Wilmslow candidates confirmed for May local elections

Interested to see that in several wards it’s a straight choice between ROW and the Conservatives.

Given the recent shenanigans at Cheshire East Council, it is to be hoped that people will stop and think before blindly pinning the blue rosette on the donkey (so to speak)

These pages, over many months, have been full of the failings of the Conservative dominated Council, now is our chance to get an independent voice on the Council if we vote for a ROW candidate. It's no use us all complaining about the actions of the Council and then blindly voting Conservative at each election.

If it was a choice between my local Councillor and an orang-u-tan I'd be backing the candidate with the furry, orange rosette.

We have nothing to lose, if we vote ROW there's a chance that things may change. If we continue to vote for the Tories it's an absolute certainty that they wont.

@ Alan + Richard... Agree 100%

This is not a general election,.. ( I won’t mention the current Brexit shenanigans in parliament , where politicians are not exactly covering themselves.. or anybody else in glory ! .. or the expanding Catalogue of Catastrophe’s at CEC, 8 Police investigations, Annual tax increases etc etc ..) … This is a local election and time for the residents (or should that be victims ) of this self-serving, duplicitous, expensive , incompetent CEC council to invoke the much needed change required for improvement.

The irony is, from my experience, Is that CEC Tory controlled council has disillusioned and annoyed more Tory voters than anyone else. Those that now have the sheer audacity to remain anonymous for 4 years and now stand again expecting the blue rosette to be pinned on the Donkey are hopefully in line for a reality check in their quest to again make an Ass out of Joe Public to sanction more of the same failure.

They are the best advert available to justify voting for Independent candidates, Residents of Wilmslow in 26 days’ time. CEC should have been put in special measures months ago. The evidenced antics of this cabinet / whip system, placing party before public interest must change.

Yes Nick, Julian, Richard and Alan, I couldn't agree more with your painful observations that are the result of the sheer arrogance, couldn't care a jot about the voters, "our" party must come first at all costs & in every aspect that is CECs saga, exampled as CEC's Conservative councillors today. The big day is almost upon us, now is the time for every Wilmslow voter, irrespective of party allegiances, to put our town first. You the voter, can achieve this by voting for your Residents of Wilmslow candidates; chuck the failed yes men & women out of their too comfortable council life styles. It is a testament of the role in which those Conservatives are seen by their voters - on the occasions RoW was part of the Artisan Market,the overwhelming response from the public was one of disdain, despair & desperation for a BIG change of representation at Sandbach. I will refrain from uttering the all too often word used by the public to describe their views of this rotten Conservative dominated CE council, suffice to say it was one of the first three letters of the alphabet.
And so they continue as we see & read in one of Mr Wannabe Councillor Barry's
recent propoganda sheets - let's take car parking on Alderley Road for starters. He is more than delighted to "misinform" his East voters that "Thanks to the efforts of Wilmslow Conservative councillors, a temporary solution of traffic cones has reduced the on-street parking,and the process to put in place a long-term solution of yellow lines has been started."
Take the cones - the police informed me weeks ago "It wasn't us, Guv", they further added CEC has done nothing to alleviate the Alderley Rd problem. We honestly believe it was one individual, maybe with assistance, who placed the cones - none of the individuals was or is connected to the Conservative Party - a drowning man will grab any straw life-line.
That's the first element of the propoganda history revision.
What will be the next subterfuge they will try to pull on the Wilmslow public?
RoW has a historic catalogue of misinformation, questionable behaviour, police investigations and so it goes on. Where were your CE Conservatives when all these shenanigans and more that's been foisted on Wilmslow's & CE's public? Did the Conservatives stand up & say "The emperor hasn't any clothes"? Those who did have been "persuaded" to leave the party.
If you want to know more of the catalogue's contents you should contact RoW or go to Private Eye's Rotten Boroughs' continuing saga.CE keeps PE well supplied with horror stories.
It is abundantly clear that all the major parties activists have as their first loyalty to that of their party, Conservative, Labour &Liberal Democrats. The certain & only way that the local voter's concerns will be heard will be by electing your Residents of Wilmslow councillors - (David Jefferay in East, Mark Goldsmith & Iain Macfarlane in West & Toni Fox in Dean Row) we have proved that over the past 4 years via Cllr Toni Fox and we will again via our current candidates should you have the good grace to elect them on the 2nd May.

