2015 South Kesteven District Council election

The 2015 South Kesteven District Council election took place on 7 May 2015 to elect members of South Kesteven District Council in Lincolnshire, England. The whole council was up for election after boundary changes reduced the number of seats by two.^[1] The Conservative party stayed in overall control of the council.^[2]

Background

After the previous election in 2011 the Conservatives remained in control of the council with 38 seats, compared to 12 independents, 6 for Labour and 1 each for the Liberal Democrats and Lincolnshire Independents.^[3]^[4]^[5] By the time of the 2015 election there were two UK Independence Party councillors, after Mike and Jean Taylor defected from the Conservatives in January 2015, following their failure to be re-selected as Conservative candidates for the council election.^[6]^[7] Meanwhile, in Harrowby ward the Labour councillors Ian Selby and Bruce Wells stood as independents after they were deselected by Labour.^[8]

The Conservative leader of the council Linda Neal stood down at the 2015 election, with Bob Adams being chosen to succeed her as Conservative group leader.^[9] A seat in Bourne West was vacant by the election after the death of Conservative councillor John Smith,^[10] while in Market and West Deeping ward the election was postponed until 25 June after the death of independent councillor Reg Howard.^[11]^[12]

Boundary changes since the 2011 election reduced the number of councillors from 58 to 56,^[1] while the number of wards declined from 34 to 30.^[13]

Election result

The Conservatives kept a large majority on the council after winning 44 of the 53 seats contested on 7 May.^[14] The three seats in Market and West Deeping elected on 25 June had two independents and one Conservative councillors elected.^[15]

South Kesteven local election result 2015^[15]^[16]
	Seats	Seats %	Votes %	Votes	+/−
Conservative	45	83.0	51.4	53,130	+2.5%
Independent	6	7.5	12.4	12,828	-12.2%
Labour	3	5.7	15.2	15,696	+2.6%
UKIP	1	1.9	10.0	10,300	+9.3%
Lincolnshire Independent	1	1.9	2.9	3,013	+1.6%
Stamford Group of Independents	0	0	4.7	4,865	+4.7%
Green	0	0	1.9	1,943	-4.3%
Liberal Democrats	0	0	1.6	1,667	-4.1%

The above totals include the delayed election in Market and West Deeping ward.

Ward results

Aveland^[16]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Conservative	Peter Moseley	1,114	77.3
	Labour	Muriel Sowden	327	22.7
Majority			787	54.6
Turnout			1,441	72

Belmont (2 seats)^[16]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Conservative	George Chivers	1,350
	Conservative	Nicholas Craft	1,192
	Labour	Richard Galvin	680
	Labour	Victoria Smith	641
Turnout			3,863	62

Belvoir (2 seats)^[16]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Conservative	Pamela Bosworth	1,749
	Conservative	Thomas Webster	1,570
	Labour	Jonathan Wacey	763
Turnout			4,082	72

Bourne Austerby (3 seats)^[16]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Conservative	Duncan Ashwell	1,523
	Conservative	Jane Kingman	1,459
	Conservative	Robert Reid	1,190
	Independent	Paul Fellows	746
	Labour	James Marsden	647
	Lincolnshire Independent	John Ireland	642
Turnout			6,207	62

Bourne East (2 seats)^[16]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Conservative	Robert Russell	1,153
	Conservative	Judith Smith	1,126
	UKIP	Roger Woodbridge	715
	Labour	Lisa Holmes	691
Turnout			3,685	64

Bourne West (2 seats)^[16]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Conservative	David Mapp	1,518
	Lincolnshire Independent	Helen Powell	940
	UKIP	William Learoyd	837
	Conservative	Hannah Westropp	821
	Labour	Roberta Britton	654
Turnout			4,770	69

Casewick (2 seats)^[16]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Conservative	Kelham Cooke	1,743
	Conservative	Rosemary Woolley	1,646
	Independent	Elizabeth Channell	722
	Independent	Thomas Butterfield	699
	Lincolnshire Independent	Justin Mackenzie	468
Turnout			5,278	75

Castle^[16]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Conservative	Nicholas Robins	842	58.2
	Labour	Jean Joyce	319	22.0
	UKIP	David Plowright	286	19.8
Majority			523	36.1
Turnout			1,447	73

Deeping St James (3 seats)^[16]
	Candidate	Votes
Labour	Fair Deal Dilks	unopposed
Conservative	Leigh Johnson	unopposed
Independent	Judy Stevens	unopposed

Dole Wood^[16]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Conservative	Barry Dobson	893	61.7
	Lincolnshire Independent	Anthony Smith	554	38.3
Majority			339	23.4
Turnout			1,447	73

Glen^[16]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Conservative	Martin Wilkins	951	69.3
	UKIP	Patrick Beese	422	30.7
Majority			529	38.5
Turnout			1,373	74

