LibDems hold Stannington seat in Sheffield Council by-election

NHS cardiologist Will Sapwell takes over from popular LibDem councillor Vickie Priestley, who died of cancer in November. He beat former council cabinet member Lewis Dagnall, representing Labour, in his latest attempt to return to the council.

The result was:

Will Sapwell, Liberal Democrats, 2,258

Lewis Dagnall, Labour and Co-operative Party, 1,212

Ben Woollard, Conservative Party, 372

Chris Bragg, Green Party, 328

Rod Rodgers, The Liberal Party, 118

The turnout was 30.79 per cent.

LibDems also held the vacant seat on the Worrall ward of Bradfield Parish Council. LibDem Lynne Morgan beat Lewis Dagnall by 983 votes to 443. The turnout was 30.43 per cent.

Frustration

Will Sapwell said: “I’m very aware of the size of shoes I’ve got to fill. I’ve been campaigning in Stannington for a long time now – you can’t help but fall in love with the area.

“A key issue is the buses and I am a public transport user. My shared frustration has certainly won me votes. People know that I’m a doctor working in the local area and I’ve struggled with buses getting to work.”

He said that other key issues in the election included the gas flood that caused chaos in Stannington homes just over a year ago when a Yorkshire Water main burst into gas pipes.

He said many people also spoke about Stannington Park and the need for improvements. He said that he has a plan for that but cannot reveal more just yet.

Coun Sapwell thanked everyone who had voted for him and said “I am going to do my damnedest to live up to” the legacy left by Coun Priestley.

Lewis Dagnall said: “We always knew that Stannington was going to be a really hard fight. Labour has literally never won in a Stannington ward for more than 30 years – the last time was in 1990 and I was born in 1993.

Investment

“We gave it a good go and we’re improving Sheffield for the better, putting up a good show across the city. I’m standing for Stannington in the May elections, speaking about a wider city agenda and the priorities that Labour are standing for.”

Mr Dagnall, who stepped down from his seat in Gleadless Valley in 2021 to campaign to become Labour’s South Yorkshire mayoral election candidate, said the main issues locally were buses, crime, sewage going into the River Rivelin and the cost-of-living crisis.

Read this: MP hits out at “atrocious bus strategy”

Council leader Coun Tom Hunt said that Labour had campaigned hard in the ward. He said: “We are continuing to campaign across the city to listen to communities and continue our work to rebuild trust.

“We are 100 per cent focused on building a better Sheffield – improving public transport, building affordable housing, bringing in investment to create jobs and doing everything we can to help people with the Tory cost-of-living crisis.”

The council remains under no overall control, with Labour the biggest party with 31 seats, Liberal Democrats back to 29, Greens with 14 seats, eight Sheffield Community Group councillors who split from Labour, one Conservative and one Independent.

The next council elections take place in May, when one-third of 84 seats will be contested.