1969 Sheffield City Council election

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1969 Sheffield City Council election
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←  1968 8 May 1969 1970  →
28 councillors to Sheffield City Council
 First partySecond partyThird party
 
Party Labour Conservative Liberal
Seats won18100
Seat changeIncrease2.svg5Decrease2.svg5Steady2.svg0
1969 Sheffield City Council election map-en.png
Majority party before election

Conservative Party (UK)

Majority party after election

Labour Party (UK)

The 1969 Sheffield City Council elections were held on 8 May 1969, with one third of the council - plus a double vacancy in Park - up for election. The previous year's historic win by the Conservatives, and their gaining control of the council was ended with these elections, with Labour successfully holding or gaining back seats in wards they lost in the last year's defeat. The previous year's substantial Tory leads in vote figures and seat numbers belied how narrowly won those numerous gains were, with even a tiny swing to Labour destined to return them.

Contents

Labour's win and regaining control of the council was in sharp contrast to the national picture, which seen a repeat of the preceding years' heavy losses to the Conservatives with further losses of their heartlands to Tory control. Sheffield joined Stoke as the only cities left controlled by Labour, with last year's survivor Hull falling this year. Nationally Labour managed just 23 gains, with Sheffield accounting for over a fifth of them.

Given this environment, the Labour response was naturally overjoyed; the Sheffield Brightside MP Eddie Griffiths reacted "I literally had tears in my eyes when I heard the results. I was more excited about these results than by my own election". The Labour group's leader Ald Ron Ironmonger attributed this to their campaigning effort and the electorate voting on a local mindset "[we've] struggled so hard for this. We took this really seriously - we haven't fought a campaign like this for years. I think the victory is due to the good sense of the Sheffield people, and I am proud of them tonight. They have judged the election on the city's own affairs as we asked them to. We are certainly wiser men after a year in opposition. There is no doubt about that."

The Conservative grouping leader Ald Harrold Hebblethwaite responded "Obviously I am very disappointed at this result and I find it quite surprising, though one has always understood that Sheffield is a city on its own, and can never be relied on to follow a national trend. The great pity of it is that Walkley we certainly lost due to the intervention of an Independent, and Sharrow by a Liberal intervention - though obviously we cannot say that as regards Firth Park and Handsworth".

Hebblethwaite accepted that the Rent Rebate scheme had played a large part in last year's results, but qualified "nevertheless I am certain the public have been somewhat confused about the issues this year. Twelve months is not enough time for any party to settle down in control and get its policies under way". Of such policies Labour were to reintroduce the closed-shop clause in Corporation employment which the Tories had dropped and accept the 30 places at Sheffield Girl's High School, which were now too late to reverse.

Overall turnout was up narrowly on the previous year's, to 33.2% [1]

Election result

Sheffield local election result 1969
PartySeatsGainsLossesNet gain/lossSeats %Votes %Votes+/−
  Labour 1850+564.342.452,082+6.4
  Conservative 1005-535.752.864,862-4.6
  Liberal 00000.01.72,092-0.4
  Communist 00000.01.72,065-0.7
 Other00000.01.41,800-0.7

The result had the following consequences for the total number of seats on the Council after the elections:

PartyPrevious councilNew council
Cllr Ald Cllr Ald
Labour34183918
Conservatives479429
Liberals0000
Communists0000
Total81278127
108108
Working majority 13  -9  -3  9 
 4  6 

