Sheffield Hallam
2010 Results:
Conservative: 12040 (23.55%)
Labour: 8228 (16.09%)
Liberal Democrat: 27324 (53.44%)
UKIP: 1195 (2.34%)
Green: 919 (1.8%)
English Democrat: 586 (1.15%)
Christian: 250 (0.49%)
Monster Raving Loony: 164 (0.32%)
Independent: 429 (0.84%)
Majority: 15284 (29.89%)
Notional 2005 Results:
Liberal Democrat: 21574 (45.5%)
Conservative: 13852 (29.2%)
Labour: 9030 (19.1%)
Other: 2912 (6.1%)
Majority: 7722 (16.3%)
Actual 2005 result
Conservative: 12028 (29.8%)
Labour: 5110 (12.6%)
Liberal Democrat: 20710 (51.2%)
BNP: 369 (0.9%)
Green: 1331 (3.3%)
UKIP: 438 (1.1%)
Other: 441 (1.1%)
Majority: 8682 (21.5%)
2001 Result
Conservative: 11856 (31%)
Labour: 4758 (12.4%)
Liberal Democrat: 21203 (55.4%)
UKIP: 429 (1.1%)
Majority: 9347 (24.4%)
1997 Result
Conservative: 15074 (33.1%)
Labour: 6147 (13.5%)
Liberal Democrat: 23345 (51.3%)
Referendum: 788 (1.7%)
Other: 125 (0.3%)
Majority: 8271 (18.2%)
Boundary changes: Numerous small changes due to wards split between constituencies, and two more substantial changes due to the abolition of Sheffield Hillsborough. Loses part of Beauchief & Greenhill to Sheffield Heeley, loses most of Broomhill and a handful of voters in Central and Nether Edge wards to Sheffield Central. Gains Stannington from Sheffield Hillsborough, parts of Crookes from Sheffield Central and Hillsborough, a tiny part of Dore & Totley from Sheffield Heeley and tiny parts of Ecclesall from Central and Heeley.
Profile: A largely rural seat covering the south-west corner of Sheffield. This is an affluent and wealthy seat, one of the richest outside of the south-east. The western part of the seat is within the Peak District and is largely desolate moorland, stretching up into the pennines, below that are small villages like like High and Low Bradfield, Dungworth, Worrall and Ringinglow. The seat when covers the westernmost fringes of Sheffield itself, including the richest and most affluent suburbs of the city like Ecclesall and the Conservative bastions of Totley and Dore.
A wealthy, middle-class and mostly owner-occupied seat this was a safe Conservative seat between the first world war and the 1990s. However, it fell to the Liberal Democrats` Richard Allen in the anti-Conservative landslide of 1997 and he successfully passed it onto the Lib Dem rising star Nick Clegg in 2005. The boundary changes are somewhat unhelpful for the Liberal Democrats, slightly reducing the still substantial numbers of students in the constituency, but it remains a tough call for the Conservatives.
Current MP: Nick Clegg (Liberal Democrat) born 1967, Buckinghamshire. Educated at Westminster school and Cambridge university. Prior to his election worked for the European Commission, including as a speechwriter to Sir Leon Brittan. MEP for the East Midlands region 1999-2004. First elected as MP for Sheffield Hallam in 2005. Europe spokesman 2005-2006, Liberal Democrat shadow home secretary since 2006. He was touted as a possible leadership contender following Charles Kennedy`s resignation, though eventually he backed Sir Menzies Campbell. After Campbell`s own resignation the following year he defeated Chris Huhne to become leader of the Liberal Democrats from December 2007. His performance in the first leaders` debate in the 2010 election produced a huge spike in Liberal Democrat support, which largely faded by the time of the election, but was enough to secure a hung Parliament. Clegg subsequently negotiated a coalition deal with the Conservative party, taking the third party into government for the first time since the second world war. Deputy Prime Minister since 2010 (more information at They work for you)
Nicola Bates (Conservative) Educated at York university. PR consultant.
