Post by YL on Jul 6, 2023 20:22:45 GMT
This constituency covers the western parts of the city of Sheffield, from Bradway, Totley and Dore in the south-west to Stannington and Loxley in the north-west. It also extends into a sizable rural area within the city boundary, although this is thinly populated and as far as where the voters live is concerned this is very largely an urban constituency.
It is a common pattern for cities in areas with prevailing westerly winds to have their upmarket areas on the western side. This is particularly true of Sheffield, presumably due to a combination of the extent of pollution from the steel industry (and these days from traffic) and the attractiveness of Sheffield's western fringes on the edge of the Peak District. As a result this is very much a middle class and highly educated constituency, and it is one of the least deprived constituencies in England by most measurements. In the light of this it may need some explanation that in the last three General Elections it has voted Labour, and in 2024 did so by a comfortable margin.
One of the most obvious explanations for Labour's strength is that there is a high proportion of students in some parts of the constituency. Furthermore, the census returns divide the most middle class occupations into "managerial" and "professional", the latter often being associated with employment in health and education; it is noticeable that constituencies which have high levels of professional occupations are better for Labour and worse for the Conservatives than those with a more managerial middle class, and Sheffield Hallam shows very high levels of professional employment, but only modestly high levels of managerial employment.
The core of the constituency is the 20th century suburbs on the west side of Sheffield between the Rivers Rivelin and Sheaf. This area includes most of Ecclesall and Fulwood wards, parts of Dore & Totley, and the western part of Crookes & Crosspool, and it very much fits the description above, with very low deprivation levels and high levels of educational qualifications and professional employment in almost all census areas. It varies between relatively modest semi-detached housing and some very upmarket areas; there is almost no social housing in this area, except for the small Westminster estate in Lodge Moor, north of Fulwood village. Other parts of Dore & Totley show some of their Derbyshire village heritage, and are also generally middle class, but there is some council housing in Totley, which is generally a bit less upmarket than Dore.
Near the boundary with Sheffield Central, there are some areas developed before the First World War. These include Crookes, parts of Greystones (in Ecclesall ward) and Nether Green (in Fulwood ward), where there are late Victorian and Edwardian terraces. The demographics in these areas are not that different from the areas further out, with low deprivation and high levels of education, but they are a bit less wealthy and younger, and some of them have a lot of student houses and "young professionals" in rented accommodation; this area has become strong for Labour in recent years.
Also in Fulwood ward are the areas of Endcliffe and Ranmoor. In the 19th century these were some of Sheffield's most upmarket suburbs, with those who made their money from steel having large houses built here, many of which survive. However, some of them have been converted to University of Sheffield student accommodation, and much more has been built in their grounds, meaning that Endcliffe in particular is now dominated by purpose built student accommodation.
To see the concentration of the educated professional demographics here, note that of the wards mentioned so far, all four are in the top eight in Yorkshire and the Humber for degree level education (Ecclesall being number 1) and the top five for professional employment (Roundhay in Leeds, which is number 4, being the interloper); Ecclesall is also number 1 in the region for the "higher managerial and professional" category, with Dore & Totley and Fulwood being not far behind. Crookes & Crosspool, Ecclesall and Fulwood are also the top three wards in the region for employment in education, while Fulwood is number 1 for employment in healthcare.
North of the River Rivelin, Stannington ward is a bit different from the rest of the constituency, and is a little less middle class, with more average census figures. In some ways it resembles parts of the neighbouring Penistone & Stocksbridge constituency more than the rest of Hallam, and its connections to the rest of Sheffield are via Hillsborough, not areas in Hallam. It contains the largest of Hallam's pockets of more deprived areas, the Deer Park and Liberty Hill estates east of Stannington proper. Much of the ward is in the large parish of Bradfield, including Stannington itself, a large village now absorbed in the city, and an expanse of rural Peak District fringe around the small villages of Worrall, Dungworth and High and Low Bradfield themselves; beyond this fringe is uninhabited moorland. The more southerly wards, especially Fulwood and Dore & Totley, also include some rural fringe and Peak District moorland, but in those the rural components are insignificant in terms of where the population lives.
Sheffield Hallam has been a constituency name since 1885, originally being based on the Nether Hallam and Upper Hallam townships of the parish of Sheffield. The boundaries have evolved over time, with areas closer to the city centre tending to be removed, Ecclesall being added in 1950 (previously having given its name to its own constituency) and Nether Edge, Dore and Totley in 1974. More recently, Nether Edge was removed again in 1997, and in 2010 Broomhill was removed and Stannington added; the current round of changes merely re-align to new ward boundaries.
Historically Sheffield Hallam and, when it existed, Sheffield Ecclesall were safe seats for the Conservative Party. However, the trend found in many cities for middle class urban seats to drift away from the party appeared here too, and in 1987, following John Osborn's retirement, the Alliance cut the majority to the point where the constituency was beginning to look marginal. In 1997 an effective tactical voting campaign meant that the Lib Dems' Richard Allan benefitted from that year's Tory collapse to win with a comfortable majority and become the first non-Tory MP for the constituency barring a special case during the First World War.
