Labour strengthened their grip on Kirklees Council increasing their overall majority – but it wasn’t without one or two scares.

Labour took control of the council at last year’s election and this year increased their majority from three to nine, the gains effectively coming at the expense of the independents.

Beverley Addy regained Colne Valley for Labour after Independent Lesley Warner stood down. Ms Warner was elected as a Labour councillor but had resigned from the party in 2020 after a national row.

Labour’s Hannah McKerchar ousted Tory councillor Michael Watson in Denby Dale by just 253 votes and Paul Moore took the Dewsbury East seat of another Independent who stood down, Aleks Lukic.

Habiban Zaman needed a recount to edge past Tory Hanif Mayet by just 14 votes in the normally rock-solid-Labour Batley East while Cabinet member for corporate services Clr Paul Davies – the man who holds the council’s purse-strings – only held on in Holme Valley South by 200 votes from Tory challenger Damian Brook.

The Tories remain the second biggest party with 18 seats with experienced councillor Donna Bellamy returning to the council, winning Independent-held Holme Valley North despite a strong challenge from Labour’s Jo Murtagh and Independent Richard Noon, the Mayor of Meltham.

The new make-up of the council is: Labour 39, Conservative 18, Lib Dem 8, Green 3 and Independent 1.

Bold denotes winning candidate

ALMONDBURY

Maria Carthy – Conservative 1,048

Patricia Colling – Labour 832

Paola Davies – Liberal Democrats 1,906

Josie McCabe – Independent 88

Peter Taylor – Green Party 243

ASHBROW: Two vacancies

Ian Carthy – Conservative 927

Heidi Din – Green Party 344

Amanda Pinnock – Labour 2,092

Ian Roberts – Conservative 848

Zarina Shahbaz – Labour 1,763

Manjit Singh – Liberal Democrats 264

Brenda Smithson 412

BATLEY EAST:

Simon Duffy – Green Party 256

Gill Long – Liberal Democrats 262

Hanif Mayet – Conservative 1,964

Habiban Zaman – Labour 1,978

BATLEY WEST:

Yusra Hussain – Labour 2,342

Mohammed Laher – Conservative 953

Stephen Long – Liberal Democrats 391

John Phillips – Green Party 255

BIRSTALL AND BIRKENSHAW:

Tahir Akram – Green Party 160

Joshua Sheard – Conservative 1,839

Julie Smith – Labour 1,363

Mark Steele – Social Democratic Party 53

Louise Walsh – Liberal Democrats 323

CLECKHEATON:

Piers Briggs – Conservative 691

Khalid Patel – Labour 443

Andrew Pinnock – Liberal Democrats 2,736

Nicholas Whittingham – Green Party 165

COLNE VALLEY:

Beverley Addy – Labour 2,543

Isaac Barnett – Conservative 1,336

Jake Marchington – Liberal Democrats 689

Julia Norman – Green Party 479

CROSLAND MOOR AND NETHERTON:

Suzanne Barraclough – Liberal Democrats 242

Matthew Crompton – Conservative 752

Imran Safdar – Labour 2,237

Alex Vickers – Green Party 1,049

DALTON:

Dominic Black – Liberal Democrats 304

Clare Holden – Independent 134

Mus Khan – Labour Party 1,664

Kash Masih – Conservative 661

Clare Walters – Green Party 410

DENBY DALE:

Alison Baskeyfield – Liberal Democrats 251

Hannah McKerchar – Labour 2,417

Michael Shaw – Green Party 253

Jonathan Tilt – Independent 226

Michael Watson – Conservative 2,164

DEWSBURY EAST:

Paul Moore – Labour 1,809

Gideon Richards – Green Party 194

Hazel Sharp – Conservative 911

Dan Woodlock – Liberal Democrats 337

DEWSBURY SOUTH:

Richard Beck – Independent 260

Toby Cooper – Green Party 184

Nosheen Dad – Labour 2,405

Sean Guy – Conservative 689

Dennis Hullock – Liberal Democrats 124

DEWSBURY WEST:

Simon Cope – Green Party 217

Sajid Hussain – Conservative 1,663

Darren O’Donovan – Labour 2,664

John Rossington – Liberal Democrats 145

GOLCAR:

Mark Finch – Independent 77

Jackie Firth-Walker – Conservative 511

Andrew Marchington – Liberal Democrats 1,743

Nina Roberts – Green Party 270

Angela Sewell – Labour 1,581

GREENHEAD:

Andrew McCaig – Liberal Democrats 271

Pauline McGleenan – Conservative 584

Carole Pattison – Labour 2,882

Heather Peacock – Green Party 548

HECKMONDWIKE:

Aafaq Butt – Labour 2,292

Keith Mallinson – Conservative 900

Josie Pugsley – Liberal Democrats 209

Graham Simpson – Green Party 164

HOLME VALLEY NORTH:

Donna Bellamy – Conservative 1,730

Miri Finch – Independent 26

Suzanne Gannon – Independent 196

Kingsley Hill – Liberal Democrats 163

Samuel Midgley – Green Party 335

Jo Murtagh – Labour 1,527

Richard Noon – Independent 1,338

HOLME VALLEY SOUTH:

Jon Bloom – Liberal Democrats 276

Damian Brook – Conservative 2,585

Paul Davies – Labour 2,785

Darryl Gould – Green Party 478

KIRKBURTON:

Craig Armistead – Liberal Democrats 172

Lisa Beck – Independent 92

Edward Bowen – Labour 1,066

Richard Burton – Green Party 953

John Taylor – Conservative 2,311

LINDLEY:

Munir Ahmed – Labour 932

Mike Chalker – Independent 88

Chris Green – Green Party 258

Robert McGuin – Conservative 1,728

Anthony Smith – Liberal Democrats 2,649

LIVERSEDGE AND GOMERSAL:

Lisa Holmes: Conservative 2,030

Linda Simmons: Green Party 214

David Snee: Liberal Democrats 163

Emily Warrillow – Labour 1,341

MIRFIELD:

Itrat Ali – Conservative 2,052

Stephen Bird – Liberal Democrats 265

Samuel Griffith-Jones – Reform UK 321

Geoff Kernan – Labour 1,866

Catherine Whittingham – Green Party 695

NEWSOME:

Charles Ayugbo – Conservative 258

Patrycja Bartosinska – Liberal Democrats 64

Bikatshi Katenga – Yorkshire Party 61

Susan Lee-Richards – Green Party 2,197

Jane Rylah – Labour 837