Photo: Raimond Spekking · CC BY-SA 4.0Exmouth and Exeter East was decided by 121 votes in 2024
Topsham is run by Exeter City Council and Devon County Council. No party holds a majority on either Exeter City Council or Devon County Council. Its MP is David Reed (Conservative), member for Exmouth and Exeter East.
£2,495
Band D, a year, the middle band every council sets its tax from.
Where it goes →How Topsham’s politics has changed since 2021
No majority on Exeter City Council
No party holds a majority on Exeter City Council. Labour, the largest group, holds 19 of its 39 seats as elected, one short of the 20 needed (it held 23 before the May 2026 election). The Greens hold 10, the Liberal Democrats 5, the Conservatives 2, Reform UK 2 and independents 1. Who’s in charge ↓
Devon changed hands in 2025
Devon County Council, which runs schools, social care and roads, went from a Conservative majority (39 of 60 seats in 2021) to no overall control at the May 2025 election: the Liberal Democrats won 27 of 60 seats. Devon ↓
The 2026 vote
Across Topsham’s wards, Labour took 30.1%, the Conservatives took 24.2% and Reform UK took 21.8% of votes in May 2026. In 2024, Labour had 45.1%. How Topsham has voted ↓
A close seat
David Reed (Conservative) won Exmouth and Exeter East by 121 votes in July 2024, 0.24% of votes cast: the 7th-narrowest result of 543 in England. Parliament ↓
Written from the data on this page: Democracy Club results since May 2021, the UK Parliament Members API and MHCLG council tax.
No party has a majority on either council
Seats by party as elected. A party needs 20 of Exeter’s 39 or 31 of Devon’s 60 seats to run the council alone.
- Labour19−4
- Green10+3
- Liberal Democrat5+1
- Conservative2−1
- Reform UK2+1
- Independent1no change
Change against the council before the 7 May 2026 election.
- Liberal Democrat27+18
- Reform UK18+18
- Conservative7−32
- Green6+4
- Independent2−1
- Labour0−7
Seats are counted from election results: each ward’s most recent winners until its seats are filled. Councillors who have since changed party or resigned aren’t reflected, and which parties lead the council, and who is leader, comes from the council itself.
Results: Democracy Club (CC BY 4.0), elections since May 2021; seats per ward from its EveryElection.
Two tiers of council, no parish tier
Topsham has two tiers of council: the county runs the big services, the district the local ones.
Bins and recycling, planning, housing, environmental health, leisure, and collecting council tax.
Website ↗Schools, social care, roads and transport, libraries and waste disposal.
Website ↗Transport, skills and regeneration across several council areas.
Who to ask
From GOV.UK’s “Understand how your council works”: in two-tier areas the district or borough runs local services and the county the big ones.
All of Topsham is unparished: there is no parish or town council, so the council runs local matters itself and no parish precept is added to the bill.
Councils from ONS lookups (wards and councils May 2026, parishes 2025), names and websites from GOV.UK’s local council finder; parish councils from MHCLG’s 2026–27 list of precepting parishes.
From the council to Westminster
Every elected tier that speaks for Topsham, from the most recent elections.
- 1Exeter City Council1 ward · 3 councillorsJames Elie CooksonGemma Lorraine RolstoneMatthew John Williams
- 2Devon County Council1 division · 1 councillorAndrew Robert Leadbetter
- 3Police and crime commissionerDevon & Cornwall Police · elected May 2024Alison Hernandez
- 4House of CommonsExmouth and Exeter East
Party colours are neutral on purpose: they tell parties apart and aren’t the parties’ own. Tap an MP’s name for their contact page on parliament.uk.
3 councillors for 1 ward
Wards with at least 2% of the town’s residents, or half their own inside it. Each shows who won its most recent elections, newest first, until its seats are filled.
