Photo: Ukexposed at English Wikipedia · Public domainThe Liberal Democrats hold a majority on Winchester City Council
Knowle is run by Winchester City Council and Hampshire County Council, with Wickham and Knowle parish council for local matters. The Liberal Democrats have a majority on Winchester City Council. No party holds a majority on Hampshire County Council. Its MP is Suella Braverman (Reform UK), member for Fareham and Waterlooville.
£2,472
Band D, a year, the middle band every council sets its tax from.
Where it goes →How Knowle’s politics has changed since 2021
A majority on Winchester City Council
The Liberal Democrats hold a majority on Winchester City Council: 36 of its 45 seats as elected. The Greens hold 4, the Conservatives 4 and independents 1. Who’s in charge ↓
Hampshire changed hands in 2026
Hampshire County Council, which runs schools, social care and roads, went from a Conservative majority (54 of 78 seats in 2021) to no overall control at the May 2026 election: the Conservatives won 27 of 78 seats. Hampshire ↓
The 2026 vote
Across Knowle’s wards, the Liberal Democrats took 39.4%, Reform UK took 31.3% and the Conservatives took 17.6% of votes in May 2026. In 2024, the Liberal Democrats had 61.9%. How Knowle has voted ↓
Council tax
A Band D bill in Knowle is £2,472 for 2026–27; Winchester City Council keeps 8% of it. The council area’s Band D has risen 57% in ten years, in line with 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 Knowle’s councils
Seats by party as elected. A party needs 23 of Winchester’s 45 or 40 of Hampshire’s 78 seats to run the council alone.
- Liberal Democrat36
- Conservative4
- Green4
- Independent1
Latest election: May 2026.
- Conservative27−27
- Liberal Democrat26+8
- Reform UK20+20
- Community Campaign (Hart)1+1
- Green1no change
- Independent1no change
- Labour1−2
- Whitehill & Bordon Community Party1no change
Change against the council before the 7 May 2026 election.
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
Knowle 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 Knowle’s residents · Band D precept £205
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 Knowle, from the most recent elections.
- 1Town or parishParish tierWickham and Knowle parish council
- 2Winchester City Council1 ward · 3 councillorsNeil CutlerAngela ClearChris Chamberlain
- 3Hampshire County Council1 division · 1 councillorAngela Clear
- 4Police and crime commissionerHampshire Constabulary · elected May 2024Donna Jones
- 5House of CommonsFareham and Waterlooville
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.
- Neil CutlerLiberal Democrat · May 2026
- Angela ClearLiberal Democrat · May 2024
- Chris ChamberlainLiberal Democrat · May 2023
Show as a table, with Hampshire County Council’s 1 division (1 councillor)
| Ward | Seats | Elected | When |
|---|---|---|---|
| Southwick and Wickham21% in Knowle · 1,487 residents3 seats · May 2026, May 2024, May 2023 | 3 | Neil CutlerAngela ClearChris Chamberlain | May 2026, May 2024, May 2023 |
Hampshire County Council: county divisions
| Division | Seats | Elected | When |
|---|---|---|---|
| Winchester Southern Parishes ED6% in Knowle · 1,487 residents1 seat · May 2026 | 1 | Angela Clear | May 2026 |
Councillors can resign, change party or sit as independents between elections; a by-election winner replaces someone not named here. Winchester 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).
The Liberal Democrats have led every council vote since 2021
Share of all votes cast for candidates in Knowle’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 | 6% | 6% | 9.3% | 7.3% | 9.6% |
| Labour | 4.6% | 4.5% | 4.2% | 8% | 2.2% |
| Liberal Democrat | 51.7% | 47.3% | 55.4% | 61.9% | 39.4% |
| Independent | 0% | 14.1% | 0% | 0% | 0% |
| Conservative | 37.7% | 28.2% | 31.1% | 22.7% | 17.6% |
| Reform UK | 0% | 0% | 0% | 0% | 31.3% |
In 2026, the Liberal Democrats won 1 of the 1 seats up in Knowle’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.
Winchester council election, May 2026
Results in the wards that make up Knowle, 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. Winchester elects a third of its councillors at a time, so a third of the seats were up.
No election is scheduled yet for Knowle’s wards in Democracy Club’s list. Councils publish a notice of election about five weeks before polling day.
