Photo: Neil Owen · CC BY-SA 2.0North Somerset was decided by 639 votes in 2024
Downside is run by North Somerset Council, with Backwell parish council for local matters. No party holds a majority on North Somerset Council. Its MP is Sadik Al-Hassan (Labour), member for North Somerset.
£2,490
Band D, a year, the middle band every council sets its tax from.
Where it goes →How Downside’s politics has changed since 2021
No majority on North Somerset Council
The Conservatives, the largest group, hold 13 of its 50 seats as elected, 13 short of the 26 needed. Labour holds 10, the Liberal Democrats 9, the Greens 8, independents 6, Portishead Independents 3 and Reform UK 1. Who’s in charge ↓
A close seat
Sadik Al-Hassan (Labour) won North Somerset by 639 votes in July 2024, 1.2% of votes cast: the 22nd-narrowest result of 543 in England. Parliament ↓
Council tax
A Band D bill in Downside is £2,490 for 2026–27; North Somerset Council keeps 79% of it. The council area’s Band D has risen 65% 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.
No party has a majority
Seats by party as elected. A party needs 26 of North Somerset’s 50 seats to run the council alone.
- Conservative13
- Labour10
- Liberal Democrat9
- Green8
- Independent6
- Portishead Independents3
- Reform UK1
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 Downside
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.
100% of Downside’s residents · Band D precept £132
Every main council service: schools, social care, roads, bins, planning, housing and libraries.
Website ↗Who to ask
From GOV.UK’s “Understand how your council works”: here one council runs every main service.
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 Downside, from the most recent elections.
- 1Town or parishParish tierBackwell parish council
- 2North Somerset Council1 ward · 1 councillorBridget Petty
- 3Police and crime commissionerAvon and Somerset Constabulary · elected May 2024Clare Moody
- 4House of CommonsNorth Somerset
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.
1 councillor 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.
- Bridget PettyGreen · May 2023
Show as a table
| Ward | Seats | Elected | When |
|---|---|---|---|
| Backwell3% in Downside · 127 residents1 seat · May 2023 | 1 | Bridget Petty | May 2023 |
Councillors can resign, change party or sit as independents between elections; a by-election winner replaces someone not named here. North Somerset 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).
North Somerset council election, May 2023
Results in the wards that make up Downside, 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. Every seat in the town’s wards was up.
No election is scheduled yet for Downside’s wards in Democracy Club’s list. Councils publish a notice of election about five weeks before polling day.
Who can I vote for? ↗1,778 votes for candidates
Candidates and results: Democracy Club (CC BY 4.0), from councils’ declared results; polling dates from Democracy Club’s EveryElection.
Downside is in North Somerset constituency
The constituency’s MP and the 4 July 2024 general election, the whole constituency’s result (it reaches beyond Downside).
53,766 votes for candidates · majority 639
Labour, MP since 4 July 2024.
turnout in July 2024: 53,766 votes from 74,426 registered voters. England: 60%.
Majority 639 of 53,766 votes (1.2%): the 22nd-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.
Downside’s Band D council tax is £2,490 a year
Where a Band D bill goes, what it has cost over the years, and what the councils plan to spend per resident.
North Somerset Council keeps £1,955.01 of a Band D bill (79%); the rest goes to the Backwell parish council, the Avon & Somerset police and crime commissioner and the Avon Fire and Rescue Authority.
Band D since 1993
North Somerset’s Band D bill has risen 65% in ten years, from £1,510.21 in 2016–17, against England’s average (56%). It was £599.63 in 1993–94.
Your bill by band
A Band D home in Backwell, 2026–27, before discounts. The Valuation Office Agency’s band search gives any home’s band.
Somerset’s councils
Average Band D in each council area, 2026–27, parish precepts included. Bars start at £2,200.
Council budgets per resident, 2026–27
Show as a table, with Somerset
| North Somerset | Downside’s councils | Somerset | England |
|---|---|---|---|
| Adult social care | £487 | £487 | £487 |
| Children’s social care | £262 | £277 | £290 |
| Roads and transport | £47 | £33 | £41 |
| Housing (not council homes’ rents) | £34 | £33 | £61 |
| Bins, street cleaning, environment | £104 | £136 | £119 |
| Libraries, leisure, culture | £31 | £16 | £44 |
| Planning and development | £11 | £16 | £26 |
| Public health | £60 | £56 | £78 |
| Running the council | £60 | £46 | £59 |
| Other | £3 | £8 | £19 |
| Total, schools apart | £1,099 | £1,108 | £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. Somerset 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 Downside 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.
n-somerset.gov.uk ↗Anyone can comment while an application is open for consultation.
n-somerset.gov.uk ↗The rules, nomination papers and guidance for council candidates.
Electoral Commission ↗Questions about how Downside is run
Which council runs Downside?
Downside is run by North Somerset Council.
Does Downside have a town council?
Yes: Downside has its own parish-tier council (Backwell parish council; town councils are parish councils by another name), which adds £132 to a Band D bill in 2026–27.
Who is the MP for Downside?
Sadik Al-Hassan (Labour) is the MP for North Somerset, which covers Downside.
How many councillors does Downside have?
1 ward councillors represent Downside’s 1 ward.
When are the next elections in Downside?
No election is scheduled yet in Democracy Club’s list for Downside’s wards. The next UK general election must be held by August 2029.
How much is council tax in Downside?
Band D council tax in Downside is £2,490 for 2026–27. Your bill depends on your home’s band, from A (6/9 of Band D) to H (18/9).
Who controls North Somerset Council?
No party has a majority. As elected, Conservative 13 · Labour 10 · Liberal Democrat 9 · Green 8 · Independent 6 · Portishead Independents 3 · Reform UK 1 of 50 seats; a majority needs 26. The council’s website lists who leads it now.
Who won the 2023 council election in Downside?
In Downside’s wards on 4 May 2023, Green 1 of the 1 seats up. The Greens had the largest share of votes, 64.3%.
Is North Somerset a marginal seat?
Sadik Al-Hassan (Labour) won it by 639 votes in July 2024, 1.2% of votes cast: the 22nd-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.