Jack Scott (Labour) Educated at Sheffield University. Executive Director with Sheffield Mental Health Citizen`s Advice Bureau.Nick Clegg(Liberal Democrat) born 1967, Buckinghamshire. Educated at Westminster school and Cambridge university. Prior to his election worked for the European Commission, including as a speechwriter to Sir Leon Brittan. MEP for the East Midlands region 1999-2004. First elected as MP for Sheffield Hallam in 2005. Europe spokesman 2005-2006, Liberal Democrat shadow home secretary since 2006. He was touted as a possible leadership contender following Charles Kennedy`s resignation, though eventually he backed Sir Menzies Campbell. After Campbell`s own resignation the following year he defeated Chris Huhne to become leader of the Liberal Democrats from December 2007 (more information at They work for you)
Steve Barnard (Green) Sheffield councillor 1996-2000. Contested Yorkshire and Humberside in 2009 European elections.
Nigel James (UKIP) Retired university lecturer. Contested Sheffield Hallam 2005.
David Wildgoose (English Democrat) Educated at Oakwood Comprehensive and Hull University. Contested Rotherham 1992, 1994 by-election, 1997, Wentworth 2001 for Liberal Democrats. Contested Yorkshire and Humberside in 2009 European elections.
Ray Green (Christian Party) Mark Adshead (Official Monster Raving Loony) 
Martin Fitzpatrick (Independent) Born 1968. Educated at St Thomas Moore Derby. Sales manager.2001 Census Demographics
Total 2001 Population: 84912
Male: 48.5%
Female: 51.5%
Under 18: 19.3%
Over 60: 23%
Born outside UK: 5.7%
White: 95.2%
Black: 0.6%
Asian: 2.1%
Mixed: 1.2%
Other: 0.8%
Christian: 70.5%
Hindu: 0.6%
Muslim: 1.3%
Full time students: 11.9%
Graduates 16-74: 35.6%
No Qualifications 16-74: 17%
Owner-Occupied: 79.6%
Social Housing: 10.4% (Council: 8.8%, Housing Ass.: 1.6%)
Privately Rented: 8%
Homes without central heating and/or private bathroom: 4.1%
It is the latter. Hallam was the only constituency where the Tories polled more votes than UKIP last May
constituency UKIP Conservative
Central 5.4% 4.0%
Brightside 11.8% 5.0%
Hallam 6.9% 17.2%
Heeley 10.9% 6.5%
South East 14.2% 6.7%
In Brightside & Hillsborough and Souith East UKIP also got more votes than the LDs
Seems though, that UKIP is taking the working class Tory vote in the north – which is fast disappearing. Of course we will have to wait until the election but Sheffield seems to be going the way of Liverpool with regard to Tory voting.
Considering this was once a safe Tory seat and its demographics indicate it should be, 17% is a very poor Tory result
“Seems though, that UKIP is taking the working class Tory vote in the north – which is fast disappearing. Of course we will have to wait until the election but Sheffield seems to be going the way of Liverpool with regard to Tory voting.
Considering this was once a safe Tory seat and its demographics indicate it should be, 17% is a very poor Tory result”
This is true Mike. UKIP are definately a threat to the Tories in the North and they are not scared to say what people up North want to hear. Clearly it is paying off for them while the Tory London centric high command pretend that it’s not happening.
Many of us Tories on here have been saying for the longest time that the Tories need a proper Northern strategy. They need to focus on the whole country not just the South East, more so given the latest census figures for many places down south.
That’s quite a sweeping statement Merseymike.
“The north” is a very big and diverse place.
The Tories aren’t going to give a monkeys about UKIP doing well in seats like Sheffield Attercliffe and Rotherham which have always been hopeless for them.
It would be a different matter if UKIP has started to eat significantly into the Tory vote in places where they need to win parliamentary seats – Bolton, Bury, Pendle, Dewsbury, Keighley and so on.
I’m not informed enough to know whether that is yet the case….I’m sure Pete will know.
No you’re obviously not very well informed. Hallam was a rock solid Tory seat until 1997. Something happened between the local elections in 1992 when the Tories topped 60% of the vote here and May 1994 when they lost half their support in one fell swoop to the Lib Dems.
