held their seats, but Labour's second seat was only thanks to a drawing of lots after a tie with UKIP's second candidate. The Labour candidate who didn't get elected was a mysterious character called Jared O'Mara. In 2018 and 2019, the ward returned to its pre-Coalition ways and voted Lib Dem; there was still a large UKIP share in 2019 and the ward presumably voted Tory in the General Election.

Woodhouse (3 Lab)

Woodhouse is an old village east of Sheffield which has now merged into the eastern edge of the urban area. The ward also includes most of neighbouring Handsworth, also a former village which has merged into the city. These are mixed but largely working class suburban areas, though Handsworth generally is better off than Woodhouse.

Political history: This largely corresponds to the pre-2004 Handsworth ward. That ward was one of those places which was almost always Labour but voted Conservative in 1967 and 1968; it stayed Labour in the 1990s. Since 2004, Woodhouse has consistently voted Labour, though as in a few places UKIP came close in 2014 and have had some strong results since.

where Labour is defending in the split wards (which is most of them this year), do you have any feeling "on the ground" how they are likely to do / how many they are vulnerable to losing?

[alien8ted]

I think they are likely to lose all as the flow is against them; this is unless something major happens in the next 2 months.

👽

[Deleted]

I haven't got a feel for it yet but if I were to guess East Ecclesfield and Beighton will be holds atm

[Crimson King]

is no one going to comment on the massive demographic lurch to the right Sheffield has just undergone 😉

[andrew111]

Feb 25, 2020 23:15:48 GMT Crimson King said:

is no one going to comment on the massive demographic lurch to the right Sheffield has just undergone 😉

Sheffield Utd back in the Premier League is certainly a lurch towards rightness

[andrew111]

One of my first ever votes was by post for my father in a by-election in January 1977 in Ecclesall. The Tory won with about 75% of the votes. Things have certainly changed politically, but Ecclesall feels pretty much the same when I visit now...

[Deleted]

Feb 26, 2020 22:11:17 GMT andrew111 said:

Feb 25, 2020 23:15:48 GMT Crimson King said:

is no one going to comment on the massive demographic lurch to the right Sheffield has just undergone 😉

Sheffield Utd back in the Premier League is certainly a lurch towards rightness

i was at a team meeting and our area manager asked if there waa difference between Wednesday and United

[andrew111]

Feb 26, 2020 22:18:32 GMT @priceofdawn said:

Feb 26, 2020 22:11:17 GMT andrew111 said:

Sheffield Utd back in the Premier League is certainly a lurch towards rightness

i was at a team meeting and our area manager asked if there waa difference between Wednesday and United

Obviously not from S York..

[David Ashforth]

Feb 26, 2020 22:18:11 GMT andrew111 said:

One of my first ever votes was by post for my father in a by-election in January 1977 in Ecclesall. The Tory won with about 75% of the votes. Things have certainly changed politically, but Ecclesall feels pretty much the same when I visit now...

[finsobruce]

Feb 26, 2020 22:18:32 GMT @priceofdawn said:

Feb 26, 2020 22:11:17 GMT andrew111 said:

Sheffield Utd back in the Premier League is certainly a lurch towards rightness

i was at a team meeting and our area manager asked if there waa difference between Wednesday and United

[alien8ted]

Feb 26, 2020 22:18:32 GMT @priceofdawn said:

Feb 26, 2020 22:11:17 GMT andrew111 said:

Sheffield Utd back in the Premier League is certainly a lurch towards rightness

i was at a team meeting and our area manager asked if there waa difference between Wednesday and United

You mean apart from one being the 3rd and 4th most important football teams in Sheffield?

👽

[alien8ted]

Feb 23, 2020 20:51:16 GMT YL said:

Beighton (2 Lab, 1 Lib Dem; Lab defending)

This is essentially the northern part of the Mosborough Townships area, a New Town like area built on land taken over from Derbyshire County Council in the 1960s, and includes its shopping centre Crystal Peaks, Beighton proper (an old mining village), Sothall and Hackenthorpe. There's quite a bit of modern private detached housing, some council estates, especially towards Hackenthorpe, and some older terraced housing in Beighton proper.

Political history: Until 2004, most of this area was part of a giant Mosborough ward. That ward elected an Independent in 1967 and a Tory in 1968, but after that was consistently Labour. Since the split, Beighton ward had also been consistently Labour, though it's shown more signs of a Tory vote than most other Sheffield wards (and they probably carried it in the 2019 General Election). UKIP also did quite well at times. Labour won all three seats in 2016, with a UKIP candidate next behind them. Since then, Labour held one seat in a by-election in which UKIP fell away and the Lib Dems came second. The Lib Dems narrowly held second ahead of the Tories in 2018, but then in 2019 they won for the first time.

Its your fault, no its not, its your fault

👽

[andrew111]

Feb 26, 2020 22:28:27 GMT David Ashforth said:

Feb 26, 2020 22:18:11 GMT andrew111 said:

One of my first ever votes was by post for my father in a by-election in January 1977 in Ecclesall. The Tory won with about 75% of the votes. Things have certainly changed politically, but Ecclesall feels pretty much the same when I visit now...

Yes that is him (apart from being Dr. Malcolm McCaig). I still have his obituary from the Morning Telegraph somewhere which described him as a "Liberal stalwart"

[andrew111]

Feb 27, 2020 9:05:54 GMT alien8ted said:

Feb 26, 2020 22:18:32 GMT @priceofdawn said:

i was at a team meeting and our area manager asked if there waa difference between Wednesday and United

You mean apart from one being the 3rd and 4th most important football teams in Sheffield?

👽

Fighting talk, if somewhat ungrammatical..