- James Elie CooksonLabour · May 2026
- Gemma Lorraine RolstoneLabour · May 2024
- Matthew John WilliamsLabour · May 2023
Show as a table, with Devon County Council’s 1 division (1 councillor)
| Ward | Seats | Elected | When |
|---|---|---|---|
| Topsham42% in Topsham · 4,193 residents3 seats · May 2026, May 2024, May 2023 | 3 | James Elie CooksonGemma Lorraine RolstoneMatthew John Williams | May 2026, May 2024, May 2023 |
Devon County Council: county divisions
| Division | Seats | Elected | When |
|---|---|---|---|
| Wearside & Topsham ED13% in Topsham · 4,193 residents1 seat · May 2025 | 1 | Andrew Robert Leadbetter | May 2025 |
Councillors can resign, change party or sit as independents between elections; a by-election winner replaces someone not named here. Exeter City Council’s website lists who sits now.
Results from Democracy Club’s candidates database (CC BY 4.0; elections since May 2021) and ward seats from its EveryElection, matched to ONS wards (May 2026) and county divisions (May 2025).
Who led each council vote, 2021–2026
Share of all votes cast for candidates in Topsham’s wards at each scheduled council election since 2021. A gap is a year with no election here.
Seats won at each election
Show as a table
| Party | 2021 | 2022 | 2023 | 2024 | 2026 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Green | 12.2% | 12.9% | 8.7% | 10.8% | 17.7% |
| Labour | 28.5% | 47.3% | 46.8% | 45.1% | 30.1% |
| Liberal Democrat | 7.7% | 0% | 7.7% | 7.3% | 6.3% |
| Conservative | 51.6% | 38.6% | 36.8% | 36.8% | 24.2% |
| Reform UK | 0% | 0% | 0% | 0% | 21.8% |
In 2026, Labour won 1 of the 1 seats up in Topsham’s wards.
Results: Democracy Club (CC BY 4.0). Where a ward elects several councillors at once, each voter has that many votes; all of them count here.
Exeter council election, May 2026
Results in the wards that make up Topsham, as declared. Percentages are of votes cast for candidates in each ward; where a ward elects several councillors, each voter has that many votes.
1 ward voted. Exeter elects a third of its councillors at a time, so a third of the seats were up.
No election is scheduled yet for Topsham’s wards in Democracy Club’s list. Councils publish a notice of election about five weeks before polling day.
Who can I vote for? ↗3,951 votes for candidates
Candidates and results: Democracy Club (CC BY 4.0), from councils’ declared results; polling dates from Democracy Club’s EveryElection.
Topsham is in Exmouth and Exeter East constituency
The constituency’s MP and the 4 July 2024 general election, the whole constituency’s result (it reaches beyond Topsham).
51,316 votes for candidates · majority 121
Conservative, MP since 4 July 2024.
turnout in July 2024: 51,316 votes from 79,983 registered voters. England: 60%.
Majority 121 of 51,316 votes (0.24%): the 7th-narrowest of 543 in England.
MPs and results: UK Parliament Members API (Open Parliament Licence v3.0); constituencies from ONS (2024 boundaries). Percentages are of valid votes; turnout is votes cast over the electorate.
Topsham’s Band D council tax is £2,495 a year
Where a Band D bill goes, what it has cost over the years, and what the councils plan to spend per resident.
Exeter City Council keeps £191.31 of a Band D bill (8%); the rest goes to Devon County Council, the Devon & Cornwall police and crime commissioner and the Devon & Somerset Fire and Rescue Authority.
Band D since 1993
Exeter’s Band D bill has risen 56% in ten years, from £1,600.49 in 2016–17, in line with England’s average (56%). It was £543.38 in 1993–94.
Your bill by band
A Band D home in the unparished part of Exeter, 2026–27, before discounts. The Valuation Office Agency’s band search gives any home’s band.
Devon’s councils
Average Band D in each council area, 2026–27, parish precepts included. Bars start at £2,300.
