Photo: Malc McDonald · CC BY-SA 2.0Poole was decided by 18 votes in 2024
Upton is run by Dorset Council and Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole Council, with Lytchett Minster and Upton parish council for local matters. The Liberal Democrats have a majority on Dorset Council. No party holds a majority on Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole Council. Most of Upton is in Mid Dorset and North Poole (MP Vikki Slade, Liberal Democrat); 8% of residents are in Poole (MP Neil Duncan-Jordan, Labour).
£2,770
Band D, a year, the middle band every council sets its tax from.
Where it goes →How Upton’s politics has changed since 2021
A majority on Dorset Council
The Liberal Democrats hold a majority on Dorset Council: 42 of its 82 seats as elected. The Conservatives hold 30, the Greens 4, Independents for Dorset 3, Labour 2 and independents 1. Who’s in charge ↓
The 2024 vote
Across Upton’s wards, the Liberal Democrats took 53.7%, the Conservatives took 41.2% and Labour took 5% of votes in May 2024. In 2023, the Liberal Democrats had 18%. How Upton has voted ↓
A close seat
Neil Duncan-Jordan (Labour) won Poole by 18 votes in July 2024, 0.04% of votes cast: the 2nd-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.
Who holds the seats on Upton’s councils
Seats by party as elected. A party needs 42 of Dorset’s 82 or 39 of Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole’s 76 seats to run the council alone.
- Liberal Democrat42
- Conservative30
- Green4
- Independents for Dorset3
- Labour2
- Independent1
Latest election: May 2024.
- Liberal Democrat29
- Conservative11
- Labour11
- Christchurch Independents8
- Green6
- The Party for Poole People Ltd.5
- Independent4
- Poole Engage Party2
Latest election: May 2023.
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.
The councils that run Upton
One council runs every main service here.
Local matters: allotments, play areas, halls, footpaths and benches; it is consulted on planning and adds a precept to the council tax bill. A town council is a parish council by another name.
92% of Upton’s residents · Band D precept £176
Every main council service: schools, social care, roads, bins, planning, housing and libraries.
92% of Upton’s residents
Website ↗Every main council service: schools, social care, roads, bins, planning, housing and libraries.
Who runs Upton: same source as Who runs Upton, above.
Website ↗Who to ask
From GOV.UK’s “Understand how your council works”: here one council runs every main service.
8% of Upton’s residents live outside any parish, with no parish council.
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 parish to Westminster
Every elected tier that speaks for Upton, from the most recent elections.
- 1Town or parishParish tierLytchett Minster and Upton parish council
- 2Council wards2 wards · 6 councillorsSteve RobinsonAlex BrentonAndrew James StarrBrian HitchcockJulie BagwellPeter Jonathan Cooper
- 3Police and crime commissionerDorset Police · elected May 2024David Sidwick
- 4House of CommonsSplit between 2 constituencies
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.
6 councillors for 2 wards
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.
- Steve RobinsonLiberal Democrat · May 2024
- Alex BrentonLiberal Democrat · May 2024
- Andrew James StarrLiberal Democrat · May 2024
- Brian HitchcockThe Party for Poole People Ltd. · May 2023
- Julie BagwellPoole Engage Party · May 2023
- Peter Jonathan CooperLabour · May 2023
Show as a table
| Ward | Seats | Elected | When |
|---|---|---|---|
| Lytchett Matravers & UptonDorset · mostly in Upton · 7,760 residents3 seats · May 2024 | 3 | Steve RobinsonAlex BrentonAndrew James Starr | May 2024 |
| HamworthyBournemouth, Christchurch and Poole · 5% in Upton · 641 residents3 seats · May 2023 | 3 | Brian HitchcockJulie BagwellPeter Jonathan Cooper | May 2023 |
Councillors can resign, change party or sit as independents between elections; a by-election winner replaces someone not named here. Dorset 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).
Poole Engage Party led each vote to 2023; the Liberal Democrats led in 2024
Share of all votes cast for candidates in Upton’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 | 2023 | 2024 |
|---|---|---|
| Green | 5.5% | 0% |
| Labour | 10.7% | 5% |
| Liberal Democrat | 18% | 53.7% |
| Conservative | 25.7% | 41.2% |
| The Party for Poole People Ltd. | 12.6% | 0% |
| Poole Engage Party | 27.5% | 0% |
In 2024, the Liberal Democrats won 3 of the 3 seats up in Upton’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.
Dorset Council council election, May 2024
Results in the wards that make up Upton, 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. Not every seat in the town’s wards was up this time.
No election is scheduled yet for Upton’s wards in Democracy Club’s list. Councils publish a notice of election about five weeks before polling day.