Richard Allan left the Commons in 2005 and was replaced by Nick Clegg, who soon after became Leader of the Liberal Democrats and after 2010 (when he held Hallam with a very large majority) Deputy Prime Minister in the coalition government. This was followed by a dramatic rise in the Labour vote, coming fairly close to winning in 2015 and defeating Clegg to win the constituency for the first time ever in 2017. The less said about the tenure of the first Labour MP for the constituency, Jared O'Mara, the better, but Labour's new candidate Olivia Blake narrowly held on in 2019 and won much more comfortably in 2024. The Conservative vote fell away dramatically in 2010 and 2015, presumably due partly to tactical support for Clegg; it recovered a bit in 2017 and 2019, but slumped again to a historic low of 12% in 2024.
At local level, the Liberal Democrats remain the dominant party. They supplanted the Conservatives in the 1990s, pre-Coalition held all council seats in the constituency, and continue to hold all seats in three out of the five wards. Crookes & Crosspool has become a closely-fought marginal between them and Labour, and has had split representation since 2011. The Green Party has shown some strength, in particular in Ecclesall, where they broke through in 2024. The Conservatives, once overwhelmingly dominant, struggle with a combination of tactical voting for the Lib Dems and a demographic no longer very receptive to them, and in both 2023 and 2024 came fourth with well under 10% of the vote in all of Crookes & Crosspool, Ecclesall and Fulwood; they do a little better in the other two wards but are not competitive in either and in 2024 slipped to fourth in Stannington as well.
2019 notional result (Rallings & Thrasher):
Lab 21004 (34.9%)
Lib Dem 19896 (33.1%)
Con 15435 (25.7%)
Green 1799 (3.0%)
Brexit Party 1641 (2.7%)
Other 291 (0.5%)
Lab majority 1108 (1.8%)
2024 result:
Olivia Blake (Lab) 23875 (46.3%)
Shaffaq Mohammed (Lib Dem) 15686 (30.4%)
Isaac Howarth (Con) 6205 (12.0%)
Jason Leman (Green) 4491 (8.7%)
Andrew Cowell (SDP) 654 (1.3%)
Sam Chapman (Rejoin EU) 408 (0.8%)
Mo Moui-Tabrizy (Workers Party) 281 (0.5%)
It is a common pattern for cities in areas with prevailing westerly winds to have their upmarket areas on the western side. This is particularly true of Sheffield, presumably due to a combination of the extent of pollution from the steel industry (and these days from traffic) and the attractiveness of Sheffield's western fringes on the edge of the Peak District. As a result this is very much a middle class and highly educated constituency, and it is one of the least deprived constituencies in England by most measurements. In the light of this it may need some explanation that in the last three General Elections it has voted Labour, and in 2024 did so by a comfortable margin.
One of the most obvious explanations for Labour's strength is that there is a high proportion of students in some parts of the constituency. Furthermore, the census returns divide the most middle class occupations into "managerial" and "professional", the latter often being associated with employment in health and education; it is noticeable that constituencies which have high levels of professional occupations are better for Labour and worse for the Conservatives than those with a more managerial middle class, and Sheffield Hallam shows very high levels of professional employment, but only modestly high levels of managerial employment.
The core of the constituency is the 20th century suburbs on the west side of Sheffield between the Rivers Rivelin and Sheaf. This area includes most of Ecclesall and Fulwood wards, parts of Dore & Totley, and the western part of Crookes & Crosspool, and it very much fits the description above, with very low deprivation levels and high levels of educational qualifications and professional employment in almost all census areas. It varies between relatively modest semi-detached housing and some very upmarket areas; there is almost no social housing in this area, except for the small Westminster estate in Lodge Moor, north of Fulwood village. Other parts of Dore & Totley show some of their Derbyshire village heritage, and are also generally middle class, but there is some council housing in Totley, which is generally a bit less upmarket than Dore.
Near the boundary with Sheffield Central, there are some areas developed before the First World War. These include Crookes, parts of Greystones (in Ecclesall ward) and Nether Green (in Fulwood ward), where there are late Victorian and Edwardian terraces. The demographics in these areas are not that different from the areas further out, with low deprivation and high levels of education, but they are a bit less wealthy and younger, and some of them have a lot of student houses and "young professionals" in rented accommodation; this area has become strong for Labour in recent years.
Also in Fulwood ward are the areas of Endcliffe and Ranmoor. In the 19th century these were some of Sheffield's most upmarket suburbs, with those who made their money from steel having large houses built here, many of which survive. However, some of them have been converted to University of Sheffield student accommodation, and much more has been built in their grounds, meaning that Endcliffe in particular is now dominated by purpose built student accommodation.