Council budgets per resident, 2026–27
Show as a table, with Devon
| Exeter + Devon | Topsham’s councils | Devon | England |
|---|---|---|---|
| Adult social care | £503 | £505 | £487 |
| Children’s social care | £274 | £309 | £290 |
| Roads and transport | £33 | £55 | £41 |
| Housing (not council homes’ rents) | £64 | £37 | £61 |
| Bins, street cleaning, environment | £123 | £128 | £119 |
| Libraries, leisure, culture | £74 | £47 | £44 |
| Planning and development | £4 | £31 | £26 |
| Public health | £46 | £59 | £78 |
| Running the council | £56 | £67 | £59 |
| Other | £0 | £2 | £19 |
| Total, schools apart | £1,176 | £1,238 | £1,234 |
Net budgeted service spending, MHCLG Revenue Account budget 2026–27, per resident (ONS mid-2025 estimates). Both tiers added: Exeter per its residents plus Devon per the county’s. Schools are left out: academies are paid for directly by government, so council school budgets depend on how many schools have converted. Devon and England: all their councils together. Police, fire and transport authorities aren’t included.
Band D: MHCLG Band D council tax 2026–27 (each authority’s own figure, excluding parish precepts) and Council Tax statistics for town and parish councils 2026–27; since 1993–94, MHCLG’s area averages including parishes.
Having a say in how Topsham is run
It takes about five minutes online; the deadline is 12 working days before a poll.
gov.uk ↗Type a postcode to write to each of its councillors and its MP.
WriteToThem ↗GOV.UK sends the report to the council that looks after the road.
gov.uk ↗Council and committee meetings are open to the public, with agendas and minutes online.
exeter.gov.uk ↗Anyone can comment while an application is open for consultation.
exeter.gov.uk ↗The rules, nomination papers and guidance for council candidates.
Electoral Commission ↗Questions about how Topsham is run
Which council runs Topsham?
The county council runs schools, social care and roads; the district runs bins, planning and housing.
Does Topsham have a town council?
No. Topsham is unparished, so there is no town or parish council and no parish precept.
Who is the MP for Topsham?
David Reed (Conservative) is the MP for Exmouth and Exeter East, which covers Topsham.
How many councillors does Topsham have?
3 ward councillors represent Topsham’s 1 ward, and 1 county councillors its county divisions.
When are the next elections in Topsham?
No election is scheduled yet in Democracy Club’s list for Topsham’s wards. The next UK general election must be held by August 2029.
How much is council tax in Topsham?
Band D council tax in Topsham is £2,495 for 2026–27. Your bill depends on your home’s band, from A (6/9 of Band D) to H (18/9).
Who controls Exeter City Council?
No party has a majority. As elected, Labour 19 · Green 10 · Liberal Democrat 5 · Conservative 2 · Reform UK 2 · Independent 1 of 39 seats; a majority needs 20. The council’s website lists who leads it now.
Who controls Devon County Council?
As elected, Liberal Democrat 27 · Reform UK 18 · Conservative 7 · Green 6 · Independent 2 of 60 seats; a majority needs 31.
Who won the 2026 council election in Topsham?
In Topsham’s wards on 7 May 2026, Labour 1 of the 1 seats up. Labour had the largest share of votes, 30.1%.
Is Exmouth and Exeter East a marginal seat?
David Reed (Conservative) won it by 121 votes in July 2024, 0.24% of votes cast: the 7th-narrowest result of 543 in England.
Sources: ONS ward, county division, parish, constituency lookups (Census 2021 output areas; Open Government Licence v3.0) · GOV.UK local council finder · Democracy Club candidates (CC BY 4.0) and EveryElection · UK Parliament Members API (Open Parliament Licence v3.0) · MHCLG Band D council tax, parish precepts and Revenue Account budgets 2026–27 (OGL v3.0) · ONS mid-2025 population estimates. Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0.
Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Contains HM Land Registry data © Crown copyright and database right 2026. Contains OS data © Crown copyright and database right 2026 (ONS boundaries). Northern Ireland: Source: NISRA; contains Land & Property Services data and Ordnance Survey of Northern Ireland information, © Crown copyright, licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Scotland: contains National Records of Scotland data, Registers of Scotland data and SEPA data, © Crown copyright / © SEPA 2025, licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.