Sleaford and North Hykeham (UK Parliament constituency)

Sleaford and North Hykeham is a parliamentary constituency^{[n 1]} in Lincolnshire, England which elects a single Member of Parliament (MP) to the House of Commons of the UK Parliament. It has been represented since 2016 by Dr Caroline Johnson, who is a member of the Conservative Party. The seat was created in 1997 and has always been represented by Members of Parliament (MPs) from the Conservative Party; like all British constituencies, it elects one candidate by the first-past-the-post voting system. Johnson became the MP for the constituency after a by-election in December 2016, following the resignation of the previous MP for the seat, Stephen Phillips. The constituency is considered a safe seat for the Conservatives.

Sleaford and North Hykeham
County constituency for the House of Commons
Boundary of Sleaford and North Hykeham in Lincolnshire; or specifically, the parts of Lincolnshire within the Lincolnshire County Council Area
Location of Lincolnshire; or specifically, the parts of Lincolnshire within the Lincolnshire County Council Area within England
County	Lincolnshire
Electorate	85,561 (December 2010)^[1]
Major settlements	Sleaford, North Hykeham
Current constituency
Created	1997
Member of Parliament	Caroline Johnson (Conservative)
Seats	One
Created from	Grantham, Lincoln

Boundaries

 

Map of current boundaries

1997–2010: The District of North Kesteven except for the ward of Bracebridge Heath, and the District of South Kesteven wards of Ermine, Heath, Loveden, Saxonwell, and Witham Valley.

2010–present: The District of North Kesteven wards of Ashby de la Launde, Bassingham, Billinghay, Branston and Mere, Brant Broughton, Cliff Villages, Cranwell and Byard's Leap, Eagle and North Scarle, Heckington Rural, Heighington and Washingborough, Kyme, Leasingham and Roxholm, Martin, Metheringham, North Hykeham Forum, North Hykeham Memorial, North Hykeham Mill, North Hykeham Moor, North Hykeham Witham, Osbournby, Ruskington, Sleaford Castle, Sleaford Holdingham, Sleaford Mareham, Sleaford Navigation, Sleaford Quarrington, Sleaford Westholme, and Waddington West, and the District of South Kesteven wards of Barrowby, Ermine, Heath, Loveden, Peascliffe, Saxonwell, and Witham Valley.

The constituency covers the towns of Sleaford and North Hykeham and a large area of rural Lincolnshire south west of Lindsey. The constituency's boundaries roughly correspond to those of North Kesteven local government district. In their formative proposals for 1997, the Boundary Commission for England proposed calling the new constituency Mid Lincolnshire, however the name was changed to its current form during the local inquiry process.^[2] The inclusion of North Hykeham in the constituency title was criticised by the author and psephologist Robert Waller in 1995, on the grounds that North Hykeham was effectively an overspill area of the City of Lincoln; however, not on the grounds of its actual inclusion, as its local government authority has long been seen as linked with the villages to the south in this seat, and wholly separate from the city.^[3]

Following another Boundary Commission review, the constituency boundaries with two of its neighbouring seats Lincoln and Grantham and Stamford were changed for the 2010 general election.

The areas within the constituency of Sleaford and North Hykeham are under the control and come under the responsibility of Lincolnshire County Council for the provision of certain public services, such as roads and local authority education.^[4]

Proposed

Further to the 2023 Periodic Review of Westminster constituencies, enacted by the Parliamentary Constituencies Order 2023, the composition of the constituency from the next general election, due by January 2025, will be (as they existed on 1 December 2020):

The District of North Kesteven wards of: Ashby de la Launde and Cranwell; Bassingham and Brant Broughton; Billinghay, Martin and North Kyme; Branston; Cliff Villages; Eagle, Swinderby and Witham St. Hughs; Heighington and Washingborough; Kirkby la Thorpe and South Kyme; Leasingham and Rauceby; Metheringham; North Hykeham Forum; North Hykeham Memorial; North Hykeham Mill; North Hykeham Moor; North Hykeham Witham; Ruskington; Sleaford Castle; Sleaford Holdingham; Sleaford Navigation; Sleaford Quarrington and Mareham; Sleaford Westholme; Waddington West.