Grantham Arnoldfield (2 seats)^[16]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Conservative	Helen Goral	1,203
	Conservative	Dean Ward	886
	UKIP	Michael Taylor	516
	UKIP	Jean Taylor	483
	Labour	Cash Carraway	382
	Labour	Tanwir Chowdhury	349
	Independent	Alfred Kent	335
Turnout			4,154	68

Grantham Barrowby Gate (2 seats)^[16]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Conservative	Lynda Coutts	1,095
	Conservative	Frank Turner	842
	UKIP	John Allan	576
	UKIP	Simon Finch	523
	Labour	Elizabeth Ropson	474
	Labour	David Simpson	395
	Independent	Ian Mihill	354
	Green	Samuel Hadlow	249
Turnout			4,508	64

Grantham Earlesfield (2 seats)^[16]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	UKIP	Felicity Cunningham	903
	Labour	Tracey Forman	814
	Labour	Robert Shorrock	676
Turnout			2,393	43

Grantham Harrowby (2 seats)^[16]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Independent	Ian Selby	770
	Conservative	Linda Wootten	749
	Labour	Susan Orwin	528
	Labour	Mark Ashberry	522
	Independent	Bruce Wells	514
	Lincolnshire Independent	Michael Williams	409
Turnout			3,492	56

Grantham Springfield (2 seats)^[16]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Conservative	Nicola Manterfield	768
	Conservative	Adam Stokes	744
	Labour	Mark Bartlett	597
	UKIP	Maureen Simon	591
	Labour	Carole Thomson	433
	Green	Gerhard Lohmann-Bond	254
Turnout			3,387	56

Grantham St Vincents (3 seats)^[16]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Conservative	Michael Cook	1,110
	Labour	Charmaine Morgan	938
	Conservative	Graham Jeal	894
	UKIP	Donald Atkinson	801
	Conservative	Stuart McBride	774
	Labour	John Morgan	699
	Labour	Alexander Morse	639
	Green	Caroline Coram	502
	Independent	Anita Selby	341
	Independent	Patricia Ellis	318
Turnout			7,016	57

Grantham St Wulfram's (2 seats)^[16]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Conservative	Raymond Wootten	1,409
	Conservative	Jacqueline Smith	1,296
	UKIP	Paul Martin	685
	Labour	Yvonne Gibbins	639
	Labour	Stephen Diggines	620
Turnout			4,649	63

Isaac Newton (2 seats)^[16]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Conservative	William Adams	1,388
	Conservative	Andrea Webster	891
	UKIP	Derek Creasey	734
	Labour	Paul Jacklin	486
Turnout			3,499	63

Lincrest^[16]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Conservative	Peter Stephens	1,126	75.2
	Labour	Lee Steptoe	372	24.8
Majority			754	50.3
Turnout			1,498	75

Loveden Heath^[16]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Independent	Robert Sampson	924	59.2
	Conservative	Alexander Maughan	638	40.8
Majority			286	18.3
Turnout			1,562	73

Morton^[16]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Conservative	Frances Cartwright	680	50.5
	Independent	Richard Wells	667	49.5
Majority			13	1.0
Turnout			1,347	69

Peascliffe and Ridgeway (2 seats)^[16]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Conservative	Rosemary Brown	1,390
	Conservative	Ian Stokes	1,277
	Independent	Jeffrey Thompson	1,167
	Independent	John Andrews	776
Turnout			4,610	70

Stamford All Saints (2 seats)^[16]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Conservative	Michael Exton	1,100
	Conservative	Breda-Rae Griffin	826
	Stamford Group of Independents	Susan Sandall	646
	Stamford Group of Independents	Maxwell Sawyer	609
	UKIP	Gareth Vaughan	603
	Labour	David Bimson	529
Turnout			4,313	65

Stamford St George's (2 seats)^[16]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Conservative	Katherine Brown	926
	Conservative	Brenda Sumner	588
	UKIP	David Taylor	539
	Stamford Group of Independents	Percival Sandall	525
	Labour	John Godber	441
	Labour	Vivien Pointon	441
	Stamford Group of Independents	Gloria Johnson	403
	Green	Michael Carr	346
Turnout			4,209	62

Stamford St John's (2 seats)^[16]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Conservative	Terl Bryant	1,385
	Conservative	Damian Evans	1,273
	Stamford Group of Independents	Clement Walden	820
	Stamford Group of Independents	Anthony Story	784
	UKIP	Allen Hewett	620
Turnout			4,882	71

