1982 Epping Forest District Council election

1982 Epping Forest District Council election

←  1980 6 May 1982 (1982-05-06) 1983  →
19 seats to Epping Forest District Council 1 by-election to Loughton Broadway 30 seats needed for a majority
First party Second party Third party   Party Conservative Labour Loughton Residents Last election 45 seats, 51.8% 12 seats, 37.2% N/A Seats before 45 12 0 Seats after 42 12 3 Seat change 3 3 Popular vote 14,493 6,240 2,696 Percentage 47.5% 20.4% 8.8% Swing 4.3% 16.8% N/A   Fourth party Fifth party   Party Alliance Independent Last election 0 seats, 6.7% 2 seats, 4.1% Seats before 1 2 Seats after 0 2 Seat change Popular vote 6,583 179 Percentage 21.6% 0.5% Swing 14.9% 3.6%
Winner of each seat at the 1982 Epping Forest District Council election Rectangular inset (Loughton Broadway): By-election result
Leader before election Conservative Leader after election Conservative

Background

The 1982 Epping Forest District Council election took place on 6 May 1982 to elect members of Epping Forest District Council in Essex, England. The election saw the emergence of the Loughton Residents Association (LRA), a new local political grouping formed in 1981 by residents of Loughton who sought greater consultation and openness in local government.

The LRA, originally called the Central Loughton Residents' Association, was established amid growing concerns that local government decisions were being taken without adequately involving the community. The group fielded candidates to represent Loughton residents more directly at all levels of local government.

The national political context in 1982 was turbulent. The Conservative government led by Margaret Thatcher faced widespread criticism for its handling of the economy, with unemployment reaching postwar highs. The year also saw the creation of the Social Democratic Party (SDP), following a split from Labour, which reshaped the political landscape nationally. Against this backdrop, the local elections provided an opportunity for residents’ groups and independents to gain ground.

In Epping Forest, the Conservatives retained control of the council but suffered losses in Loughton. The LRA made an immediate impact, winning three seats directly from the Conservatives. This breakthrough signalled the start of a long-standing role for the LRA in local politics, with the group becoming a major force in Loughton over the following decades.

Labour and the Liberals also contested seats but did not make the same level of progress locally as the LRA. Overall, the 1982 election marked a turning point in the district’s political history, introducing a durable residents’ movement that challenged the dominance of national parties in local affairs. Notably, the SDP-Liberal Alliance won more votes than Labour, whose vote share dropped sharply, particularly in its heartlands in Loughton, Debden, and Waltham Abbey. This marked the first time one of the two main parties had not placed second in terms of vote share.

Summary

Source: ^[1]

1982 Epping Forest District Council election
Party		This election			Full council			This election
		Seats	Net	Seats %	Other	Total	Total %	Votes	Votes %	+/−
	Conservative	13	3	72.2	29	42	71.1	14,493	47.5	4.3
	Labour	4		6.7	8	12	20.3	6,240	20.4	16.8
	Loughton Residents	3	3	5.0	0	3	5.0	2,696	8.8	N/A
	Independent	0		0.0	2	2	3.3	179	0.5	3.6
	Liberal	0		0.0	0	0	0.0	6,583	21.6	14.9
	Epping Residents	0		0.0	0	0	0.0	173	0.5	N/A
	Ecology	0		0.0	0	0	0.0	103	0.3	N/A

Results

Buckhurst Hill East

Buckhurst Hill East

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	G. Smith	904	49.8	2.1
	Alliance	Ms F. Osborn	581	32.0	16.2
	Labour	J. Markham	330	18.2	14.0
Majority			323	17.8	1.9
Turnout			1,815	46.3	16.0
Registered electors			3,918
	Conservative hold		Swing

Buckhurst Hill West

Buckhurst Hill West

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	V. Milner*	1,299	65.1	2.4
	Alliance	R. Eveling	522	26.2	5.0
	Labour	Ms S. Staddon	174	8.7	2.6
Majority			777	38.9	7.3
Turnout			1,995	42.2	4.0
Registered electors			4,725
	Conservative hold		Swing

Chigwell Row

Chigwell Row

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	R. McGregor*	456	62.4	9.0
	Alliance	G. West	221	30.2	N/A
	Labour	Ms A. Fowl	54	7.4	21.2
Majority			235	32.1	10.8
Turnout			731	41.3	32.8
Registered electors			1,768
	Conservative hold		Swing

Chigwell Village

Chigwell Village

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	B. Gunby*	813	62.4	28.1
	Alliance	A. Thompson	452	34.1	N/A
	Labour	P. Speake	62	4.7	4.8
Majority			361	27.2	53.9
Turnout			1,327	40.9	8.0
Registered electors			3,812
	Conservative hold		Swing

Debden Green

Debden Green

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	P. Bostock*	644	46.0	29.8
	Loughton Residents	M. Wardle	262	18.7	N/A
	Conservative	Ms K. Bellamy	252	18.0	6.2
	Alliance	L. Martin	241	17.2	N/A
Majority			382	27.3	24.4
Turnout			1,399	36.7	4.9
Registered electors			3,812
	Labour hold		Swing

Epping Hemnall

Epping Hemnall

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	R. Hill*	889	48.3	1.0
	Alliance	J. Eves	608	33.0	12.4
	Labour	Ms M. Jackson	314	17.1	13.0
	Ecology	R. Boenke	29	1.6	N/A
Majority			281	15.3	3.8
Turnout			1,840	40.4	2.9
Registered electors			4,559
	Conservative hold		Swing