Ward results

Attercliffe [1]
PartyCandidateVotes%±%
Labour Norman Eldred 2,089 71.0 +4.6
Conservative Harold Mellor85229.0−4.6
Majority 1,23742.0+9.2
Turnout 2,94119.0−2.2
Labour hold Swing +4.6
Beauchief [1]
PartyCandidateVotes%±%
Conservative C. White 6,001 82.2 −0.7
Labour Annie Britton1,29617.7+0.7
Majority 4,70564.5−1.4
Turnout 7,29750.6−2.5
Conservative hold Swing -0.7
Birley [1]
PartyCandidateVotes%±%
Labour John Yeardley 2,438 49.7 +8.7
Conservative Pauline Minns2,21145.1−9.0
Independent Laurence Gillatt2515.2+0.4
Majority 2274.6−8.4
Turnout 4,90032.3+1.1
Labour gain from Conservative Swing +8.8
Brightside [1]
PartyCandidateVotes%±%
Labour Henry Sturrock 1,966 55.2 +2.5
Conservative Kathleene Moore1,31937.0+0.8
J. Robinson1654.6+4.6
Independent CommunistR. Wilkinson1093.0+3.0
Majority 64718.2+1.6
Turnout 3,55927.6+0.5
Labour hold Swing +0.8
Broomhill [1]
PartyCandidateVotes%±%
Conservative A. Smith 3,154 77.3 +11.0
Labour R. Thackeray69016.9−1.7
D. Morris2335.8+5.8
Majority 2,46460.4+12.7
Turnout 4,07731.1−2.0
Conservative hold Swing +6.3
Burngreave [1]
PartyCandidateVotes%±%
Labour John Pate 2,346 55.9 +13.6
Conservative Cliff Godber1,69540.4−9.3
Communist A. March1533.6−1.0
Majority 65115.5+8.1
Turnout 4,19431.6+4.3
Labour hold Swing +11.4
Castle [1]
PartyCandidateVotes%±%
Labour Peter Horton 2,088 67.5 +13.5
Conservative L. Chambers78825.5−8.5
Communist Edna Ashworth2167.0+1.6
Majority 1,30042.0+22.1
Turnout 3,09227.5−1.4
Labour hold Swing +11.0
Darnall [1]
PartyCandidateVotes%±%
Labour William Owen 2,902 59.0 +9.9
Conservative Roger Outram2,01441.0−9.9
Majority 88818.0+16.3
Turnout 4,91632.8+2.4
Labour hold Swing +9.9
Dore [1]
PartyCandidateVotes%±%
Conservative Thornton Lambert 4,983 79.7 −0.6
Labour Marie Rodgers1,27220.3+0.6
Majority 3,71159.4−1.2
Turnout 6,25547.7−1.0
Conservative hold Swing -0.6
Ecclesall [1]
PartyCandidateVotes%±%
Conservative Edith Edeson 4,341 83.9 +5.7
Labour James Pearson83516.1+5.9
Majority 3,50667.7−0.1
Turnout 5,17635.5−7.2
Conservative hold Swing -0.1
Firth Park [1]
PartyCandidateVotes%±%
Labour Albert Morris 2,147 43.7 +4.4
Conservative Andrew Oxley1,94439.5−6.5
Liberal Francis Butler67013.6+3.6
Communist Barry Bracken1553.1−1.5
Majority 2034.1−2.6
Turnout 4,91634.5+1.7
Labour gain from Conservative Swing +5.4
Gleadless [1]
PartyCandidateVotes%±%
Conservative David Heslop 3,898 57.1 −6.7
Labour Phillip Grisdale2,34734.8+3.9
Liberal Dennis Boothroyd5818.5+2.7
Majority 1,55122.7−10.6
Turnout 6,82644.5−2.0
Conservative hold Swing -5.3
Hallam [1]
PartyCandidateVotes%±%
Conservative Gordon Wragg 3,755 70.4 −9.1
Labour Harry Hall95417.9−2.5
Liberal Jean Mason62211.7+11.7
Majority 2,80152.5−6.6
Turnout 5,33138.5−1.0
Conservative hold Swing -3.3
Handsworth [1]
PartyCandidateVotes%±%
Labour George Nicholls 2,563 55.8 +6.2
Conservative Jack Kerton2,03144.2−6.2
Majority 53211.6+10.6
Turnout 4,59436.1+3.4
Labour gain from Conservative Swing +6.2
Heeley [1]
PartyCandidateVotes%±%
