Guildford Borough Council election, 1976

The second Guildford Borough Council full-council elections were held on 6 May 1976. The Conservatives retained control of the council with an increased majority, winning 35 of the 45 seats.

When Guildford Borough Council was created under the Local Government Act 1972 the electoral wards used were largely based on the wards and parish boundaries which had existed under the two previous councils - Guildford Municipal Borough Council (the town council) and Guildford Rural District Council, which together had been merged to form the new Guildford Borough Council.

There had been a slight degree of rewarding in the run up to the 1973 council election.[1] For example, the pre 1973 Friary ward and pre 1973 St Nicolas ward were merged into a new Friary & St Nicolas ward.

Complete rewarding though would only be completed in time for the 1976 elections.[2] The main changes to the electoral wards in the run up to the 1976 elections were as follows -

Ash ward (5 councillors) was split into two wards Ash (3 councillors) plus Ash Vale (2 councillors);

A new Christchurch ward (2 councillors) was created from part of the Stoke ward and part of the Merrow & Burpham ward;[3]

As a result of this Merrow & Burpham ward reduced from 5 councillors to 3. However the geographically reduced Stoke ward still retained its 3 councillors;

Artington, Compton, Puttenham, Seale and Tongham, Shackleford and Wanborough ward (2 councillors) was split into two wards Tongham (1 councillor), plus Pilgrims (2 councillors). This represented a gain of one councillor for this area;

Stoughton saw the number of councillors represent it increase from 2 to 3;

Worplesdon also saw the number of councillors represent it increase from 2 to 3;

Albury, Shere and St Martha's ward (2 councillors) was renamed Tillingbourne (2 councillors);

East Clandon, West Clandon, East Horsley and West Horsley ward (3 councillors) was renamed Clandon and Horsley (3 councillors); and

Ripley, Wisley and Ockham ward (1 councillor) was renamed Lovelace (1 councillor).

In the 1976 election the Liberals lost three seats reducing their representation from 5 to 2. They lost one councillor in Clandon & Horsley (previously called East Clandon, West Clandon, East Horsley and West Horsley). They lost 2 of their 3 councillors in Friary & St Nicolas.

Labour retained all 6 councillors in its two strongholds Stoke and Westborough.

The Conservatives increased their number of councillors from 29 to 35, a figure which up to and including 2011 still remained a record for any party in a full Guildford Borough Council election.

The Conservatives 6 gains included 3 gains from the Liberals - 2 in Friary & St Nicolas and 1 in Clandon & Horsley. The Conservatives gained 1 seat from an Independent in Tillingbourne (previously known as Aldbury, Shere and St Martha's) and made 2 gains as a result of an increase in the number of councillors representing the Stoughton and Worplesdon wards.

A total of 2 independents were elected. Independents lost one councillor in Tillingbourne, but gained one in the new Tongham ward where the elected candidate was described as an Independent Conservative. That Independent Conservative then went on to stand at the next full council election, in 1979, as the official Conservative candidate for the Tongham ward.

Results[4]

