Post by londonseal80 on Apr 13, 2020 9:20:09 GMT
An affluent slice of outer Southwest London, covering the neighbourhoods of Sutton, Cheam and Worcester Park. An area which residents still regard themselves as Surrey rather than London (particularly in Cheam Village). Created in 1945 this a seat that has swung between the Conservative and the Liberal/Liberal Democrats. Initially a very safe Conservative seat with majorities consistently over 30%, this trajectory was broken in the 1972 by-election where the local MP Richard Sharples left to become the governor of Bermuda and the Liberals pulled of a big shock here with Graham Tope winning in one of Greater London’s safest Conservative seats by the focus of very local issues. After this amazing result they gained the 1973 GLC seat, which was then in turn was followed by representation on the council a year later in the Con/Lab marginal wards around Sutton Town. Since then Labour have had a consistently dreadful record in this seat with no councillors elected here in over 44 years, it is the longest continual absence of elected representation of Labour councillors in any seat in Greater London. The Tories regained the seat in the Feb 1974 election and in the Thatcher years it returned to having Tory majorities of over 30%, however within this time (May 1986) the Conservatives surprisingly lost control of the council (which in the Thames Television News 1982 Election Special four years earlier described both Sutton and Redbridge as the bluest of blue Tory boroughs, how times change) due to the rising Liberal/SDP alliance making substantial gains putting the council into no overall control for the first time, The Alliance (later Liberal Democrats) gained overall control six months later at a by-election in Clockhouse ward in the neighbouring Carshalton and Wallington seat and remained in control of the council ever since. In 1997 this was one of five constituencies in the south west london yellow triangle that the Tories lost the Liberal Democrats. The MP who won this seat was Paul Burstow who along with his wife Mary Burstow were at the time of the election councillors for the Rosehill ward, he was the MP here for 18 years until the current Conservative MP Paul Scully gained the seat from him, despite Burstow being a popular constituency MP. The following two elections Paul Burstow did not stand and the seat has for now returned back into the safe Conservative.
Sutton Town and Belmont
We now start with the actual Sutton Town currently divided into 4 wards Central, North, South, West. Sutton Central covers the large shopping centre, two smallish council estates (Benhill and Chaucer), the victorian terraces of working class housing around Sutton Bus Garage and then some residential areas in the south between Benhill Avenue, Carshalton Road and Ringstead Road which contain large expensive Georgian houses. It is the only ward in the seat where Labour have been remotely competitive and even that has been recent. Part of this ward has had Liberal councillors every election since 1974 and it is now a three way marginal contest are ward at the next set of locals in 2022, the Conservatives would probably need to win in order to try and gain the council in 2022. Sutton West was originally carved from the old Sutton Central and Sutton South (which is very different to the current one, covering the southern more upscale part of Sutton Town centre and some affluent roads around Cheam Road and Grove Road) it is also been consistenly Liberal/Lib Dem since the 1980's but in 2018 elected two Conservative, the last Tory here was elected in 1982. Sutton United’s football ground (Gander Green Lane) is within this ward and they currently play in the National League Premier, the club rose to fame in 1989 after defeating Coventry City 2-1 in the FA Cup Third Round. They had another recent good FA Cup too in which beat Leeds United in a giant killing fourth round tie in 2007. Sutton North is another consistently yellow ward (since 1986 as Rosehill) with the exception of 2006 where a Conservative was elected, the ward covers the Sutton Garden Suburb conservation area which was built by Thomas Wall founder of Walls Ice Cream and sausages, this a generally affluent ward overall as is very highly owner occupied. Sutton South is one of the most affluent wards which a high remain vote, originally a very safe Conservative ward (successor the pre-1978 Sutton South east ward) untill 1994 where two Lib Dems were elected and hass remained a Con/LD marginal ever since though the latter have never won it outright. I could be the case in future elections the Lib Dems are possibly safer here than in Sutton North. To the south west is the village of Belmont which is even more affluent than Sutton South it does have one pocket of deprivation the Shanklin Estate the most deprived area of this otherwise very low deprivation seat. Highdown and Downview prisons are nearby which are on the site of the Banstead Hospital, like nearby Epsom there were psychiatric hospitals in this seat too. There was the Henderson hospital in this ward which closed in the 1990s.
Cheam and Stonecot Hill
Cheam is covered by three wards, North Cheam the more of a middle of the road suburban area is covered by Nonsuch and Stonecot wards these are now Conservative again, but had Liberal Democrat for a long time the old Sutton Common ward returned 88% Lib Dem in 1994, this was due to the Conservatives messing up the nomination papers and only Labour standing against them.