It’s a no-brainer - surely?? The Conservatives clearly have no interest in its constituents and Residents of Wilmslow clearly care passionately for us and our town?? Mic drop - DO IT!

Why don't the people involved with the individual parties stop party bashing,
people in Wilmslow can make up there own mind who to vote for based on the last 4 years, without the continual articles trying to promote their own party. One pary in particular is guilty of this as a result I won't be voting for them. ie an "over kill"

Some parties are voted in year after year, some with large majorities we all know who the are, the people who voted for them feel they are the best for the job.

Concillors fo, Cheshir East Council are voted in, by a democratic system, if one party has an overall majority then that is the wish of the voters - look at the Brexit mess because the government don't have overall control.


Its hard work being a councellor whichever party they represent, I am sure they are all doing their best - In this world no one can be right all the time and sometimes change is not always the best.

This year I have made my mind up who to vote for from the many candidates, will new one's provide a better service ?

nb. We have major problems with parking in Wilmslow, particularly the last 18 months, this is being sorted, I suggest people look at the survey and submit their comments - if this had not been the case, then I may have had to think again who I voted for. We live in a "blame" society !

John, If planning permissions are granted for offices and then public transport is largely eliminated, both by the same Council, then yes, blame is an appropriate comment to make. Then after years of denying there’s a parking problem to fix, nothing is done, then who is to blame?
I never ever worked anywhere in this country or abroad without decent public transport or a guaranteed off street car parking space. What makes Wilmslow and CE so unique? Reading Private Eye from time to time gives us all a clue.
Regards Terry
PS I can park easily in Sandbach and it’s free.
PPS Minehead Town Council is since 2015 conservative controlled. This May only Independents are standing. There are NO oconservatives standing. Local newspaper headlines. Fancy that!

I am one of the Liberal Democrat candidates for both Wilmslow Town Council and Cheshire East. Most candidates are good well intentioned people. Councils do benefit from a healthy opposition, whether it’s from independents or from candidates who enjoy the support of a mainstream political party with a vision for the country, such as the Liberal Democrat’s.
I wish all the candidates good luck and a hope that positive campaigning will win the day. May the best men and women be chosen.

Oliver, how refreshing to read your comment - without party bashing. I wish you and all other candidates good look also.

Terry, I take it from your comments you will not be voting conservative. I myself have not come to a decision as yet, it is doubtful that I will vote for a party that its followers and members are continually party bashing.

With the greatest respect, I am not interested in Free Parking in Sandbach, Minehead Town Council, or reading private eye.

Parking problems have not been denied for years by the council, it has been particularly bad in the last 18 months.

I don't understand what you want? CCC has conducted a detailed survey and will implement their findings, after listening to residents and their views.


For the record I will vote for the party that I feel will best carry out the wishes of all the residents, possibly some residents will take into account your views which may influence their voting

Hi everyone, I am one of the Liberal Democrat candidates for Wilmslow Town Council and also Lacey Green Ward.

Although I've been a committed Community Activist for many years this is the first time that I've felt my Passion, Determination and (most of all) Positivity has been needed to reinvigorate my own Community. I've spent over 25 years helping many Charities and Community Groups across Cheshire and Greater Manchester to develop and help vulnerable people and I'm looking forward to the opportunity to join with others to improve Wilmslow and Cheshire East.

The best of luck to all of the candidates in the elections, looking forward to seeing people with integrity and compassion elected to create a much stronger and wider represented Council.

Hi Damien,

I wonder what it is that’s roused such passion and determination in you that you feel compelled to stand for election to Wilmslow Town Council and CE Council.

Is it something specific to your own immediate neighbourhood, or a general feeling that things could be better all round?

I only ask as I sense a growing disquiet amongst residents of Wilmslow, and I’m interested to know how this is viewed by prospective candidates.