“No you’re obviously not very well informed.”
And you obviously can’t read! I didn’t say anything about Sheffield Hallam.
‘Many of us Tories on here have been saying for the longest time that the Tories need a proper Northern strategy. ‘
Most Tories on here have been saying precisely the oposite – taking the view that there aren’t enough potential Tory votes up North so the party shouldn’t wadste their time trying to focus on them – the same line taken by that clueless chump Mitt Romney towards ethnic minorities which deservedly cost him the White House
Since David Cameron, Osbourne and other members of the Tory High Command haven’t got a clue about how to relate to working class people in the South, it takes a leap of wild imagination to imagine they can reach out to those in the North – and that’s presuming they have the inclination to do so, which they don’t
Like the BNP, UKIP are willing to push those buttons and stoop to those levels that not even the Tories will go to, and such messages always resonate with the poor, dispossesed and underskilled – probably better than they would in the more middle class areas of the North like Hallam
I should have said “non-white Americans” as opposed to “ethnic minority voters” with regards to the USW
Which is a misnomer really because Hispanics are no less white than French or Italians are.
It’s hard to understand why they are not believed to be so in the US.
My Cuban-American wife was classed as white in the UK census.
LOL I meant Spanish or Italians. Although French can be pretty dark skinned too
“Most Tories on here have been saying precisely the oposite – taking the view that there aren’t enough potential Tory votes up North so the party shouldn’t wadste their time trying to focus on them ”
No they haven’t. Most Tories on here have specifically said that they should not waste their time targettng specific areas of the north such as the core cities like Liverpool and Manchester but of course the North covers many areas outside these which have real potential for the right kind of Conservative approach
Tim, your comments earlier appertaining to me are quite ridiculous. I don’t see why someone being on the Right entitles someone to say that anything they say is automatically ludicrous, as appeared to be the case. The fact that I don’t like gratuitous personal rudeness doesn’t mean I “side with right-wingers”.
Sheffield, White British:
2001: 89.2% [457728 / 513230]
2011: 80.8% [446837 / 552698]
Sheffield, White Overall:
2001: 91.2% [468217 / 513230]
2011: 83.7% [462544 / 552698]
I wonder if any areas are whiter than they were 10 years ago?
Maybe some bits of west or south west London, like Battersea, Kensington, Hammersmith or Notting Hill.
At least if you are looking at all whites rather than just white British.
It would be very hard to find even a single ward with a higher white British percentage, I would think.
We’ll have to see when the ward data is released.
In Wandsworth the white overall percentage fell from 77.96% to 71.41% and the white British percentage declined from 64.78% to 53.34%.
Hammersmith & Fulham:
White overall: from 77.82% to 68.07%.
White British: from 58.04% to 44.93%.
Kensington & Chelsea:
White overall: from 78.60% to 70.61%.
White British: from 50.08% to 39.25%.
Yes, i imagine the only case of an increasing white vote would be where there was a negligable number of minorities in 2001 and reamining so in 2011
I think there’ll be at least a few wards where the white overall percentage has increased. It would be surprising if any wards have registered an increase in the white British population though.
I’ve been trying to find a local authority where the white overall proportion has increased without success so far. A lot of Welsh councils only dropped by around 0.5 to 1.0 percentage points for the white British category.
I’m quite sure there are more whites in Southall than 10 years ago. However, it’s from an unusually low base, and is mainly Eastern Europeans, especially Poles.
Which areas have the highest proportion of:
non-Britsh / British
non-British white / British white
non-British non-white / British non-white (split further if possible)
I think Hispanics are regarded as an entirely separate group inthe US because most are from Latin America rather than Europe. I am part Hispanic American but am certainly white.
