Press Release: Residents gain seats from Uttlesford Conservatives in stark contrast to national gains

Posted on by

Residents for Uttlesford (R4U), the local advocacy group for towns and villages, has announced that it is made significant gains in the Uttlesford local elections.

Uttlesford Election Swing

Residents for Uttlesford (R4U) was the only party to gain seats in Uttlesford, making district council gains of 125%, with the local Conservatives seeing a drop of 26% in their seats. This was a reversal of the national trend where Conservatives actually saw a 30% increase.

Cllr John Lodge, R4U Chairman Cllr John Lodge (R4U Chairman)
John Lodge, Chairman of R4U said “A clear message has been sent to the cabinet of UDC who despite retaining their seats, did so by slim majorities; the Leader only retained his seat by 42 votes. R4U have held strong in the North of the District, sweeping all the seats in Saffron Walden and Newport with resounding wins for their candidates. After its gains, R4U is now the second party in Uttlesford.”

R4U now has 9 Uttlesford District Councillors, 12 Town and Parish Councillors, and an Essex County Councillor. It is the Second Party at Uttlesford District Council and the majority party at Saffron Walden Town Council.

The residents group lost a key seat in Dunmow South. John Lodge continued “We are obviously disappointed not to make gains in the Dunmow wards after coming so close; we would like to thank outgoing councillor Keith Mackman for his dedication and hard work on behalf of the residents of Dunmow. And we would also specifically like to thank Cllr David Watson, former Mayor and retiring R4U councillor, for his passion and commitment to Saffron Walden. But the biggest thank you goes to our supporters across Uttlesford who have helped R4U fight a spirited and successful campaign. We are looking forward to the 2017 Essex County Council elections.”

The full Uttlesford District Council election results, including a ward results map, are available on the R4U website.

Go to top

About Residents for Uttlesford

Residents for Uttlesford (R4U) is the local independent party of north-west Essex towns and villages. Formed in 2014 by a number of residents’ groups, the party believes that on local issues residents should decide, not Westminster parties. R4U’s success has been based on the desire to give local people a voice and implement long range strategic and sustainable plans for their area.

R4U leads Uttlesford District Council (UDC). In its first election in 2015 it became the second party at UDC. In the May 2019 R4U took majority control of UDC by gaining two-thirds of the seats. Since then it has set about re-engineering the now award-winning council operates, rebuilding the finances and fixing how planning is done. In 2021 the party won half the Essex County Council seats in Uttlesford district.

R4U also leads Saffron Walden Town Council, where under its stewardship the council has rebuilt finances, invested in community assets, and won multiple awards, including the best run council in Essex. It is a minority party on Great Dunmow Town Council.

Residents for Uttlesford can be found on the web at www.residents4u.org.

Show more...
Show less

Go to top