Political party affiliation is important at a local level as it gives residents a flavour of the values of the individual and an idea about how the person would work if elected.
Wilmslow needs independent minded councillors who live and breathe Wilmslow and who want the best for residents. CEC needs a healthy and organised opposition to keep check on abuse of power.
If elected, councillors will also sometimes have to work with their colleagues from other parties to achieve the best results for Wilmslow. This is the reality of local democracy. This can be achieved without party official’s resorting to posting aggressive and bullying comments on this website.

Hi Alan,

The passion has been there for a long time mate! I chose to live in Lacey Green around 8 years ago and it has only been in the last few years that I've felt that the area has been allowed to decline. This is an affluent area and I know I can help other committed candidates to turn this around.

I've seen an increase in anti-social behaviour, youth violence and the town centre is looking grotty with empty shops, lack of parking and a crisis of identity. The last year has been the worst for roadworks and congestion which should have been planned better. The local park and streets around where I live are used more and more as a motorcycle race-track and although family, friends and neighbours feel the same and have asked for help, nothing changes.

Wilmslow obviously needs a change, new people, strong debate and some new ideas. I've got a lot of experience getting local people involved in developing their Communities for the better and my priority will be to encourage more local residents and business owners to have a voice in Wilmslow and Cheshire East.

I'm always happy to support and vote for candidates that I feel do a good job no matter what party they belong to or whether they are Independents but I'm also willing to step up when change needs to be made. The Town Council and Cheshire East will improve with more competition and local people need to be given a wider choice of candidates to ensure they feel they are represented.

Wilmslow is a great place but it could be much better, let's work hard together and improve the local issues. Always happy to meet up and discuss further!

Cheers, Damian

Hi Oliver,

I find a certain contradiction in your first and second sentences - on the one hand you say party affiliation is important, but you then go on to say that Wilmslow needs strong, independent minded people.

Without wishing to dwell too much on the failings of the current lot, is it not the case that block voting, along party lines has brought a sense of complacency and carelessness into local political decision making?

As an example of complacency I read in The Times this morning that CE is in the top ten Councils who pay their staff salaries in excess of £100,000 pa - more than the Prime Ministers salary.

Couple this with the well-documented enquiries and failings and it’s perhaps easy to see how people might feel that a party stronghold prevents the crucial checks and balances necessary to ensure that a Council serves its people and not the other way round.

That's it in a nutshell. Councils and indeed Governments should serve, listen and answer to its people. They aren't. Makes sense then to vote for an independent candidate in every ward. Alderley Edge did this. You know what happened there. Conservative wipe out.

Come on Wilmslow let's be 'aving you.

Oliver; if Party affiliation is important at local level how do you explain the success of Alderley First, where there is no party affiliation whatsoever?
All the Town Councillors and their CEC representative are Independent. They were elected in something of a landslide in what was previously an all Tory administration (nationally there was a sizeable swing to Conservative too!). Unfortunately that lot held their electorate in contempt and paid the price of their arrogance.

I think Oliver means party affiliations are a useful shorthand for have some idea what the candidate stands for and believes in.

With independents it's difficult to know. Voting for someone simply because they are standing as an independent would be lunacy.

The RoW candidates are a very mixed bag. There are candidates who have a long history with the Labour Party. On the other hand, some of the most vocal proponents of RoW on here appear to have many views you'd usually associate with the hard right of the Conservative Party. Would those contrasting people share the same vision of what is best for Wilmslow? That seems very unlikely.

Voting for someone who is a Conservative appears to be equal lunacy. At the very least Independent candidates and I include RoW amongst that category are just that - independent.

Jon Armstrong, Couldn't agree more - I believe that most if not all; Independent groups including ROW are registered as a political party - If people think they don't follow the party line they are mistaken - All the independents seam to me as anti conservative, and wanting to change Cheshire County Council, this group (including ROW) have tried to organize a referendum to change CCC my understanding they failed in this task I have first hand knowledge of this.

Independents are part of a group just like all other parties even the Green Party, in the old days an individual put his cards on the table and stood as an in dependent not as a part of a group. for Example Martin Bell was a true independent and won the seat from Conservative Neil Hamilton, we all know the reason, however having won the seat did very little, in fact much less than Neil Hamilton. Be careful what you wish for!


Katherine Blackburn, Independent free from control or influence of others. Your statement is incorrect they are independent in name only.