In order to bring the electorate within the permitted range, the parts in the District of South Kesteven and the two North Kesteven wards of Heckington Rural and Osbournby will be transferred to the new constituency of Grantham and Bourne.

Following a local government boundary review which came into effect in May 2023^[5][6], the constituency will now comprise the following wards of the District of North Kesteven from the next general election:

• Ashby de la Launde, Digby & Scopwick; Bassingham Rural; Billinghay Rural; Branston; Cranwell, Leasingham & Wilsford (most); Heighington & Washingborough; Hykeham Central; Hykeham Fosse; Hykeham Memorial; Kirkby la Thorpe & South Kyme; Metheringham Rural; Navenby & Brant Broughton; Ruskington; Skellingthorpe & Eagle (part); Sleaford Castle; Sleaford Holdingham; Sleaford Navigation; Sleaford Quarrington & Mareham; Sleaford Westholme; Waddington Rural (part); Witham St Hughs & Swinderby.^[7]

History

1997–2015

Douglas Hogg moved to represent Sleaford and North Hykeham from the previously existing Grantham constituency, a safe Conservative seat, which he had held since 1979. At the 1997 general election, Hogg won 43.9% of the vote, giving him a majority of 5,123 votes (9.6%) ahead of the second-placed Labour Party.^[8] At the 2001 general election, the Conservatives increased their vote share by 5.7%, while the Labour Party's vote share decreased;^[9] the seat had a majority of 8,622 votes (17.7%), which was the 104th-smallest percentage majority out of the 166 seats won by the Conservatives.^[10] At the 2005 general election, Hogg won a majority of 12,705 votes (23.8%); this was the 35th-largest absolute majority (number of votes) and 52nd-largest percentage majority of the 198 seats won by the Conservative Party.^[11] UKIP, a minor party, won 5% of the vote in the constituency (coming fourth), retaining its deposit.^[12] He stood down at the 2010 general election owing to controversy over his expenses claims, making him the first MP to resign because of the scandal.^[13]

Hogg was replaced by fellow Conservative Stephen Phillips.^[14] In 2010, he won a majority of 19,905 votes (33.4%); the Liberal Democrats came second.^[15] Out of the 650 UK Parliament constituencies contested at the election, Sleaford and North Hykeham had the 14th-largest absolute majority and the 72nd-largest percentage majority.^[16] The Lincolnshire Independents, a minor party, won 6.4% of the vote in the seat and came fourth; as this was more than 5%, the party retained its deposit.^[17] At the 2015 general election, Phillips won a majority of 24,115 votes (38.9%), with the Labour Party coming second in the seat. This made the constituency the 34th-safest by absolute majority, and the 99th-safest by percentage majority, out of the 650 constituencies.^[18]

2016 by-election

Main article: 2016 Sleaford and North Hykeham by-election

Phillips stood down as an MP on 4 November 2016, owing to "irreconcilable differences" with the Government over the issue of Brexit.^[19][20] This triggered a by-election within the constituency, which was held on 8 December;^[21] Caroline Johnson retained the seat for the Conservatives with a large majority.^[22]

2017–present

At the 2017 general election, Johnson won a majority of 25,237 votes; this was the second-largest majority of any seat in the East Midlands region (after Leicester South.^[23] Johnson's 42,245 votes were the greatest tally for her party in that election.^[24] The majority in percentage was surpassed by six candidates of the same party. At the 2019 general election, the Conservatives increased their majority further to 32,565. This was the largest Conservative majority (measured by number of votes) at the election, and the largest majority of any seat in the East Midlands.^[25]

The seat is overweight in electorate meaning each elector's potential vote counts for about 15% less than the smallest mainland seats and each potential vote has 24.4% of the potential effect as the remote seat covering Na h-Eileanan an Iar (the Western Isles or Outer Hebrides). A seat consisting of the latter seat multiplied by four times its electorate would, narrowly, be smaller than this seat's adult eligible voters (electorate).

