| Sherwood Forest | |
|---|---|
| County constituency for theHouse of Commons | |
 Boundaries since 2024 | |
 Boundary of Sherwood Forest in the East Midlands | |
| County | Nottinghamshire |
| Electorate | 76,543 (2023)[1] |
| Major settlements | Hucknall,Ollerton,Ravenshead,Calverton |
| Current constituency | |
| Created | 1983 |
| Member of Parliament | Michelle Welsh (Labour) |
| Seats | One |
| Created from | Newark,Carlton,Ashfield |
Sherwood Forest is aconstituency[n 1] represented in theHouse of Commons of theUK Parliament since 2024 byMichelle Welsh, of theLabour Party.[n 2] The constituency's name is shared withSherwood Forest, which is in the area.
The constituency was formerly known asSherwood. It was renamed as a result of the2023 Periodic Review of Westminster constituencies, with minor boundary changes. It was first contested under the new name at the2024 general election.[2]
1983–1997: The District of Newark wards of Bilsthorpe, Blidworth, Boughton, Clipstone, Dover Beck, Edwinstowe, Farnsfield, Fishpool, Lowdham, Ollerton North, Ollerton South, Rainworth, and Rufford, the District of Ashfield wards of Hucknall Central, Hucknall East, Hucknall North, and Hucknall West, and the Borough of Gedling wards of Bestwood St Albans (Bestwood Village only), Calverton, Lambley, Newstead, and Woodborough.
1997–2010: The District of Newark and Sherwood wards of Bilsthorpe, Blidworth, Boughton, Clipstone, Dover Beck, Edwinstowe, Farnsfield, Lowdham, Ollerton North, Ollerton South, Rainworth, and Rufford, the District of Ashfield wards of Hucknall Central, Hucknall East, Hucknall North, and Hucknall West, and the Borough of Gedling wards of Bestwood Park, Calverton, Lambley, Newstead, Ravenshead, and Woodborough.
2010–2024 The District of Newark and Sherwood wards of Bilsthorpe, Blidworth, Boughton, Clipstone, Edwinstowe, Farnsfield, Ollerton, and Rainworth, the District of Ashfield wards of Hucknall Central, Hucknall East, Hucknall North, and Hucknall West, and the Borough of Gedling wards of Bestwood Village, Calverton, Lambley, Newstead, Ravenshead, and Woodborough.
Further to the2023 Periodic Review of Westminster constituencies, which came into effect for the2024 general election, the composition of the constituency is as follows (as they existed on 1 December 2020):
The constituency saw minor boundary changes, primarily due to the redrawing of local authority ward boundaries.
The constituency is in centralNottinghamshire, covering parts of three local government authorities:Hucknall in theAshfield district, parts of theGedling borough, and the western part of theNewark and Sherwood district, the largest geographical area of the seat.
The seat name is common withSherwood Forest. The seat is an area of contrasts such as Ravenshead, home to some of Nottinghamshire's most affluent residents, numerous smaller rural villages, one mining village and many ex-mining villages, and the town of Hucknall, the largest in the constituency, now a commuter town, but one which remains involved with mining.Thoresby, Edwinstowe once contained a largeoperational coal mine underground. It does not contain the Nottingham City ward ofSherwood, which is further south, within theNottingham East constituency.
The constituency consists of Census Output Areas of three local government districts with similar characteristics: a working population whose income is close to the national average, and lower than average reliance uponsocial housing.[4] At the end of 2012, the unemployment rate in the constituency stood as 3.5% of the population claiming jobseekers allowance, compared to an identical regional average which was below the national average.[5] Taking the part of Newark and Sherwood that contributes to the seat: a slightly below average 18.6% of its population are without a car, a medium 25.1% of the population are without qualifications and a high 24.2% have level 4 qualifications or above (2011). In terms of tenure, 70.2% of homes are owned outright or on a mortgage by occupants as at the2011 census across that district.[6]
On the constituency's creation in 1983,Andy Stewart gained the seat for the Conservatives in their landslide victory that year with a small majority of 658. The Nottinghamshire miners drifted further from Labour during the 1984 strike and Stewart was re-elected with an increased majority in 1987. However, in1992 the seat was gained for Labour byPaddy Tipping, who held it until he retired in2010, when the seat was regained for the Conservatives byMark Spencer, by a majority of 214. In 2015, Spencer's lead over the second placed candidate increased to 4,647 votes. This further increased in 2017 and another big swing to the Conservatives in 2019 saw Spencer's majority increase to 16,186, the first time a Conservative had a five-figure majority in the seat.[7]
Newark,Carlton andAshfield prior to 1983
| Election | Member[8] | Party | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1983 | Andy Stewart | Conservative | |
| 1992 | Paddy Tipping | Labour | |
| 2010 | Sir Mark Spencer | Conservative | |
| 2024 | Michelle Welsh | Labour | |
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Labour | Michelle Welsh | 18,841 | 38.7 | +9.2 | |
| Conservative | Mark Spencer | 13,398 | 27.5 | −33.3 | |
| Reform | Helen O'Hare | 11,320 | 23.3 | N/A | |
| Green | Sheila Greatrex-White | 2,216 | 4.6 | +2.0 | |
| Liberal Democrats | David Dobbie[11] | 1,838 | 3.8 | −1.9 | |
| Independent | Lee Waters | 864 | 1.8 | N/A | |
| Independent | Jeremy Spry | 183 | 0.4 | N/A | |
| Majority | 5,443 | 11.2 | N/A | ||
| Turnout | 48,660 | 61.9 | −5.7 | ||
| Registered electors | 78,894 | ||||
| Labourgain fromConservative | Swing | +21.2 | |||
Lee Waters was selected to stand by theAshfield Independents.