Ash (top 3 candidates elected)
Party Candidate Votes % ±
Conservative JG Ades 1543
Conservative Mrs RC Hall 1446
Conservative BM Llewellyn 1412
Labour Mrs J Curwell 753
Labour AR Roberts 701
Labour PD Green 695
Majority 659
Turnout
Ash Vale (top 2 candidates elected)
Party Candidate Votes % ±
Conservative Mrs IF Towler 971
Conservative Mrs JB Golding 936
Labour Miss MI Hawkins 319
Labour E Bones 289
Majority 617
Turnout
Christchurch (top 2 candidates elected)
Party Candidate Votes % ±
Conservative JP Twining 1552
Conservative AJE Hodges 1531
Labour J Wyer 221
Labour MA Ridgway 213
Majority 1310
Turnout
Clandon & Horsley (top 3 candidates elected)
Party Candidate Votes % ±
Conservative DA May 2063
Conservative MF Meredith 1939
Conservative GF Farrar 1688
Liberal Mrs PM Iliff 1528
Liberal WH Pearson 1115
Liberal FA Oxford 951
Majority 160
Turnout
Effingham (only 1 candidate elected)
Party Candidate Votes % ±
Conservative Col BP Trywhitt-Drake 678
Liberal Mrs JH Ormond 276
Majority 402
Turnout
Friary & St. Nicolas (top 3 candidates elected)
Party Candidate Votes % ±
Liberal Dr RE Blundell 1074
Conservative DS Cobbett 1052
Conservative Mrs J Harris 1038
Liberal Mrs MF Bateman 1015
Conservative AJ Spanner 970
Liberal RG Marks 957
Labour Mrs J Henman 421
Labour M Mennel 372
Labour Mrs G Lines 353
Majority 23
Turnout
Holy Trinity (top 2 candidates elected)
Party Candidate Votes % ±
Liberal BAH Banks 1207
Conservative CJK Boyce 1118
Conservative HA Wainwright 1020
Liberal Mrs PJ Maynard 887
Majority 98
Turnout
Lovelace (only 1 candidate elected)
Party Candidate Votes % ±
Conservative DAG Gibbs unopposed
Merrow & Burpham (top 3 candidates elected)
Party Candidate Votes % ±
Conservative Mrs MM Walls 1938
Conservative RHG Beatrip 1655
Conservative SG Brearley 1606
Liberal BR Avery 531
Labour D Wynne 513
Liberal AR Dakers 494
Liberal CJ Oliver 471
Labour MP Hill 406
Labour G Hall 396
Majority 1075
Turnout
Normandy (only 1 candidate elected)
Party Candidate Votes % ±
Conservative AA Cook 670
Labour PJ Dyson 366
Majority 304
Turnout
Onslow (top 3 candidates elected)
Party Candidate Votes % ±
Conservative Mrs PE Harding 1332
Conservative TR Hawke 1113
Conservative Mrs BM Woodhatch 1085
Liberal SH Elston 625
Labour J Cox 570
Labour Mrs CA Rogers 498
Labour Mrs LM Harper 495
Liberal AJ Phillips 488
Liberal Mrs L Strudwick 409
Majority 460
Turnout
Pilgrims (top 2 candidate elected)
Party Candidate Votes % ±
Conservative JD Harris 1130
Conservative JP Moore 1117
Labour Mrs J Bridgewater 203
Labour C Hardiman 202
Majority 814
Turnout
Pirbright (only 1 candidate elected)
Party Candidate Votes % ±
Conservative RH Amis unopposed
Send (top 2 candidates elected)
Party Candidate Votes % ±
Conservative Mrs MH Sanger 945
Conservative SE Roberts 902
Labour Mrs JM Haimes 207
Majority 695
Turnout
Shalford (only 1 candidate elected)
Party Candidate Votes % ±
Conservative Mrs ECS Stewart 777
Independent GA Goulty 487
Majority 290
Turnout
Stoke (top 3 candidates elected)
Party Candidate Votes % ±
Labour GR Bellerby[5] 2093
Labour RGK Burgess 1551
Labour Mrs E Pullan 1456
Conservative HE Harris 723
[6] PM Laurence 577
Conservative JR Williams 552
Majority 733
Turnout
Stoughton (top 3 candidates elected)
Party Candidate Votes % ±
Conservative WR Jordan 1298
Conservative LJ May 1259
Conservative RE Price 1220
Liberal Mrs S Holyroyd 780
Liberal GW Maynard 725
Liberal KL Humphries 722
Labour JFahy 669
Labour SW Cosser 570
Labour OJE Sefton 563
Majority 440
Turnout
Tillingbourne (top 2 candidates elected)
Party Candidate Votes % ±
Conservative MP Dallyn 1099
Independent Mrs MR Elston 998
Independent GA Witheridge 772
Conservative PRJ Rock de Besombes 642
Independent Mrs M Ellenger 378
Majority 226
Turnout
Tongham (only 1 candidate elected)
Party Candidate Votes % ±
Independent Conservative PM Davies 184
Independent RT Oliver 181
Majority 3
Turnout
Westborough (top 3 candidates elected)
Party Candidate Votes % ±
Labour Mrs DW Bellerby 1473
Labour JB Patrick 1279
Labour JR Dale 1272
Conservative BJ Gibbs 741
Conservative Mrs DM Hall 703
Conservative Mrs EM Cobbett 674
Liberal KG Briggs 518
Liberal Mrs BS Redclift 389
Liberal MWJ Morris 385
Majority 531
Turnout
Worplesdon (top 3 candidates elected)
Party Candidate Votes % ±
Conservative DW Reeds 1090
Conservative Mrs SE Simkins 1074
Conservative GF Hellicar 1040
Independent H Cater 836
Liberal PJ Stokoe 575
Liberal Mrs JW Trindles 487
Majority 204
Turnout

References

  1. See Guildford Borough Council - A Compendium of Municipal Election Results 1835 to 1974 by Roger Ottewill.
  2. The Borough of Guildford (Electoral Arrangements) Order 1975
  3. From 1904 to 1933 there had been an electoral ward in this area of Guildford Municipal Borough Council called Christchurch. From 1933 to 1951 its successor ward was known as Merrow & Christchurch. In 1951 the Christchurch ward name disappeared for what would be 25 years - see Twentieth Century Local Election Results Vol 5 Guildford compiled by Roger Ottewill, published by University of Plymouth.
  4. Surrey Advertiser 7–8 May 1976
  5. GR Bellerby was more commonly known as Bill Bellerby. He appears in every Surrey Advertiser summary of Guildford BC election results from 1973 to 1991 as either B Bellerby or Bill Bellerby. For example both the 1973 and 1976 results list all other candidates in all the wards in Guildford by initials except one who they list as 'Bill Bellerby'. "Guildford Borough Council - A Compendium of Municipal Election results 1835 to 1974" by Roger Ottewill repeated lists his initials as 'GR Bellerby' and that form is used herein.
  6. Mr Laurence has the description "(Lab)" printed next to his name in the Surrey Advertiser results of 7/8 May 1976. It is believed that this is a misprint and should read "(Con)". The reason why Mr Laurence is believed to be a Conservative candidate rather than Labour candidate are - a) there are already three other Labour candidates listed in the newspaper for this three ward seat and any party putting up more candidates than positions available would only reduce their average vote and consequently reduce their chance of election which is highly unlikely; b) the number of votes Mr Laurence received fell between the numbers received by the two candidates described in the newspaper as Conservatives, but around 900 less votes than would have been expected if he had been a Labour candidate in this ward in this election; and c) there are only 2 candidates described as Conservatives in the newspaper for this ward in this election and it would be highly unusual in this era in Guildford for the Conservative not to challenge either the Liberals or Labour with their full quota of candidates, although the Conservatives on a number of occasions did not oppose Independents seeking election in Guildford during this era.
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