Members of Parliament

Election		Member^[26]	Party
	1997	Douglas Hogg	Conservative
	2010	Stephen Phillips	Conservative
	2016 by-election	Caroline Johnson	Conservative

Elections

Graph of election results in Sleaford and North Hykeham, including the 2016 by-election (minor parties that never received more than 5% of the vote are omitted)

Elections in the 2020s

Next general election: Sleaford and North Hykeham

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	Caroline Johnson^[27]
	Green	Chris Padley^[28]
Majority
Turnout

Elections in the 2010s

General election 2019: Sleaford and North Hykeham^[29]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	Caroline Johnson	44,683	67.1	+2.9
	Labour	Linda Edwards-Shea	12,118	18.2	-7.6
	Liberal Democrats	Olly Craven	5,355	8.0	+3.9
	Lincolnshire Independent	Marianne Overton	1,999	3.0	New
	Green	Simon Tooke	1,742	2.6	+1.1
	Independent	Caroline Coram	657	1.0	New
Majority			32,565	48.9	+10.5
Turnout			66,554	70.2	-2.2
	Conservative hold		Swing	+5.3

General election 2017: Sleaford and North Hykeham^[30]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	Caroline Johnson	42,245	64.2	+8.0
	Labour	Jim Clarke	17,008	25.8	+8.5
	Liberal Democrats	Ross Pepper	2,722	4.1	−1.6
	UKIP	Sally Chadd	1,954	3.0	−12.7
	Green	Fiona McKenna	968	1.5	New
	Independent	Paul Coyne	900	1.4	New
Majority			25,237	38.4	-0.5
Turnout			65,797	72.4	+2.2
	Conservative hold		Swing	−0.3

By-election 2016: Sleaford and North Hykeham^{[31][32][33][34]}

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	Caroline Johnson	17,570	53.5	−2.7
	UKIP	Victoria Ayling	4,426	13.5	−2.2
	Liberal Democrats	Ross Pepper	3,606	11.0	+5.3
	Labour	Jim Clarke	3,363	10.2	−7.1
	Lincolnshire Independent	Marianne Overton	2,892	8.8	+3.6
	Independent	Sarah Stock	462	1.4	New
	Monster Raving Loony	The Iconic Arty-Pole	200	0.6	New
	No description	Paul Coyne	186	0.6	New
	No description	Mark Suffield	74	0.2	New
	Bus-Pass Elvis	David Bishop	55	0.2	New
Majority			13,144	40.0	+1.1
Turnout			32,893	37.1	−33.1
	Conservative hold		Swing	+0.2

General election 2015: Sleaford and North Hykeham^[35][36]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	Stephen Phillips	34,805	56.2	+4.6
	Labour	Jason Pandya-Wood	10,690	17.3	+0.4
	UKIP	Steven Hopkins	9,716	15.7	+12.1
	Liberal Democrats	Matthew Holden	3,500	5.7	-12.5
	Lincolnshire Independent	Marianne Overton	3,233	5.2	-1.2
Majority			24,115	38.9	+5.5
Turnout			61,944	70.2	+0.6
	Conservative hold		Swing	+2.1

General election 2010: Sleaford and North Hykeham^[37][38]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	Stephen Phillips	30,719	51.6	+1.0
	Liberal Democrats	David Harding-Price	10,814	18.2	+0.1
	Labour	James Normington	10,051	16.9	-9.5
	Lincolnshire Independent	Marianne Overton^[39]	3,806	6.4	New
	UKIP	Roger Doughty	2,163	3.6	-1.3
	BNP	Mike Clayton^[40]	1,977	3.3	New
Majority			19,905	33.4	+9.6
Turnout			59,530	69.6	+2.8
	Conservative hold		Swing	+0.45

Elections in the 2000s

General election 2005: Sleaford and North Hykeham^[41]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	Douglas Hogg	26,855	50.3	+0.6
	Labour	Katrina Bull	14,150	26.5	−5.5
	Liberal Democrats	David Harding-Price	9,710	18.2	+2.0
	UKIP	Guy Croft	2,682	5.0	+2.8
Majority			12,705	23.8	+6.1
Turnout			53,397	66.8	+1.9
	Conservative hold		Swing	+3.05