To see the concentration of the educated professional demographics here, note that of the wards mentioned so far, all four are in the top eight in Yorkshire and the Humber for degree level education (Ecclesall being number 1) and the top five for professional employment (Roundhay in Leeds, which is number 4, being the interloper); Ecclesall is also number 1 in the region for the "higher managerial and professional" category, with Dore & Totley and Fulwood being not far behind. Crookes & Crosspool, Ecclesall and Fulwood are also the top three wards in the region for employment in education, while Fulwood is number 1 for employment in healthcare.
North of the River Rivelin, Stannington ward is a bit different from the rest of the constituency, and is a little less middle class, with more average census figures. In some ways it resembles parts of the neighbouring Penistone & Stocksbridge constituency more than the rest of Hallam, and its connections to the rest of Sheffield are via Hillsborough, not areas in Hallam. It contains the largest of Hallam's pockets of more deprived areas, the Deer Park and Liberty Hill estates east of Stannington proper. Much of the ward is in the large parish of Bradfield, including Stannington itself, a large village now absorbed in the city, and an expanse of rural Peak District fringe around the small villages of Worrall, Dungworth and High and Low Bradfield themselves; beyond this fringe is uninhabited moorland. The more southerly wards, especially Fulwood and Dore & Totley, also include some rural fringe and Peak District moorland, but in those the rural components are insignificant in terms of where the population lives.
Sheffield Hallam has been a constituency name since 1885, originally being based on the Nether Hallam and Upper Hallam townships of the parish of Sheffield. The boundaries have evolved over time, with areas closer to the city centre tending to be removed, Ecclesall being added in 1950 (previously having given its name to its own constituency) and Nether Edge, Dore and Totley in 1974. More recently, Nether Edge was removed again in 1997, and in 2010 Broomhill was removed and Stannington added; the current round of changes merely re-align to new ward boundaries.
Historically Sheffield Hallam and, when it existed, Sheffield Ecclesall were safe seats for the Conservative Party. However, the trend found in many cities for middle class urban seats to drift away from the party appeared here too, and in 1987, following John Osborn's retirement, the Alliance cut the majority to the point where the constituency was beginning to look marginal. In 1997 an effective tactical voting campaign meant that the Lib Dems' Richard Allan benefitted from that year's Tory collapse to win with a comfortable majority and become the first non-Tory MP for the constituency barring a special case during the First World War.
Richard Allan left the Commons in 2005 and was replaced by Nick Clegg, who soon after became Leader of the Liberal Democrats and after 2010 (when he held Hallam with a very large majority) Deputy Prime Minister in the coalition government. This was followed by a dramatic rise in the Labour vote, coming fairly close to winning in 2015 and defeating Clegg to win the constituency for the first time ever in 2017. The less said about the tenure of the first Labour MP for the constituency, Jared O'Mara, the better, but Labour's new candidate Olivia Blake narrowly held on in 2019 and won much more comfortably in 2024. The Conservative vote fell away dramatically in 2010 and 2015, presumably due partly to tactical support for Clegg; it recovered a bit in 2017 and 2019, but slumped again to a historic low of 12% in 2024.
At local level, the Liberal Democrats remain the dominant party. They supplanted the Conservatives in the 1990s, pre-Coalition held all council seats in the constituency, and continue to hold all seats in three out of the five wards. Crookes & Crosspool has become a closely-fought marginal between them and Labour, and has had split representation since 2011. The Green Party has shown some strength, in particular in Ecclesall, where they broke through in 2024. The Conservatives, once overwhelmingly dominant, struggle with a combination of tactical voting for the Lib Dems and a demographic no longer very receptive to them, and in both 2023 and 2024 came fourth with well under 10% of the vote in all of Crookes & Crosspool, Ecclesall and Fulwood; they do a little better in the other two wards but are not competitive in either and in 2024 slipped to fourth in Stannington as well.
2019 notional result (Rallings & Thrasher):
Lab 21004 (34.9%)
Lib Dem 19896 (33.1%)
Con 15435 (25.7%)
Green 1799 (3.0%)
Brexit Party 1641 (2.7%)
Other 291 (0.5%)
Lab majority 1108 (1.8%)
2024 result:
Olivia Blake (Lab) 23875 (46.3%)
Shaffaq Mohammed (Lib Dem) 15686 (30.4%)
Isaac Howarth (Con) 6205 (12.0%)
Jason Leman (Green) 4491 (8.7%)
Andrew Cowell (SDP) 654 (1.3%)
Sam Chapman (Rejoin EU) 408 (0.8%)
Mo Moui-Tabrizy (Workers Party) 281 (0.5%)
They are/were included in the Crookes & Walkley TARA as they didn't "fit" into any other, and in my time one of their residents was the chair as nobody from any of the other areas was ever interested. She had to be praised for committing to the work, considering the trek across to Crookes where the office and meetings were held.