3 Highest Non-British Areas -
Kensington & Chelsea (44.2%)
Westminster (42.7%)
Harringey (37.1%)
3 Highest British Areas -
Redcar & Cleveland (98.3%)
Staffordshire Moorlands (98.2%)
Allerdale (98.2%)
3 Highest Non British White Areas
Kensington & Chelsea (31.3%)
Westminster (26.4%)
Harringey (25.8%)
3 Highest British White Areas
Allerdale (97.6%)
Redcar & Cleveland (97.6%)
Staffordshire Moorlands (97.5%)
3 Highest Non British Non White
Westminster (16.3%)
Kensington & Chelsea (12.9%)
Hackney (11.7%)
3 Highest British Non White
Newham (63.1%)
Brent (52.8%)
Harrow (50.9%)
Note that the Scotland results aren’t out yet – and as such some of the 32 Local Authorities may be included in the above when they do come out.
Richard: if you visit the “2011 Census Data” thread on the VoteUK discussion forum you’ll see links to a lot of spreadsheets I’ve done which rank the data for ethnicity and religion.
White British:
Highest = Redcar & Cleveland: 97.60%
Lowest = Newham: 16.73%
Im totally confused by the above. How have you discerned the proportion of ‘British non-white’ and ‘non-British non-white’? The figure for Newham appears to count almost the entire non-white population as British while actually a majority of the population of that borough are foreign born and a large proportion also hold foreign passports
By the above, I was rereffring to David’s post
Perhaps it refers to citizenship?
I don’t think the census measures some of the things David wanted to know about.
Not sure the precise definitions but I took the 18 classifications in the spreadsheet on ONS website and assigned them as below.
White British = White: Scottish/English/Welsh/N Irish/British
White Non British = White Irish, White Gypsy or Irish Traveller, White-Other White
Non White British = Any non-white ethnic group which includes the word British
Non White Non British = Any non-white ethnic group (including mixed) which doesnt include the word British
I wouldn’t be surprised if one or more of the wards around Brixton had increased its white percentage since 2001.
Despite the riots Brixton has in parts got a lot nicer in recent years.
Walking between the railway and tube stations the other week I was struck by how white the high street seemed….certainly more so than Streatham or Thornton Heath would be today.
“Non White British = Any non-white ethnic group which includes the word British”
Then you have included every category of Black or Asian including for example citizens of Pakistan or Senegal who might have arrived in the UK a week before the census was taken while you have counted as Non white-non British people who may have been born here, have an English parent and another parent who is third or fourth generation descendant of immigrants. Clearly this is, with respect, nonsense.
In fact as Andy says it isn’t possible from the data available to discern a difference between ‘British non-white’ and non-British non-white (as Richard in fact was asking for). You might be able to make some very crude estimates on the basis of the numbers of passport holders from various places and countries of birth, but nothing that would be at all meaningful.
Irvine Patnick has died.
Yes – sorry to hear about Sir Irvine Patnick.
I wish he had remained an MP after 1997.
Sad news.
Of course, Sir Irvine himself posted a comment on this very thread a few years ago. I wonder if he is the first poster on this site to die?
I was critical of Sir Irvine’s role in the Hillsborough affair a few months back but to his credit he gave a dignified apology and seems to have been the victim of police deception. I hope the stress associated with the Hillsborough controversy didn’t hasten his death.
Rip Sir Patrick. Given that labour were decieved by the police with regards to Andrew Mitchell I hope they recind calls with regards to the knighthood. It was a very opportunistic and unpleasant thing to have done to a man well over 80 in the last few months of his life.
I don’t know the answer to H.Hemmelig’s question but just wished to confirm that I am still alive.
Happy New Year to you all.
PS I noticed that, until 1950, there was both a Sheffield Ecclesall & a Sheffield Hallam, both of which were safely Conservative. If I were to speculate that the then Ecclesall was the linear predecessor to this seat, but that Hallam as existing before 1950 was more similar to the subsequent Sheffield Heeley, would I be correct to any extent?
In 1945, the Sheffield constituencies were Attercliffe, Brightside, Central, Ecclesall, Hallam, Hillsborough and Park. 5 were won by Labour & 2 by the Tories.
The Mad Cow Girl sadly died, and I think she posted a few times during the by-election at Haltemprice and Howden in 2008.