If a candidate wishes to be identified on the ballot part as part of a “group” then that “group” must register itself as a political party.
If there is no such registration, the ballot paper will identify the candidate by the single word “Independent”. This generic term could reflect a whole range of opinions and objectives.
The candidates nominated by Residents of Wilmslow share opinions and wanted to be identified as such.
The only way this could be done was by registering as a political party.
The Electoral Commission will not allow a registration of a “non- political party”.

Mr Duckworth please do read before you rant.
The Independent Party has no policies. It is a network to help independent people stand for election usually being those who wish to help their community. Its' slogan being vote for a person not a party.

Dear John,

Forgive me the corrections however you have been misinformed.

The Independent Groups campaign “Change Cheshire East” is ongoing and is well on its way to reaching the 15,000 signatures required to call for a referendum. Holding a referendum however will cost in the region of £700,000 and may prove unnecessary should the Conservatives lose the majority at the election. The group felt it prudent therefore to wait for the outcome of the election rather than potentially wasting tax payers money.

As an existing Independent Cheshire East Ward Councillor, and a member of Residents of Wilmslow, my only mandate is to support the views of the residents who elected me and act in their best interests - a view all current Independent Councillors share.

Unlike all other political parties the Independent Group at Cheshire East Council has no “whip” and there is no “party line”.

As a footnote Cheshire County Council was dissolved in 2009 and superseded by the 2 unitary authorities Cheshire East Council and Cheshire West & Chester.

Kind Regards

Councillor Toni Fox - Independent
Dean Row Ward

This is certainly an interesting debate. I don’t believe readers want candidates to sling mud but readers might be interested in getting an idea of how, if elected, candidates will approach the role.
I live and work in Wilmslow, so if you see me on the school run or nipping to the shops, you are welcome to say hello and have a chat about your priorities or concerns.
All candidates want the best for Wilmslow and, where possible, we must work together across party lines to achieve this. We are not enemies, just people with different views on how to achieve the best outcomes.
I understand that I am not walking into a job gifted by my party. I have to earn every vote and, if elected, work doubly hard for residents to remain in the position.

Hi folks, interesting conversation.

It is correct that Residents of Wilmslow is now a registered party but, as Jon says above, RoW has been registered purely to allow residents to be able to differentiate our candidates from other independent candidates on the ballot papers. With regards to having to 'follow the party line' as suggested above, RoW has no whip and, even if we did, good luck to anyone who tries to tell me (or, for that matter, any of RoW's candidates) how to act. We act truly independently and are not "independent in name only".

I have nothing against the mainstream parties in principle but it is definitely a problem when Wilmslow's representatives on Cheshire East Council can't challenge the council leaders or act in the best interests of the town because they're affiliated to a party. From what I've seen of Cheshire East council meetings, I believe that we are currently in that situation.

Hopefully, regardless of who gets the most votes, there will be a shift in the balance of power or the elections will act as a wake-up call for the Conservative members and we'll get the change that the residents clearly want.

Good luck to all candidates (although obviously slightly less luck to my opponent!).

Mr Duckworth does seem to miss some of the subtleties of the various campaigns.

For example, Martin Bell stood in Tatton as a “single issue” candidate - that issue was simply to remove the disgraced Neil Hamilton who was caught taking cash from lobbyists to ask questions on their behalf in parliament. In that regard we did not need to be careful, he did exactly what we wished for!

The independents at CE Council have indeed recently attempted to modify the Council comittee system which allows a majority ruling party to vote through any number of dubious policies by dint of a block vote. I do not need to list the many failings of CE Council as they are now the stuff of legend and national ridicule. Suffice it to say that the Independents were thwarted by the block vote of the controlling Tory cabal, but then turkeys wouldn’t vote for Christmas would they?

I watched the Alderley Edge First candidates evolve from a group of local people tired of being talked down to by a disconnected and largely disinterested Parish Council, into an effective and committed body of people who turned the status quo on its head and won through to serve the village of Alderley Edge in a way that that the Old Guard never could.

I know very little about the Independent candidates in Wilmslow and I’m keen to know more. I do hope that they can provide an effective opposition to what I see as a failing council both at town and county level.