General election 2001: Sleaford and North Hykeham^[42]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	Douglas Hogg	24,190	49.7	+5.8
	Labour	Elizabeth Donnelly	15,568	32.0	-2.3
	Liberal Democrats	Robert Arbon	7,894	16.2	+1.0
	UKIP	Michael Ward-Barrow	1,067	2.2	New
Majority			8,622	17.7	+8.1
Turnout			48,719	64.9	-9.5
	Conservative hold		Swing	+4.0

Elections in the 1990s

General election 1997: Sleaford and North Hykeham^[42]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	Douglas Hogg	23,358	43.9
	Labour	Sean Hariss	18,235	34.3
	Liberal Democrats	John Marriott	8,063	15.2
	Referendum	Peter Clery	2,942	5.5
	Independent Conservative	Richard Overton	578	1.1
Majority			5,123	9.6
Turnout			52,598	74.4
	Conservative win (new seat)

See also

• List of parliamentary constituencies in Lincolnshire

References

Notes

1. A county constituency (for the purposes of election expenses and type of returning officer)

Citations

1. . 2011 Electorate Figures. Boundary Commission for England. 4 March 2011. Archived from the original on 6 November 2010. Retrieved 13 March 2011.
2. "Lincolnshire". Fourth Periodic Report (Report). Boundary Commission for England. 1995.
3. "Sleaford and North Hykeham constituency". Almanac of British Politics (5th ed.). 1995.
4. "Final Recommendations for Parliamentary Constituency Boundaries in the County of Lincolnshire". Boundary Commission for England. 14 November 2001. Archived from the original (PDF) on 21 February 2010. Retrieved 12 December 2010.
5. LGBCE. "North Kesteven | LGBCE". www.lgbce.org.uk. Retrieved 9 April 2024.
6. "The North Kesteven (Electoral Changes) Order 2021".
7. "New Seat Details - Sleaford and North Hykeham". www.electoralcalculus.co.uk. Retrieved 9 April 2024.
8. Morgan 2001a, pp. 32, 46.
9. Morgan 2001b, p. 95.
10. Morgan 2001b, pp. 30–31, 95.
11. Mellows-Facer 2006, pp. 8, 198.
12. Mellows-Facer 2006, p. 124.
13. Siddique, Haroon (19 May 2009). "Douglas Hogg becomes first politician to step down over expenses". The Guardian. from the original on 7 February 2020. Retrieved 7 February 2020.
14. Rhodes, Cracknell & McGuiness 2011, p. 60.
15. Rhodes, Cracknell & McGuiness 2011, p. 107.
16. Rhodes, Cracknell & McGuiness 2011, pp. 1, 107.
17. Rhodes, Cracknell & McGuiness 2011, pp. 20, 95.
18. Hawkins et al. 2015, pp. 6, 118.
19. "Tory MP Stephen Phillips quits over 'irreconcilable differences'". BBC News. 4 November 2016. from the original on 16 February 2020. Retrieved 16 February 2020.
20. Hubbert, Andy (4 November 2016). "BREAKING NEWS: Sleaford MP Steven Phillips resigns". Louth Leader. from the original on 16 February 2020. Retrieved 16 February 2020.
21. "Sleaford and North Hykeham voters to choose new MP". BBC News. 8 December 2016. from the original on 16 February 2020. Retrieved 16 February 2020.
22. "Conservatives hold Sleaford as Labour pushed into fourth". BBC News. 9 December 2016. from the original on 16 February 2020. Retrieved 16 February 2020.
23. Baker et al. 2019, p. 29.
24. Results of the 2017 United Kingdom general election
25. Uberoi, Baker & Cracknell 2019, pp. 10, 29.
27. Caroline Johnson [@drcarolinej] (31 March 2023). "Honoured and delighted to be unanimously reselected as the Conservative Parliamentary Candidate for Sleaford and North Hykeham" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
28. "Prospective Parliamentary Candidates". Lincoln Green Party. Retrieved 27 February 2024.
29. "Sleaford & North Hykeham parliamentary constituency". BBC News. 2019. from the original on 7 February 2020. Retrieved 7 February 2020.
30. "Sleaford & North Hykeham parliamentary constituency". BBC News. 2019. from the original on 7 February 2020. Retrieved 7 February 2020.
31. Pidluznyj, Stefan (10 November 2016). "First three candidates come forward for Sleaford and North Hykeham by-election". Lincolnshire Reporter. Retrieved 10 November 2016.
32. "First three candidates come forward for Sleaford and North Hykeham by-election". lincolnshirereporter.co.uk. 10 November 2016.
33. Pack, Mark (11 November 2016). "Lib Dems select Ross Pepper for Sleaford and North Hykeham by-election". markpack.org.uk. from the original on 16 February 2020. Retrieved 16 February 2020.
34. "UKIP members vying for chance at Sleaford and North Hykeham seat". Lincs FM. 6 November 2016. from the original on 7 February 2020. Retrieved 7 February 2020.
35. . Electoral Calculus. Archived from the original on 17 October 2015. Retrieved 17 October 2015.
36. "Sleaford and North Hykeham parliamentary constituency". BBC News. Retrieved 8 May 2015.
37. "UKPollingReport Election Guide 2010 » Sleaford and North Hykeham". ukpollingreport.co.uk.
38. "UK > England > East Midlands > Sleaford & North Hykeham". Election 2010. BBC. 7 May 2010. Retrieved 12 May 2010.
39. . Lincolnshire Echo. 15 March 2010. Archived from the original on 7 August 2011. Retrieved 16 February 2020.
40. . British National Party. 7 March 2010. Archived from the original on 11 March 2010. Retrieved 7 February 2020.
41. "Result: Sleaford & North Hykeham". BBC News. 2005. from the original on 16 February 2020. Retrieved 16 February 2020.
42. "Sleaford & North Hykeham". BBC News. 2001. from the original on 16 February 2020. Retrieved 16 February 2020.