“If I were to speculate that the then Ecclesall was the linear predecessor to this seat, but that Hallam as existing before 1950 was more similar to the subsequent Sheffield Heeley, would I be correct to any extent?”
I think it was more like the other way around
Sir Irvine Patnick posted one of the first comments on this thread on 15th February 2007.
It was a rather interesting contribution but unfortunately seemed to be ignored at the time and I don’t think he posted again, although I haven’t checked the entire thread which is pretty long.
Thanks Pete. Sheffield is one of the major cities I know least well, and thus I’m more likely to make mistakes in assumptions about it than average.
I forgot all about the mad cow girl.
Sir Irvine’s post is quite near the start of the thread.
As I’ve said,
it undermined my Gloy Plopwell style prediction where I was having an argument with the Lib Dems, saying the seat was winnable for the Tories.
(Although I didn’t go as far as Paul Greenwood’s post which said the Tories were pumping money into the seat, and that lots of senior Lib Dems would be lose their seats).
List of Liberal Democrat gains in 1997 (With swings in brackets)-
1. West Aberdeenshire and Kincardine (8.30%)
2. Brecon and Radnorshire (6.10%)
3. Carshalton and Wallington (11.80%)
4. Colchester (6.20%)
5. Cornwall South East (12.10%)
6. Torridge and West Devon (4.40%)
7. Eastleigh (11.30%)
8. Edinburgh West (11.80%)
9. Harrogate and Knaresborough (15.70%)
10. Hazel Grove (12.80%)
11. Hereford (9.20%)
12. Isle of Wight (5.50%)
13. Kingston and Surbiton (13.60%)
14. Lewes (7.40%)
15. Newbury (17.00%)
16. Northavon (10.40%)
17. Oxford West and Abingdon (10.30%)
18. Portsmouth South (4.40%)
19. Richmond Park (9.70%)
20. St Ives (8.10%)
21. Sheffield Hallam (18.50%)
22. Somerton and Frome (3.70%)
23. Southport (8.90%)
24. Sutton and Cheam (12.90%)
25. Taunton (4.60%)
26. Torbay (5.10%)
27. Twickenham (8.80%)
28. Weston-Super-Mare (6.00%)
29. Winchester (7.40%)
Happy New Year all.
Sir Irvine Patnick’s predeceasor, Sir John Osborn is still living at the age of 90.
“I forgot all about the mad cow girl.”
There’s still a Wikipedia article about her (her real name was Rosalyn Warner). It was nominated for deletion but the consensus was to keep it.
She posted quite a lot of entertaining comments on this site in 2008 during the Haltemprice & Howden by-election (and also Henley). It was a lively discussion and despite the controversy of the by-election she and the record-breaking 25 other candidates made it a colourful affair.
It’s such a shame she died and we didn’t hear more from her. It was believed to be suicide because she had left a “Goodbye” message on her website, which now appears to have been closed down. I don’t think the death was given any media coverage, not even in Sunderland where she lived and had stood as a candidate in several local and general elections.
Sir Irvine wrote:
…”I doubt I will live to see this seat elect another Conservative. Both Richard Allan and Nick Clegg have managed to cultivate a strong personal following in Hallam, something which is hard to break when their party has never been in office and is thus totally unaccountable.”
He was right that he didn’t live to see this seat elect another Conservative. But the LibDems have now been in office so Nick Clegg’s strong personal following, as Sir Irvine put it, will be easier to break. The problem is, it has reached the point where Labour could eventually be ones who benefit.
I find it awfully ironic that for a man so associated with Sheffield Hallam, a lot of people might assume that the Lib Dems’ strength here is down to Clegg’s popularity.
But the reality is that Clegg should be grateful to Richard Allan for this seat having ever been won by the Lib Dems- After all, Allan secured one of the hugest Con-Lib Dem swings in 1997.
A clear case of the party’s strength at local government level being translated into the context of a general election in the same area.
Sir Irvine’s comments are, of course, completely unconfirmed. Any old hack could have written that.
It didn’t look fake though.
IIRC Harry you agreed with his analysis,
although we regret it.