Toni - you are listed as a councillor for Residents of Wilmslow on CEC website and as a candidate for ROW in the Dean Row ward. I don’t think you can legally be both independent and a political party candidate at the same time.
Can you please clarify for readers if you are standing for ROW as you seem to be distancing yourself from ROW for some reason. Why aren’t you signing off as Cllr Toni Ward - Residents of Wilmslow? NB Nothing wrong with representing a political party as long as it’s clear to residents who is representing who.

I believe some Tory candidates are standing under the newly assigned "Local Conservative" nomenclature on their formal documentation in Cheshire East and Wirral... Deputy Returning Officers are aware.. Is this a new party ?

Clutching at straws there Mr Romaine. Residents of Wilmslow is an a-political party filled with independent candidates with independent minds and independent characters, always has been always will be.

If we voters could say and believe the same of our Conservative candidates we would not be here today having to have this conversation.

Dear Oliver,

I am proud to be a Residents of Wilmslow Cheshire East Councillor, an RoW candidate standing for re-election, and also an Independent.

This is perhaps somewhat confusing however Cheshire East Council allocates places to Committees held by the Council according to the number of proportional representatives elected to each group or party.

Independent candidates from across the Borough stood under a number of names in the May 2015 election - Bollington First, Alderley Edge First, Handforth Ratepayers, Independent, Middlewich First etc - and they currently form, collectively, the Independent Group at Cheshire East Council.

Kind Regards

Councillor Toni Fox - Independent
Dean Row Ward

"INDEPENDENT FREE FROM THE CONTROL OR INFLUENCE OFOTHERS"

Katherine Blackburn, ROW has no policies - I think that speaks for itself. Independents a party for the people of Wilmslow (this is aimed at winning votes), surely Liberal Democrats and Conservatives want the same don't see them "Ranting at ROW" Better

Toni Fox, As above - don't forget I attended some meetings of ROW and The Independent group as you very well know and am fully conversant with all your comments, perhaps intended to influence others - after such meetings I was left with the decision not to have any further interest in your "Independent Party" My feelings as I have said before are of overwhelming dislike of the Conservative Party.

I wish all candidates the best of luck including ROW I now have the choice of Liberal Democrat or Conservative to vote for.

Please feel free to have the last word, as I no interest in joining in on any more silly chats

Dear All.
There seems to be one thing missing in all the various mutterings re parties etc. I have gone through all the councilors in the CE Council, and from the figures given against each name, where salaries etc are listed. There is one ineffable fact.

Out of 48 Conservative councilors 38 of these receive extra money for so called extra jobs(sic)!. This would mean, to a simple person rather unusual and strange. Also there are only 3 other than conservative, who get some money extra. So ladies and gentlemen of Wilmslow now you know what to do.
With the cabinet system and the above payments, it is within our power to correct this
Peter Davenport

As elections approach it is often more interesting to read what those seeking re-election promised LAST time, rather than their manifesto this time.


Here is a typically condescending piece of bluster from 2015: https://bit.ly/2UcouWO

Have a look at what happened and what did not.

Agreed Pete thanks for the link.

I also suggest people check attendance records one the Cheshire East website. The Town Council unfortunately does not yet publish attendance records - although this is something I think should be remedied.
In the last ten years Cllr Gary Barton has attended less than half (46%) of the Cheshire East Council meetings he was expected to.

Cllr Gary Barton Attendance Record 2011-2015
Total expected attendances: 160
Present as expected: 73 46%
Apologies received: 53 61% of absences
Absent (incl. apologies): 87 54%
In attendance: 1

Half the time he can't even be bothered to apologise for his absence.

Here is the link: https://moderngov.cheshireeast.gov.uk/ecminutes/mgAttendance.aspx?XXR=0&DR=01%2f05%2f2011-30%2f04%2f2019&ACT=Go&UID=467&

Lets say a borough councillor is paid a basic allowance of approx £12,000 per year. Over ten years thats £120,000 or approx £1,600 per council meeting attended. Oh and you can claim extra allowances for attending meetings too.

Can anyone from the Tory party explain how Cllr Barton has been reselected with this record?