Stamford St Mary's (2 seats)^[16]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Conservative	Matthew Lee	967
	Conservative	Brian Sumner	890
	Liberal Democrats	Doarkanathsing Bisnauthsing	641
	Stamford Group of Independents	John Dawson	623
	Stamford Group of Independents	David Taylor	455
	Liberal Democrats	Pamela Bisnauthsing	349
	Green	Anushree Campbell	310
	Green	David Dorson	282
Turnout			4,517	67

Toller^[16]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Conservative	Michael King	943	67.8
	Liberal Democrats	Brian Withnall	448	32.2
Majority			495	35.6
Turnout			1,391	68

Viking (2 seats)^[16]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Independent	Paul Wood	1,617
	Conservative	Sarah Wilks	1,332
	Conservative	Kathryn Wilks	1,295
	Independent	Laura King	1,231
Turnout			5,475	74

Market and West Deeping countermanded election

The election in Market and West Deeping ward was countermanded (delayed) until 25 June 2015 after the death of independent councillor Reg Howard who had been standing for re-election.^[11]^[12] Two of the three seats were won by independents Robert Broughton and Ashley Baxter, while Conservative Nicholas Neilson won the third seat.^[15]

Market and West Deeping (3 seats)^[15]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Independent	Robert Broughton	612
	Independent	Ashley Baxter	609
	Conservative	Nicholas Neilson	605
	Independent	David Shelton	426
	Liberal Democrats	Adam Brookes	229
	UKIP	Robert O'Farrell	224
	UKIP	William Learoyd	129
	UKIP	Roger Woodbridge	113
Turnout			1243	23.1

By-elections between 2015 and 2019

Belvoir by-election

Belvoir by-election 3 December 2015^[17]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	Hannah Westropp	603	52.5	−17.1
	Independent	Laura King	212	18.5	+18.5
	Labour	Louise Clack	175	15.2	−15.2
	UKIP	Mike Taylor	159	13.8	+13.8
Majority			391	34.0
Turnout			1,149
	Conservative hold		Swing

Deeping St James by-election

Deeping St James by-election 5 May 2016^[18]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	Steve Benn	784	49.7	N/A
	Liberal Democrats	Adam Brookes	436	27.7	N/A
	Labour	Lisa Holmes	286	18.1	N/A
	Green	Gerhard Lohmann-Bond	70	4.4	N/A
Majority			348	22.1
Turnout			1,576
	Conservative hold		Swing

Stamford St George's by-election

Stamford St George's by-election 15 March 2018^[19]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	Rachael Cooke	309	45.6	+12.3
	Independent	Gloria Johnson	174	25.7	+6.8
	Labour	Christopher Dennett	114	16.8	+0.9
	Liberal Democrats	Jack Stow	68	10.0	+10.0
	Green	Gerhard Lohmann-Bond	13	1.9	−10.3
Majority			135	19.9
Turnout			678
	Conservative hold		Swing

Stamford St John's by-election

Stamford St John's by-election 15 March 2018^[20]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	David Taylor	327	39.4	−9.6
	Independent	Steve Carroll	267	32.1	+32.1
	Liberal Democrats	Harrish Bisnauthsing	156	18.8	+18.8
	Labour	Cameron Clack	66	7.9	+7.9
	Green	Simon Whitmore	15	1.8	+1.8
Majority			60	7.2
Turnout			831
	Conservative hold		Swing

References

^ ^a ^b Hawkins, Judith (11 April 2015). "New South Kesteven District Council boundaries come under fire". Grantham Journal. Retrieved 11 May 2015.
^ "Election 2015: UKIP tie with Tories in Boston local elections". BBC News Online. 8 May 2015. Retrieved 12 May 2015.
^ "Local authority elections: England". The Guardian. NewsBank. 7 May 2011.
^ "Declaration of result of poll". South Kesteven District Council. Retrieved 13 May 2015.
^ "Tories lose by-elections in nail-biting night". The Independent. NewsBank. 24 June 2011.
^ Newton, Graham (19 September 2014). "Husband and wife councillors not selected by Conservatives for next election in Grantham". Grantham Journal. Archived from the original on 24 September 2015. Retrieved 13 May 2015.
^ "Breaking news: Grantham councillors defect to UKIP from the Conservative Party". Grantham Journal. 27 January 2015. Retrieved 13 May 2015.
^ "Grantham's Mayor Ian Selby announces general election challenge as an independent candidate". Lincolnshire Echo. 8 April 2015. Retrieved 13 May 2015.
^ "Bob Adams named by South Kesteven council Conservatives as new group leader". Lincolnshire Echo. 14 April 2015. Retrieved 13 May 2015.
^ "Lincolnshire councillor for SKDC, John Smith, dies". Lincolnshire Echo. 8 April 2015. Retrieved 13 May 2015.
^ ^a ^b Moore, Alex (15 April 2015). "Tributes paid to long-serving Market Deeping councillor Reg Howard". Stamford Mercury. Retrieved 13 May 2015.
^ ^a ^b Moore, Alex (29 April 2015). "Call to leave enough time to vote in May 7 elections". The Local. Retrieved 13 May 2015.
^ "Review of Polling Districts and Polling Places". South Kesteven District Council. 22 August 2014. Archived from the original on 1 July 2015. Retrieved 13 May 2015.
^ "Conservatives dominate South Kesteven District Council elections". Lincolnshire Echo. 8 May 2015. Archived from the original on 12 May 2015. Retrieved 12 May 2015.
^ ^a ^b ^c ^d "Declaration of result of poll". South Kesteven District Council. Retrieved 28 June 2015.
^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^f ^g ^h ⁱ ^j ^k ^l ^m ⁿ ^o ^p ^q ^r ^s ^t ^u ^v ^w ^x ^y ^z ^aa ^ab ^ac ^ad "District Council Elections - 7 May 2015". South Kesteven District Council. Archived from the original on 9 May 2015. Retrieved 11 May 2015.
^ "Local Elections Archive Project — Belvoir Ward". www.andrewteale.me.uk. Retrieved 15 May 2022.
^ "Local Elections Archive Project — Deeping St James Ward". www.andrewteale.me.uk. Retrieved 15 May 2022.
^ "Local Elections Archive Project — Stamford St George's Ward". www.andrewteale.me.uk. Retrieved 15 May 2022.
^ "Local Elections Archive Project — Stamford St John's Ward". www.andrewteale.me.uk. Retrieved 15 May 2022.