Conservative Peter Earl 3,377 56.4 −1.3
Labour Alfred Wood2,19336.7+0.5
Communist J. Turton4116.9+0.8
Majority 1,18419.8−1.8
Turnout 5,98137.3−3.2
Conservative hold Swing -0.9
Hillsborough [1]
PartyCandidateVotes%±%
Conservative Constance Dodson 3,500 64.7 −3.7
Labour William Meade1,91235.3+3.7
Majority 1,58829.3−7.3
Turnout 5,41236.8−6.0
Conservative hold Swing -3.6
Intake [1]
PartyCandidateVotes%±%
Conservative Marvyn Moore 2,613 52.9 −4.4
Labour Arnold Wood2,32947.1+4.4
Majority 2845.7−8.7
Turnout 4,94231.3−1.3
Conservative hold Swing -4.4
Manor [1]
PartyCandidateVotes%±%
Labour Dora Fitter 2,027 59.6 +10.3
Conservative D. Russell1,15634.0−5.0
Communist John Hukin2196.4−5.3
Majority 87125.6+15.2
Turnout 3,40224.8−1.0
Labour hold Swing +7.6
Mosborough [1]
PartyCandidateVotes%±%
Labour Mary Foulds 2,078 62.8 +13.4
Conservative Eric Vawser1,23037.2−13.4
Majority 84825.6+24.5
Turnout 3,30838.0+4.4
Labour hold Swing +13.4
Nether Edge [1]
PartyCandidateVotes%±%
Conservative Ivan Harrington 4,085 79.9 −2.9
Labour Charlotte Ellis1,02920.1+2.9
Majority 3,05659.7−5.8
Turnout 5,11436.8−3.0
Conservative hold Swing -2.9
Nether Shire [1]
PartyCandidateVotes%±%
Labour Charles Moseley 2,221 52.1 +12.6
Conservative Hazel Black1,76641.4+4.7
Communist Ken Hattersley2786.5+1.1
Majority 45510.7+7.9
Turnout 4,26534.5−4.9
Labour hold Swing +3.9
Netherthorpe [1]
PartyCandidateVotes%±%
Labour Doris Mulhearn 1,994 57.6 +11.8
Conservative E. Dawson1,30937.8−8.0
Communist Roy Barrett1564.5−3.8
Majority 68519.8+19.7
Turnout 3,45931.5+2.6
Labour hold Swing +9.9
Owlerton [1]
PartyCandidateVotes%±%
Labour Jack Watson 2,257 62.0 +18.4
Conservative Zena Thompson1,38538.0−7.8
Majority 87223.9+21.7
Turnout 3,64225.2+2.7
Labour hold Swing +13.1
Park [1]
PartyCandidateVotes%±%
Labour Charles Knowles 2,466 64.7 +17.7
Labour Peter Jones 2,458
Conservative June Harris1,09128.6−2.5
Conservative Peter Huddart1,021
Communist Cyril Morton2536.6+1.9
Majority 1,37536.1+20.3
Turnout 3,81023.2−1.6
Labour hold Swing
Labour hold Swing +10.1
Sharrow [1]
PartyCandidateVotes%±%
Labour Ethal Evans 1,991 47.9 +3.8
Conservative David Pinder1,82443.8−7.7
Liberal Colin Wood2195.3+5.3
National Front George Clark1253.0−1.5
Majority 1674.0−3.5
Turnout 4,15937.2−2.1
Labour gain from Conservative Swing +5.7
Southey Green [1]
PartyCandidateVotes%±%
Labour Winifred Golding 1,866 65.2 +13.1
Conservative Charles Hughes77227.0−7.4
Communist Gordon Ashberry2247.8−5.7
Majority 1,09438.2+20.5
Turnout 2,86221.2+0.2
Labour hold Swing +10.2
Walkley [1]
PartyCandidateVotes%±%
Labour Bernard Kidd 1,786 39.9 −0.8
Conservative Leslie Hesp1,76839.5−9.3
G. Green77317.3+17.3
National Front Alan Holmes1443.2−2.1
Majority 180.4−7.7
Turnout 4,47131.5+0.0
Labour gain from Conservative Swing +4.2

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 "Sheffield Local Elections 1960–1995 scans" . Retrieved 2 December 2011.
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