Works cited

• Morgan, Bryn (29 March 2001a). General Election results, 1 May 1997 (PDF) (Report). House of Commons Library. (PDF) from the original on 3 February 2020. Retrieved 3 February 2020.
• Morgan, Bryn (18 June 2001b). General Election results, 7 June 2001 (PDF) (Report). House of Commons Library. (PDF) from the original on 3 February 2020. Retrieved 3 February 2020.
• Mellows-Facer, Adam (10 March 2006). General Election 2005 (PDF) (Report). House of Commons Library. (PDF) from the original on 26 January 2020. Retrieved 26 January 2020.
• Rhodes, Christopher; Cracknell, Richard; McGuiness, Feargal (2 February 2011). General Election 2010 (PDF) (Report). House of Commons Library. (PDF) from the original on 26 January 2020. Retrieved 26 January 2020.
• Hawkins, Oliver; Keen, Richard; Nakatudde, Nambassa; Ayres, Steven; Baker, Carl; Harker, Rachael; Bolton, Paul; Johnston, Neil; Cracknell, Richard (28 July 2015). General Election 2015 (PDF) (Report). House of Commons Library. (PDF) from the original on 26 January 2020. Retrieved 26 January 2020.
• Baker, Carl; Hawkins, Oliver; Audickas, Lukas; Bate, Alex; Cracknell, Richard; Apostolova, Vyara; Dempsey, Noel; McInnes, Roderick; Rutherford, Tom; Uberoi, Elise (29 January 2019). General Election 2017: results and analysis (PDF) (Report). House of Commons Library. (PDF) from the original on 26 January 2020. Retrieved 26 January 2020.
• Uberoi, Elise; Baker, Carl; Cracknell, Richard (19 December 2019). General Election 2019: results and analysis (PDF) (Report). House of Commons Library. (PDF) from the original on 26 January 2020. Retrieved 26 January 2020.

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