Investigation after residents wrongly allowed to vote in by-election

Two Stirchley and Brookside Parish Council members resigned during 2020, leading to a by-election to fill two vacant seats in the Stirchley ward they represented.

During counting process which followed the close of polls earlier this month, the approximately 500 extraneous votes – cast by residents living in a polling district outside the boundaries – were identified using the serial numbers on the back of the paper and removed by hand.

Returning officer David Sidaway said lessons will be learned and “clear appropriate governance actions will be put into place” following the probe.

The result of the by-election was confirmed around 8am the morning after the election following overnight counting and re-counting at the Telford Tennis Centre, Wrockwardine Wood.

Conservatives Tammy Wood and Harvey Unwin won the seats, with 317 and 308 votes respectively.

They had previously been held by one Labour member and one independent councillor.

Labour’s Vanessa Holt was the highest-polling unelected candidate, on 273.

The Stirchley by-election was one of eight town or parish council polls held across Telford and Wrekin on Thursday, May 6.

“An investigation has commenced into the anomaly concerning the Stirchley Parish Council by-election,” Mr Sidaway said.

“There will of course be lessons learned and when they become clear appropriate governance actions will be put into place.

“This is an internal investigation.”

A spokesperson for the Electoral Commission said parish and town council elections do not fall within its remit, so it would not offer support to returning officers with investigations like this.

It will, however, publish a report on the delivery of those elections held on May 6 that do fall within its remit – the Police and Crime Commissions, mayoral and London Assembly elections – in the autumn.