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Conservative | Mark Spencer | 32,049 | 60.8 |  9.3 | |
| Labour | Jerry Hague | 15,863 | 30.1 |  11.7 | |
| Liberal Democrats | Tim Ball | 2,883 | 5.5 | 3.4 | |
| Green | Esther Cropper | 1,214 | 2.3 | 1.1 | |
| Independent | Simon Rood | 700 | 1.3 | New | |
| Majority | 16,186 | 30.7 | 21.0 | ||
| Turnout | 52,709 | 67.6 | 2.6 | ||
| Conservativehold | Swing | 10.5 | |||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Conservative | Mark Spencer | 27,492 | 51.5 | 6.5 | |
| Labour | Mike Pringle | 22,294 | 41.8 | 5.9 | |
| UKIP | Stuart Bestwick | 1,801 | 3.4 | 11.2 | |
| Liberal Democrats | Becky Thomas[13] | 1,113 | 2.1 | 0.1 | |
| Green | Morris Findley | 664 | 1.2 | 1.0 | |
| Majority | 5,198 | 9.7 | 0.6 | ||
| Turnout | 53,364 | 70.2 | 1.1 | ||
| Conservativehold | Swing | 0.3 | |||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Conservative | Mark Spencer | 22,833 | 45.0 | +5.8 | |
| Labour | Léonie Mathers | 18,186 | 35.9 | −2.9 | |
| UKIP | Sally Chadd[16] | 7,399 | 14.6 | +11.6 | |
| Green | Lydia Davies-Bright[17] | 1,108 | 2.2 | New | |
| Liberal Democrats | Dan Mosley[18] | 1,094 | 2.2 | −12.7 | |
| Class War | Dave Perkins | 78 | 0.2 | New | |
| Majority | 4,647 | 9.1 | +8.7 | ||
| Turnout | 50,698 | 69.1 | +0.2 | ||
| Conservativehold | Swing | +4.4 | |||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Conservative | Mark Spencer | 19,211 | 39.2 | +5.8 | |
| Labour | Emilie Oldknow | 18,997 | 38.8 | −10.6 | |
| Liberal Democrats | Kevin Moore | 7,283 | 14.9 | +1.4 | |
| BNP | James North | 1,754 | 3.6 | New | |
| UKIP | Margot Parker | 1,490 | 3.0 | −0.7 | |
| NOTA (None of the Above) | Russ Swan[21] | 219 | 0.4 | New | |
| Majority | 214 | 0.4 | N/A | ||
| Turnout | 48,954 | 68.9 | +7.1 | ||
| Conservativegain fromLabour | Swing | +8.2 | |||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Labour | Paddy Tipping | 22,824 | 48.4 | −5.8 | |
| Conservative | Bruce Laughton | 16,172 | 34.3 | +0.5 | |
| Liberal Democrats | Peter Harris | 6,384 | 13.5 | +1.6 | |
| UKIP | Moritz Dawkins | 1,737 | 3.7 | New | |
| Majority | 6,652 | 14.1 | −6.3 | ||
| Turnout | 47,117 | 62.8 | +2.1 | ||
| Labourhold | Swing | −3.1 | |||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Labour | Paddy Tipping | 24,900 | 54.2 | −4.3 | |
| Conservative | Brandon Lewis | 15,527 | 33.8 | +5.0 | |
| Liberal Democrats | Peter Harris | 5,473 | 11.9 | +3.3 | |
| Majority | 9,373 | 20.4 | −9.3 | ||
| Turnout | 45,900 | 60.7 | −14.9 | ||
| Labourhold | Swing | ||||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Labour | Paddy Tipping | 33,071 | 58.5 | +11.0 | |
| Conservative | Roland Spencer | 16,259 | 28.8 | −14.1 | |
| Liberal Democrats | Bruce Moult | 4,889 | 8.6 | −1.0 | |
| Referendum | Lee Slack | 1,882 | 3.3 | New | |
| BNP | Paul Ballard | 432 | 0.8 | New | |
| Majority | 16,812 | 29.7 | +25.1 | ||
| Turnout | 56,533 | 75.6 | −9.9 | ||
| Labourhold | Swing | ||||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Labour | Paddy Tipping | 29,788 | 47.5 | +9.3 | |
| Conservative | Andy Stewart | 26,878 | 42.9 | −3.0 | |
| Liberal Democrats | JW Howard | 6,039 | 9.6 | −6.4 | |
| Majority | 2,910 | 4.6 | N/A | ||
| Turnout | 62,705 | 85.5 | +3.6 | ||
| Labourgain fromConservative | Swing | +6.2 | |||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Conservative | Andy Stewart | 26,816 | 45.9 | +4.9 | |
| Labour | William Bach | 22,321 | 38.2 | −1.5 | |
| SDP | Stuart Thompstone | 9,343 | 16.0 | −3.3 | |
| Majority | 4,495 | 7.7 | +6.4 | ||
| Turnout | 58,480 | 81.9 | +5.6 | ||
| Conservativehold | Swing | ||||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Conservative | Andy Stewart | 21,595 | 41.0 | ||
| Labour | William Bach | 20,937 | 39.7 | ||
| SDP | Margaret E. Cooper | 10,172 | 19.3 | ||
| Majority | 658 | 1.3 | |||
| Turnout | 52,704 | 76.3 | |||
| Conservativewin (new seat) | |||||