Penistone and Stocksbridge
2010 Results:
Conservative: 14516 (31.21%)
Labour: 17565 (37.76%)
Liberal Democrat: 9800 (21.07%)
BNP: 2207 (4.74%)
UKIP: 1936 (4.16%)
English Democrat: 492 (1.06%)
Majority: 3049 (6.55%)
Notional 2005 Results:
Labour: 19074 (47%)
Liberal Democrat: 10225 (25.2%)
Conservative: 9331 (23%)
Other: 1960 (4.8%)
Majority: 8849 (21.8%)
Actual 2005 result
Conservative: 6890 (15%)
Labour: 23477 (51.2%)
Liberal Democrat: 12234 (26.7%)
BNP: 2010 (4.4%)
UKIP: 1273 (2.8%)
Majority: 11243 (24.5%)
2001 Result
Conservative: 7801 (18.3%)
Labour: 24170 (56.8%)
Liberal Democrat: 9601 (22.6%)
UKIP: 964 (2.3%)
Majority: 14569 (34.3%)
1997 Result
Conservative: 7707 (14.5%)
Labour: 30150 (56.9%)
Liberal Democrat: 13699 (25.8%)
Referendum: 1468 (2.8%)
Majority: 16451 (31%)
Boundary changes:
Profile: By the standards of South Yorkshire, one of Labour`s most reliable bedrocks in England, this is almost marginal. Labour have below 50% of the vote, no councillors in the seat and it is only an almost even divide of opposition support between the Conservatives and Liberal Democrats that prevents this appearing much closer.
The seat covers the north-western suburbs of Sheffield and the steel town of Stocksbridge – set north-west of Sheffield on the edge of the moors. The northern part of the seat drawn from the Borough of Barnsley covers the rural villages in the foothills of the pennines around the market town of Penistone and, to the east, the former mining village of Dodworth. Most of the seat is made up of traditional industrial areas, loyal to Labour, though with the decline of coal and steel and the old allegiences that went with it, there is more new build housing and commuters into Sheffield and Barnsley.
In the southern part of the seat, drawn from the dismembered Sheffield Hillsborough, the Liberal Democrats are the main challengers to Labour and perform strongly at the local level. In the northern part of the seat, transferred from Barnsley West and Penistone, Penistone itself has tended to be a good area for the Conservatives – at least, by the low standards of Tories in South Yorkshire. The future of this seat will largely depend on whether one of the parties can successfully position themselves as the alternative to Labour in this seat.
Current MP: Angela Smith(Labour) (more information at They work for you)






2001 Census Demographics
Total 2001 Population: 84584
Male: 48.7%
Female: 51.3%
Under 18: 20.8%
Over 60: 22.3%
Born outside UK: 2.1%
White: 98.4%
Black: 0.2%
Asian: 0.7%
Mixed: 0.5%
Other: 0.2%
Christian: 80.2%
Full time students: 2.1%
Graduates 16-74: 16.8%
No Qualifications 16-74: 31.3%
Owner-Occupied: 75.6%
Social Housing: 18.5% (Council: 17.5%, Housing Ass.: 1.1%)
Privately Rented: 3.8%
Homes without central heating and/or private bathroom: 5%