[fire-1] Hawkins, Judith (11 April 2015). "New South Kesteven District Council boundaries come under fire". Grantham Journal. Retrieved 11 May 2015.

[boston-2] "Election 2015: UKIP tie with Tories in Boston local elections". BBC News Online. 8 May 2015. Retrieved 12 May 2015.

[authority-3] "Local authority elections: England". The Guardian. NewsBank. 7 May 2011.

[results2011-4] "Declaration of result of poll". South Kesteven District Council. Retrieved 13 May 2015.

[biting-5] "Tories lose by-elections in nail-biting night". The Independent. NewsBank. 24 June 2011.

[selected-6] Newton, Graham (19 September 2014). "Husband and wife councillors not selected by Conservatives for next election in Grantham". Grantham Journal. Archived from the original on 24 September 2015. Retrieved 13 May 2015.

[defect-7] "Breaking news: Grantham councillors defect to UKIP from the Conservative Party". Grantham Journal. 27 January 2015. Retrieved 13 May 2015.

[selby-8] "Grantham's Mayor Ian Selby announces general election challenge as an independent candidate". Lincolnshire Echo. 8 April 2015. Retrieved 13 May 2015.

[adams-9] "Bob Adams named by South Kesteven council Conservatives as new group leader". Lincolnshire Echo. 14 April 2015. Retrieved 13 May 2015.

[smith-10] "Lincolnshire councillor for SKDC, John Smith, dies". Lincolnshire Echo. 8 April 2015. Retrieved 13 May 2015.

[tributes-11] Moore, Alex (15 April 2015). "Tributes paid to long-serving Market Deeping councillor Reg Howard". Stamford Mercury. Retrieved 13 May 2015.

[enough-12] Moore, Alex (29 April 2015). "Call to leave enough time to vote in May 7 elections". The Local. Retrieved 13 May 2015.

[review-13] "Review of Polling Districts and Polling Places". South Kesteven District Council. 22 August 2014. Archived from the original on 1 July 2015. Retrieved 13 May 2015.

[dominate-14] "Conservatives dominate South Kesteven District Council elections". Lincolnshire Echo. 8 May 2015. Archived from the original on 12 May 2015. Retrieved 12 May 2015.

[deeping-15] "Declaration of result of poll". South Kesteven District Council. Retrieved 28 June 2015.

[results-16] ^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^f ^g ^h ⁱ ^j ^k ^l ^m ⁿ ^o ^p ^q ^r ^s ^t ^u ^v ^w ^x ^y ^z ^aa ^ab ^ac ^ad "District Council Elections - 7 May 2015". South Kesteven District Council. Archived from the original on 9 May 2015. Retrieved 11 May 2015.

[17] "Local Elections Archive Project — Belvoir Ward". www.andrewteale.me.uk. Retrieved 15 May 2022.

[18] "Local Elections Archive Project — Deeping St James Ward". www.andrewteale.me.uk. Retrieved 15 May 2022.

[19] "Local Elections Archive Project — Stamford St George's Ward". www.andrewteale.me.uk. Retrieved 15 May 2022.

[20] "Local Elections Archive Project — Stamford St John's Ward". www.andrewteale.me.uk. Retrieved 15 May 2022.

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