2026 Newcastle-under-Lyme Borough Council election

Last updated
2026 Newcastle-under-Lyme Borough Council election
Staffordshire Flag.svg
  2022 7 May 2026 (2026-05-07)

All 44 seats to Newcastle-under-Lyme Borough Council
23 seats needed for a majority
 First partySecond partyThird party
 
Con
Lab
Ref
LeaderSimon TaggDave JonesNone
Party Conservative Labour Reform
Leader's seatWestlandsKeele
Last election25 seats, 49.5%19 seats, 46.8%Did not stand
Seats before26171

Newcastle-under-Lyme UK local election 2022 map.svg
Results of the 2022 Election

Leader before election

Simon Tagg
Conservative

Leader after election

TBD

The 2026 Newcastle-under-Lyme Borough Council election is set to be held on Thursday 7 May 2026 to elect all 44 councillors who serve on Newcastle-under-Lyme Borough Council. It will be held alongside council elections across England.

Background

Simon Tagg has served as Leader of Newcastle-under-Lyme Borough Council since December 2017. In the 2025 Staffordshire County Council election, Newcastle-under-Lyme experienced a significant political shift towards Reform, [1] which secured eight of the nine available seats in the area and 44.7% of the total vote. Labour failed to win any seats, while the Conservatives retained only one.

Reform gained its first seat on the council earlier in May 2025 through a by-election victory in Knutton. [2]

A major topic of local concern is the proposed reorganisation of local government, with widespread opposition to the government’s plans to potentially merge Staffordshire Moorlands, Stoke-on-Trent, and Newcastle-under-Lyme councils, or alternatively divide Staffordshire along east–west lines. [3] A large number of residents have signed a petition protesting these proposals. [4]

Other key local issues include the development of solar farms, and the housing of asylum seekers in local hotels, [5] among other community concerns.

References

  1. Andrews, Rob (2025-05-02). "Live: Reform UK win eight out of nine council seats across Newcastle". Stoke on Trent Live. Retrieved 2025-11-13.
  2. Sutton, Jonathan (2025-05-02). "Reform UK double delight as Lynn Dean wins May Bank & Wolstanton". Stoke-on-Trent Live. Retrieved 2025-11-13.
  3. "Five different plans for re-drawing Staffordshire's political map". BBC News. 2025-11-08. Retrieved 2025-11-13.
  4. Andrews, Rob (2025-01-20). "'No to merger with Stoke' protest in Newcastle borough independence fight". Stoke-on-Trent Live. Retrieved 2025-11-13.
  5. Andrews, Rob (2025-08-25). "Tory leader raises concerns over asylum seeker placements in Staffordshire". Stoke-on-Trent Live. Retrieved 2025-11-13.