The posher Cheam Village is in the Cheam ward which the old Cheam South before the Liberal invasion of Sutton was among the safest of safe Conservative wards. Even in 1990s and 2000s the Cheam ward was pretty safe until 2010 perhaps through personal vote Mary Burstow topped the poll, not once but for two successive elections this occured. The other two seats were Conservative, the unelected Conservative and had the most votes of an unelected councillor whilst the other two Lib Dem counciloors were miles behind. In 2018 it reverted back to three Conservatives being elected, Mary Burstow was a little way behind this time with the other two Lib Dem candidates well off the radar. The Cheam ward contains South Cheam which is Sutton's wealthiest area and contains the super wealthy roads of Golfside and Higher Drive.
Worcester Park
This area used to be divided into two wards North and South, Since 2002 most of it is in Worcester Park which a portion in Nonsuch ward. Like most of Sutton this was originally very safe Conservative territory, it first elected Liberal councillors in 1986 and since then has been a Con/LD marginal, the Tories managed to gain all three councilors in 2006 and since 2010 it has been split between 2 Lib Dems and 1 Conservative. The Lib Dem resilience in 2018 could be put down to the ward being more a strong remain area like Kingston upon Thames, it even shares the same postcode area KT rather than Sutton SM.
Sutton Town and Belmont
We now start with the actual Sutton Town currently divided into 4 wards Central, North, South, West. Sutton Central covers the large shopping centre, two smallish council estates (Benhill and Chaucer), the victorian terraces of working class housing around Sutton Bus Garage and then some residential areas in the south between Benhill Avenue, Carshalton Road and Ringstead Road which contain large expensive Georgian houses. It is the only ward in the seat where Labour have been remotely competitive and even that has been recent. Part of this ward has had Liberal councillors every election since 1974 and it is now a three way marginal contest are ward at the next set of locals in 2022, the Conservatives would probably need to win in order to try and gain the council in 2022. Sutton West was originally carved from the old Sutton Central and Sutton South (which is very different to the current one, covering the southern more upscale part of Sutton Town centre and some affluent roads around Cheam Road and Grove Road) it is also been consistenly Liberal/Lib Dem since the 1980's but in 2018 elected two Conservative, the last Tory here was elected in 1982. Sutton United’s football ground (Gander Green Lane) is within this ward and they currently play in the National League Premier, the club rose to fame in 1989 after defeating Coventry City 2-1 in the FA Cup Third Round. They had another recent good FA Cup too in which beat Leeds United in a giant killing fourth round tie in 2007. Sutton North is another consistently yellow ward (since 1986 as Rosehill) with the exception of 2006 where a Conservative was elected, the ward covers the Sutton Garden Suburb conservation area which was built by Thomas Wall founder of Walls Ice Cream and sausages, this a generally affluent ward overall as is very highly owner occupied. Sutton South is one of the most affluent wards which a high remain vote, originally a very safe Conservative ward (successor the pre-1978 Sutton South east ward) untill 1994 where two Lib Dems were elected and hass remained a Con/LD marginal ever since though the latter have never won it outright. I could be the case in future elections the Lib Dems are possibly safer here than in Sutton North. To the south west is the village of Belmont which is even more affluent than Sutton South it does have one pocket of deprivation the Shanklin Estate the most deprived area of this otherwise very low deprivation seat. Highdown and Downview prisons are nearby which are on the site of the Banstead Hospital, like nearby Epsom there were psychiatric hospitals in this seat too. There was the Henderson hospital in this ward which closed in the 1990s.
Cheam and Stonecot Hill
Cheam is covered by three wards, North Cheam the more of a middle of the road suburban area is covered by Nonsuch and Stonecot wards these are now Conservative again, but had Liberal Democrat for a long time the old Sutton Common ward returned 88% Lib Dem in 1994, this was due to the Conservatives messing up the nomination papers and only Labour standing against them.
The posher Cheam Village is in the Cheam ward which the old Cheam South before the Liberal invasion of Sutton was among the safest of safe Conservative wards. Even in 1990s and 2000s the Cheam ward was pretty safe until 2010 perhaps through personal vote Mary Burstow topped the poll, not once but for two successive elections this occured. The other two seats were Conservative, the unelected Conservative and had the most votes of an unelected councillor whilst the other two Lib Dem counciloors were miles behind. In 2018 it reverted back to three Conservatives being elected, Mary Burstow was a little way behind this time with the other two Lib Dem candidates well off the radar. The Cheam ward contains South Cheam which is Sutton's wealthiest area and contains the super wealthy roads of Golfside and Higher Drive.
Worcester Park
This area used to be divided into two wards North and South, Since 2002 most of it is in Worcester Park which a portion in Nonsuch ward. Like most of Sutton this was originally very safe Conservative territory, it first elected Liberal councillors in 1986 and since then has been a Con/LD marginal, the Tories managed to gain all three councilors in 2006 and since 2010 it has been split between 2 Lib Dems and 1 Conservative. The Lib Dem resilience in 2018 could be put down to the ward being more a strong remain area like Kingston upon Thames, it even shares the same postcode area KT rather than Sutton SM.
