Photo: Peter Trimming · CC BY-SA 2.0No party holds a majority on Epping Forest District Council
High Beech is run by Epping Forest District Council and Essex County Council, with Waltham Abbey parish council for local matters. No party holds a majority on Epping Forest District Council. The Conservatives have a majority on Essex County Council. Its MP is Dr Neil Hudson (Conservative), member for Epping Forest.
£2,341
Band D, a year, the middle band every council sets its tax from.
Where it goes →How High Beech’s politics has changed since 2021
No majority on Epping Forest District Council
The Conservatives, the largest group, hold 21 of its 54 seats as elected, 7 short of the 28 needed (it held 29 before the May 2026 election). Independents hold 15, Reform UK 11, the Liberal Democrats 6 and Labour 1. Who’s in charge ↓
Essex in 2021
Essex County Council, which runs schools, social care and roads, has a Conservative majority at the May 2021 election: the Conservatives won 52 of 75 seats. Essex ↓
The 2026 vote
Across High Beech’s wards, Reform UK took 50.3%, the Conservatives took 29.4% and the Liberal Democrats took 10.6% of votes in May 2026. In 2024, Reform UK had 0%. How High Beech has voted ↓
Council tax
A Band D bill in High Beech is £2,341 for 2026–27; Epping Forest District Council keeps 8% of it. The council area’s Band D has risen 46% in ten years, against England’s 56%. Council money ↓
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 High Beech’s councils
Seats by party as elected. A party needs 28 of Epping Forest’s 54 or 38 of Essex’s 75 seats to run the council alone.
- Conservative21−8
- Independent15−1
- Reform UK11+11
- Liberal Democrat6−1
- Labour1no change
- Green0−1
Change against the council before the 7 May 2026 election.
- Conservative52
- Liberal Democrat8
- Labour5
- Independent4
- Canvey Island Independent Party2
- Residents for Uttlesford2
- Green1
- Rochford District Residents1
Latest election: May 2021.
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, and a parish tier
High Beech has two tiers of council: the county runs the big services, the district the local ones.
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.
100% of High Beech’s residents · Band D precept £154
Bins and recycling, planning, housing, environmental health, leisure, and collecting council tax.
Website ↗Schools, social care, roads and transport, libraries and waste disposal.
Website ↗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.
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 High Beech, from the most recent elections.
- 1Town or parishParish tierWaltham Abbey parish council
- 2Epping Forest District Council1 ward · 3 councillorsJames AbbottSteven James HeatherMaria MarkhamTimothy John Matthews
- 3Essex County Council1 division · 1 councillorSam Kane
- 4Police and crime commissionerEssex Police · elected May 2024Roger Charles Hirst
- 5House of CommonsEpping Forest
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 AbbottReform UK · May 2026
- Steven James HeatherConservative · May 2024
- Maria MarkhamConservative · May 2024
- Timothy John MatthewsConservative · May 2024
Show as a table, with Essex County Council’s 1 division (1 councillor)
| Ward | Seats | Elected | When |
|---|---|---|---|
| Waltham Abbey South & Rural2% in High Beech · 186 residents3 seats · May 2026, May 2024 | 3 | James AbbottSteven James HeatherMaria MarkhamTimothy John Matthews | May 2026, May 2024 |
Essex County Council: county divisions
| Division | Seats | Elected | When |
|---|---|---|---|
| Waltham Abbey ED1% in High Beech · 186 residents1 seat · May 2021 | 1 | Sam Kane | May 2021 |
Councillors can resign, change party or sit as independents between elections; a by-election winner replaces someone not named here. Epping Forest District 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).
The Conservatives led each vote to 2024; Reform UK led in 2026
Share of all votes cast for candidates in High Beech’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 | 2024 | 2026 |
|---|---|---|
| Labour | 20% | 9.7% |
| Liberal Democrat | 0% | 10.6% |
| Conservative | 80% | 29.4% |
| Reform UK | 0% | 50.3% |
In 2026, Reform UK won 1 of the 1 seats up in High Beech’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.
Epping Forest council election, May 2026
Results in the wards that make up High Beech, 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. Epping Forest elects a third of its councillors at a time, so a third of the seats were up.
No election is scheduled yet for High Beech’s wards in Democracy Club’s list. Councils publish a notice of election about five weeks before polling day.
Who can I vote for? ↗2,064 votes for candidates
Candidates and results: Democracy Club (CC BY 4.0), from councils’ declared results; polling dates from Democracy Club’s EveryElection.
High Beech is in Epping Forest constituency
The constituency’s MP and the 4 July 2024 general election, the whole constituency’s result (it reaches beyond High Beech).
41,753 votes for candidates · majority 5,682
Conservative, MP since 12 December 2019.
turnout in July 2024: 41,753 votes from 72,229 registered voters. England: 60%.
Majority 5,682 of 41,753 votes (13.6%): the 266th-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.
High Beech’s Band D council tax is £2,341 a year
Where a Band D bill goes, what it has cost over the years, and what the councils plan to spend per resident.
Epping Forest District Council keeps £177.12 of a Band D bill (8%); the rest goes to the Waltham Abbey parish council, Essex County Council, the Essex Police and the Essex PCC-Fire.
Band D since 1993
Epping Forest’s Band D bill has risen 46% in ten years, from £1,561.33 in 2016–17, against England’s average (56%). It was £531.00 in 1993–94.
Your bill by band
A Band D home in Waltham Abbey, 2026–27, before discounts. The Valuation Office Agency’s band search gives any home’s band.
Essex’s councils
Average Band D in each council area, 2026–27, parish precepts included; the 11 nearest of 14. Bars start at £2,100.
Epping Forest District Council hasn’t filed its 2026–27 Revenue Account budget with MHCLG (the department lists it as missing), so its spending per resident isn’t shown.
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 High Beech 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.
eppingforestdc.gov.uk ↗Anyone can comment while an application is open for consultation.
eppingforestdc.gov.uk ↗The rules, nomination papers and guidance for council candidates.
Electoral Commission ↗Questions about how High Beech is run
Which council runs High Beech?
High Beech is run by Epping Forest District Council and Essex County Council. The county council runs schools, social care and roads; the district runs bins, planning and housing.
Does High Beech have a town council?
Yes: High Beech has its own parish-tier council (Waltham Abbey parish council; town councils are parish councils by another name), which adds £154 to a Band D bill in 2026–27.
Who is the MP for High Beech?
Dr Neil Hudson (Conservative) is the MP for Epping Forest, which covers High Beech.
How many councillors does High Beech have?
3 ward councillors represent High Beech’s 1 ward, and 1 county councillors its county divisions.
When are the next elections in High Beech?
No election is scheduled yet in Democracy Club’s list for High Beech’s wards. The next UK general election must be held by August 2029.
How much is council tax in High Beech?
Band D council tax in High Beech is £2,341 for 2026–27. Your bill depends on your home’s band, from A (6/9 of Band D) to H (18/9).
Who controls Epping Forest District Council?
No party has a majority. As elected, Conservative 21 · Independent 15 · Reform UK 11 · Liberal Democrat 6 · Labour 1 of 54 seats; a majority needs 28. The council’s website lists who leads it now.
Who controls Essex County Council?
The Conservatives have a majority: 52 of 75 seats as elected.
Who won the 2026 council election in High Beech?
In High Beech’s wards on 7 May 2026, Reform UK 1 of the 1 seats up. Reform UK had the largest share of votes, 50.3%.
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.