Who can I vote for? ↗7,194 votes for candidates · 3 seats, so 3 votes each
Candidates and results: Democracy Club (CC BY 4.0), from councils’ declared results; polling dates from Democracy Club’s EveryElection.
Upton is split between 2 constituencies
The constituencies’ MP and the 4 July 2024 general election, the whole constituency’s result.
Liberal Democrat, MP since 4 July 2024
92% of Upton’s residents live in this constituency.
Turnout 66% (England 60%).
Majority 1,352 of 49,514 votes (2.7%): the 54th-narrowest of 543 in England.
Labour, MP since 4 July 2024
8% of Upton’s residents live in this constituency.
Turnout 61% (England 60%).
Majority 18 of 44,495 votes (0.04%): the 2nd-narrowest of 543 in England.
49,514 votes for candidates · majority 1,352
Liberal Democrat, MP since 4 July 2024.
turnout in July 2024: 49,514 votes from 75,294 registered voters. England: 60%.
Majority 1,352 of 49,514 votes (2.7%): the 54th-narrowest of 543 in England.
Poole
44,495 votes for candidates · majority 18
Labour, MP since 4 July 2024.
turnout in July 2024: 44,495 votes from 72,509 registered voters. England: 60%.
Majority 18 of 44,495 votes (0.04%): the 2nd-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.
Upton’s Band D council tax is £2,801 a year
Where a Band D bill goes, what it has cost over the years, and what the councils plan to spend per resident.
Dorset Council keeps £2,205.90 of a Band D bill (79%); the rest goes to the Lytchett Minster and Upton parish council, the Dorset police and crime commissioner and the Dorset and Wiltshire Fire and Rescue Authority.
Across the whole town the average Band D is £2,770 (parishes differ; weighted by residents).
Your bill by band
A Band D home in Lytchett Minster and Upton, 2026–27, before discounts. The Valuation Office Agency’s band search gives any home’s band.
Council budgets per resident, 2026–27
Show as a table, with Dorset
| Dorset | Upton’s councils | Dorset | England |
|---|---|---|---|
| Adult social care | £506 | £497 | £487 |
| Children’s social care | £260 | £273 | £290 |
| Roads and transport | £42 | £30 | £41 |
| Housing (not council homes’ rents) | £29 | £46 | £61 |
| Bins, street cleaning, environment | £107 | £111 | £119 |
| Libraries, leisure, culture | £25 | £36 | £44 |
| Planning and development | £20 | £25 | £26 |
| Public health | £48 | £58 | £78 |
| Running the council | £63 | £54 | £59 |
| Other | £77 | £57 | £19 |
| Total, schools apart | £1,177 | £1,188 | £1,234 |
Net budgeted service spending, MHCLG Revenue Account budget 2026–27, per resident (ONS mid-2025 estimates). Schools are left out: academies are paid for directly by government, so council school budgets depend on how many schools have converted. Dorset 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 Upton 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.
dorsetcouncil.gov.uk ↗Anyone can comment while an application is open for consultation.
dorsetcouncil.gov.uk ↗The rules, nomination papers and guidance for council candidates.
Electoral Commission ↗Questions about how Upton is run
Which council runs Upton?
Upton is run by Dorset Council and Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole Council.
Does Upton have a town council?
Yes: Upton has its own parish-tier council (Lytchett Minster and Upton parish council; town councils are parish councils by another name), which adds £176 to a Band D bill in 2026–27.
Who is the MP for Upton?
Upton is split between 2 constituencies: Mid Dorset and North Poole (Vikki Slade, Liberal Democrat) and Poole (Neil Duncan-Jordan, Labour). Parliament’s Find your MP service matches a postcode to its MP.
How many councillors does Upton have?
6 ward councillors represent Upton’s 2 wards.
When are the next elections in Upton?
No election is scheduled yet in Democracy Club’s list for Upton’s wards. The next UK general election must be held by August 2029.
How much is council tax in Upton?
Band D council tax in Upton is £2,770 for 2026–27. Your bill depends on your home’s band, from A (6/9 of Band D) to H (18/9).
Who controls Dorset Council?
The Liberal Democrats have a majority: 42 of 82 seats as elected. The council’s website lists who leads it now.
Who controls Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole Council?
No party has a majority. As elected, Liberal Democrat 29 · Labour 11 · Conservative 11 · Christchurch Independents 8 · Green 6 · The Party for Poole People Ltd. 5 · Independent 4 · Poole Engage Party 2 of 76 seats; a majority needs 39.
Who won the 2024 council election in Upton?
In Upton’s wards on 2 May 2024, Liberal Democrat 3 of the 3 seats up. The Liberal Democrats had the largest share of votes, 53.7%.
Is Poole a marginal seat?
Neil Duncan-Jordan (Labour) won it by 18 votes in July 2024, 0.04% of votes cast: the 2nd-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.