Residents for Uttlesford

Residents for Uttlesford (R4U) is a localist political party in the United Kingdom. The party was launched in 2014, and formed from a number of residents groups in the area.[1][2] The party is based in the Uttlesford administrative district in Essex and promotes a localist agenda that seeks to give residents a greater say in the future of their district.[3] Residents for Uttlesford has elected representation at multiple levels of local government: Uttlesford District Council,[4] Essex County Council and various town and parish councils, including the councils for both towns in Uttlesford, Saffron Walden and Great Dunmow.

Residents for Uttlesford
ChairmanDan Starr
Founded2014
HeadquartersResidents for Uttlesford
3 London Rd, Saffron Walden, CB11 4ED, United Kingdom
IdeologyLocalism
Colours  Turquoise
Uttlesford District Council
24 / 39
Saffron Walden Town Council
13 / 16
Great Dunmow Town Council
3 / 16
Henham Parish Council
1 / 9
High Easter Parish Council
1 / 7
Newport Parish Council
2 / 11
Essex County Council
2 / 75
Website
Residents4U.org

Background

For the 2013 UK local elections, Uttlesford residents stood two of their own candidates on an Independent platform. Both were elected - John Lodge to Essex County Council and Joanna Parry to Uttlesford District Council.[5]

Following this, in 2014 the local residents groups formed their own party, Residents for Uttlesford, so that they could more easily stand a larger number of candidates across the electoral District.[6] A number of existing councillors crossed the aisle to join the new party when it was launched.[7]

Residents for Uttlesford cite other successful local independent political parties in the UK as the inspiration for their model, including the Loughton Residents Association in Essex, Residents Associations of Epsom and Ewell in Surrey, and Independents for Frome with their Flatpack Democracy model.[8]

Electoral history

Residents for Uttlesford fought their first local elections in May 2015, with candidates standing for seats in both Uttlesford District Council and Saffron Walden Town Council.[9] They won a majority of the seats on the town council and became the opposition in the district council.

A by-election was held on 16 February 2017 in the ward of Elsenham and Henham of the Uttlesford District Council, following the resignation of the two councillors from that ward who were members of the Liberal Democrats. Residents for Uttlesford stood candidates for the first time in that ward and won a landslide victory, with 60% of the votes cast.[10]

In the 2019 Uttlesford District Council election, the party gained control of Uttlesford District Council after winning 26 out of 39 of the available seats.[11] They also maintained control of the Saffron Walden Town Council, winning 15 out of the 16 seats. The remaining seat was won by the Green Party, whose candidate did not defeat Residents for Uttlesford, but was elected as the seventh councillor for the seven-seat ward of Saffron Walden Shire, in which only six Residents for Uttlesford candidates stood.[12]

In October 2019, three Residents for Uttlesford district councillors serving in the cabinet, including two who also sat on Saffron Walden Town Council, left the party to join the Green Party.[13]

In the 2021 Essex County Council election, Residents for Uttlesford gained two of the four Essex County Council seats in Uttlesford from the Conservatives.[14]

Stansted airport expansion

Uttlesford District Council, under Residents for Uttlesford leadership and an all-party supported Climate Emergency policy,[15] refused planning permission for the controversial expansion of Stansted Airport to 43 million passengers per year, which was later overturned on appeal.

Planning permission had previously been approved by the planning committee of the previous Conservative council administration.[16] After many widespread concerns were expressed about the decision, that administration failed to issue the formal planning approval notice before the council changed political composition in May 2019.[17] The planning committee of the new Uttlesford administration reviewed the planning application again and overturned the previous approval.[18] The council's refusal was then overturned again in 2021 by the Planning Inspectorate, who awarded costs to the airport's owners after a High Court appeal was rejected.[19]

References
  1. Tonkin, Sam (22 October 2014). "New political party formed as residents seek to take control of Uttlesford District Council". Dunmow Broadcast. Retrieved 11 November 2020.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  2. "History of Residents for Uttlesford". Residents for Uttlesford. Retrieved 11 November 2020.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  3. "Policies for a Residents' Uttlesford – Built by you for you". Residents for Uttlesford. Retrieved 11 November 2020.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  4. "Uttlesford District Council - Councillors". www.uttlesford.gov.uk. Retrieved 11 November 2020.
  5. "Independent for Residents' candidates Lodge and Parry win". Saffron Walden Reporter. 3 May 2013. Retrieved 22 August 2021.
  6. "Press Release: Call for candidates to step forward to clean up Uttlesford in 2015 elections". Residents for Uttlesford. 1 October 2014. Retrieved 11 November 2020.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  7. Busby, Eleanor (23 October 2014). "Two more Tories quit to join Residents". Cambridge News. Archived from the original on 6 December 2014.
  8. "Residents for Uttlesford: Our History". Residents for Uttlesford. 10 February 2017. Retrieved 22 August 2021.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  9. "Local Elections: The Candidates for Uttlesford District Council".
  10. "Results of Uttlesford District Council election for the Elsenham and Henham ward, February 2017". uttlesford.gov.uk. Archived from the original on 19 February 2017.
  11. "Conservatives lose council to local residents' association". BBC News. 3 May 2019. Retrieved 11 November 2020.
  12. "Results of town and parish elections 2 May 2019 (Uttlesford District Council)". uttlesford.gov.uk. Archived from the original on 4 May 2019.
  13. Heslop, Katherine (14 October 2019). "Top Residents for Uttlesford councillors switch to The Green Party". Dunmow Broadcast. Retrieved 11 November 2020.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  14. "Essex County Council elections: Residents for Uttlesford win Saffron Walden and Thaxted from Conservatives but Tories retain control". Bishop's Stortford Independent. 7 May 2021.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  15. "The council and climate crisis". www.uttlesford.gov.uk. Retrieved 7 December 2022.
  16. "Planning Committee Agenda and Minutes". www.uttlesford.gov.uk. 14 November 2018. Retrieved 7 December 2022.
  17. "Stop Stansted Expansion: Sheer incompetence from start to finish". www.henham.org. 29 April 2019.
  18. "Planning Committee Agenda and Minutes". www.uttlesford.gov.uk. 24 January 2020. Retrieved 7 December 2022.
  19. "Boost for Stansted Airport expansion as judge throws out challenge". www.newcivilengineer.com. 7 October 2021. Retrieved 23 April 2022.
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