Who can I vote for? ↗2,681 votes for candidates
Candidates and results: Democracy Club (CC BY 4.0), from councils’ declared results; polling dates from Democracy Club’s EveryElection.
Knowle is in Fareham and Waterlooville constituency
The constituency’s MP and the 4 July 2024 general election, the whole constituency’s result (it reaches beyond Knowle).
50,123 votes for candidates · majority 6,079
Reform UK, MP since 7 May 2015.
turnout in July 2024: 50,123 votes from 76,947 registered voters. England: 60%.
Majority 6,079 of 50,123 votes (12.1%): the 236th-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.
Knowle’s Band D council tax is £2,472 a year
Where a Band D bill goes, what it has cost over the years, and what the councils plan to spend per resident.
Winchester City Council keeps £194.10 of a Band D bill (8%); the rest goes to the Wickham and Knowle parish council, Hampshire County Council, the Hampshire police and crime commissioner and the Hampshire and IOW Fire and Rescue Authority.
Band D since 1993
Winchester’s Band D bill has risen 57% in ten years, from £1,504.81 in 2016–17, in line with England’s average (56%). It was £457.88 in 1993–94.
Your bill by band
A Band D home in Wickham and Knowle, 2026–27, before discounts. The Valuation Office Agency’s band search gives any home’s band.
Hampshire’s councils
Average Band D in each council area, 2026–27, parish precepts included; the 11 nearest of 13. Bars start at £2,100.
Council budgets per resident, 2026–27
Show as a table, with Hampshire
| Winchester + Hampshire | Knowle’s councils | Hampshire | England |
|---|---|---|---|
| Adult social care | £486 | £478 | £487 |
| Children’s social care | £258 | £272 | £290 |
| Roads and transport | £37 | £49 | £41 |
| Housing (not council homes’ rents) | £25 | £37 | £61 |
| Bins, street cleaning, environment | £129 | £121 | £119 |
| Libraries, leisure, culture | £31 | £38 | £44 |
| Planning and development | £31 | £32 | £26 |
| Public health | £50 | £62 | £78 |
| Running the council | £89 | £58 | £59 |
| Other | £-2 | £1 | £19 |
| Total, schools apart | £1,133 | £1,146 | £1,234 |
Net budgeted service spending, MHCLG Revenue Account budget 2026–27, per resident (ONS mid-2025 estimates). Both tiers added: Winchester per its residents plus Hampshire 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. Hampshire 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 Knowle 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.
winchester.gov.uk ↗Anyone can comment while an application is open for consultation.
winchester.gov.uk ↗The rules, nomination papers and guidance for council candidates.
Electoral Commission ↗Questions about how Knowle is run
Which council runs Knowle?
Knowle is run by Winchester City Council and Hampshire County Council. The county council runs schools, social care and roads; the district runs bins, planning and housing.
Does Knowle have a town council?
Yes: Knowle has its own parish-tier council (Wickham and Knowle parish council; town councils are parish councils by another name), which adds £205 to a Band D bill in 2026–27.
Who is the MP for Knowle?
Suella Braverman (Reform UK) is the MP for Fareham and Waterlooville, which covers Knowle.
How many councillors does Knowle have?
3 ward councillors represent Knowle’s 1 ward, and 1 county councillors its county divisions.
When are the next elections in Knowle?
No election is scheduled yet in Democracy Club’s list for Knowle’s wards. The next UK general election must be held by August 2029.
How much is council tax in Knowle?
Band D council tax in Knowle is £2,472 for 2026–27. Your bill depends on your home’s band, from A (6/9 of Band D) to H (18/9).
Who controls Winchester City Council?
The Liberal Democrats have a majority: 36 of 45 seats as elected. The council’s website lists who leads it now.
Who controls Hampshire County Council?
No party has a majority. As elected, Conservative 27 · Liberal Democrat 26 · Reform UK 20 · Green 1 · Labour 1 · Independent 1 · Community Campaign (Hart) 1 · Whitehill & Bordon Community Party 1 of 78 seats; a majority needs 40.
Who won the 2026 council election in Knowle?
In Knowle’s wards on 7 May 2026, Liberal Democrat 1 of the 1 seats up. The Liberal Democrats had the largest share of votes, 39.4%.
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.