Epping Lindsey

Epping Lindsey

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	F. Limer*	989	44.2	4.7
	Alliance	A. Payne	668	29.9	11.7
	Labour	G. Scales	354	15.8	17.2
	Epping Residents	Ms M. Jucker	173	7.7	N/A
	Ecology	T. Broughton	52	2.3	N/A
Majority			321	14.4	1.5
Turnout			2,236	45.3	6.7
Registered electors			4,936
	Conservative hold		Swing

Grange Hill

Grange Hill

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	A. Marshall	1,051	66.5	16.3
	Alliance	J. Fuller	389	24.6	N/A
	Labour	R. Opasiak	140	8.9	8.3
Majority			662	41.9	23.7
Turnout			1,580	35.5	12.5
Registered electors			4,451
	Conservative hold		Swing

Loughton Broadway

Loughton Broadway

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	Stephen Murray	799	44.4	40.7
	Labour	H. Worby*	792		N/A
	Alliance	M. Pettman*	673	37.4	N/A
	Alliance	G. McNamara	651		N/A
	Conservative	M. Kerwood	327	18.2	3.3
	Conservative	Ms P. Torr	306		N/A
Majority			119	7.0	63.2
Turnout			1,799	39.7	6.6
Registered electors			4,527
	Labour hold		Swing
	Labour hold		Swing

Loughton Forest

Loughton Forest

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Loughton Residents	R. Gow	819	54.9	N/A
	Conservative	Ms A. Macdonald	502	33.6	41.8
	Alliance	W. Randall	109	7.3	N/A
	Labour	C. Martin	63	4.2	4.8
Majority			317	21.2	N/A
Turnout			1,493	50.8	15.9
Registered electors			2,940
	Loughton Residents gain from Conservative		Swing

Loughton Roding

Loughton Roding

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	Ms A. Miller	862	43.3	0.9
	Labour	C. Huckle	667	33.5	22.3
	Alliance	A. Hilton	461	23.2	N/A
Majority			195	9.8	5.2
Turnout			1,990	45.4	5.5
Registered electors			4,387
	Conservative hold		Swing

Loughton St. Johns

Loughton St. Johns

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Loughton Residents	Ms D. Rhodes	822	43.5	N/A
	Conservative	J. Phillips	710	37.6	33.5
	Alliance	P. Richardson	211	11.2	3.7
	Labour	R. Cornell	145	7.7	13.7
Majority			112	5.9	N/A
Turnout			1,888	45.5	4.1
Registered electors			4,387
	Loughton Residents gain from Conservative		Swing

Loughton St. Marys

Loughton Marys

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Loughton Residents	T. Webb	793	51.1	N/A
	Conservative	A. Swallow*	442	28.5	40.3
	Alliance	G. Hall	198	12.7	N/A
	Labour	J. Davy	120	7.7	23.5
Majority			351	22.6	N/A
Turnout			1,553	47.6	16.5
Registered electors			3,266
	Loughton Residents gain from Conservative		Swing

Nazeing

Nazeing

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	M. Welch*	997	74.6	25.4
	Labour	K. Morris	339	25.4	N/A
Majority			658	49.3	50.7
Turnout			1,336	35.7	N/A
Registered electors			3,745
	Conservative hold		Swing

North Weald Bassett

North Weald Bassett

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	B. Greenhill*	1,001	60.2	4.7
	Labour	P. Vickery	482	29.0	6.1
	Independent	R. Wyness	179	10.8	N/A
Majority			519	31.2	0.4
Turnout			1,662	41.5	31.2
Registered electors			4,004
	Conservative hold		Swing

Theydon Bois

Theydon Bois

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	Ms J. Wainwright*	969	73.0	27.0
	Alliance	O. Dunseath	250	18.8	N/A
	Labour	Ms F. Davy	86	6.5	N/A
	Ecology	Ms L. Boenke	22	1.7	N/A
Majority			719	54.2	45.8
Turnout			1,327	40.6	N/A
Registered electors			3,268
	Conservative hold		Swing

Waltham Abbey East

Waltham Abbey East

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	J. O'Reilly	1,074	57.7	9.4
	Labour	J. Popely	488	26.2	25.5
	Alliance	Ms G. Pettman	299	16.1	N/A
Majority			586	31.5	28.0
Turnout			1,861	39.4	1.8
Registered electors			4,721
	Conservative hold		Swing

Waltham Abbey Paternoster

Waltham Abbey Paternoster

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	S. Riley*	608	45.3	27.5
	Conservative	J. Macdougall	416	31.0	3.8
	Alliance	J. Stewart	317	23.6	N/A
Majority			192	14.3	31.3
Turnout			1,341	37.0	0.6
Registered electors			3,620
	Labour hold		Swing

Waltham Abbey West

Waltham Abbey West

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	G. Jailler*	540	41.7	9.4
	Alliance	Ms M. Lermit	383	29.6	N/A
	Labour	D. Grenville-Brown	371	28.7	20.2
Majority			157	12.1	9.9
Turnout			1,294	34.8	39.6
Registered electors			3,720
	Conservative hold		Swing

References

1. Colin Rallings; Michael Thrasher (2013). "Epping Forest District Council Election Results 1973-2012" (PDF). The elections centre. Plymouth University. Archived (PDF) from the original on 2 February 2025.