Chingford and Woodford Green is a constituency in North East London represented in the House of Commons of the UK Parliament by Iain Duncan Smith of the Conservative Party since its creation in 1997.

Constituency profile Chingford and Woodford Green is a suburban constituency located on the outskirts of Greater London, covering parts of the boroughs of Waltham Forest and Redbridge. It includes the neighbourhoods of Chingford, Woodford and Highams Park. Like much of suburban London, the area was rural until the arrival of rail transport in the 19th century, which grew the area into a commuter suburb. The constituency is mostly affluent, particularly in the neighbourhoods of Woodford Green and Monkhams. House prices are higher than the national average and residents have high levels of homeownership compared to the rest of London.

Residents have high income and average levels of education and professional employment compared with the rest of the country. The area is ethnically diverse; roughly half the population are White British with 12% identifying as Other White. Asians make up 15% of residents and Black people are 11%. At the local borough council level, most of the constituency is represented by Conservatives, although some Labour Party councillors were elected in Woodford Bridge and South Chingford. Voters in the constituency were evenly split on leaving or remaining in the European Union in the 2016 referendum, with an estimated 50% voting for each option.

History Pre creation Before 1945, both Chingford and Woodford were part of the Epping parliamentary constituency, for which wartime Conservative Prime Minister Winston Churchill was MP. The Chingford and Woodford Green constituency was created in 1997 from parts of the former seats of Chingford and Wanstead and Woodford. Both seats previously had well-known MPs, Norman Tebbit and Winston Churchill respectively. Iain Duncan Smith had been MP for Chingford since 1992, then was elected MP for this constituency five years later in 1997.

Post creation At the seat's inauguration at the 1997 general election, there was a Conservative majority of over 5000 or 13%; the Conservatives retained the seat in 2001 with a majority little changed on a low turnout. In 2005, the Conservative incumbent did better, getting twice as many votes as Labour with a swing to the party of 6.4% (over double that nationally) from Labour.

The 2015 result gave the seat the 119th most marginal majority of the Conservative Party's 331 seats by percentage of majority.

At the 2017 snap election, Duncan Smith was re-elected with a greatly reduced majority on a 7% swing to Labour, slightly more than a sixth of his 2010 margin.

The 2019 general election saw the Conservatives retaining the seat, although with a smaller majority than 2017 due to a swing to Labour, contrary to the national trend, making it the 15th most marginal Conservative seat by percentage of majority.

Faiza Shaheen, who had been Labour's candidate in 2019, was again selected as candidate by the local party in 2022, but was deselected after the July 2024 election was announced due to the nature of social media posts she had liked. She then resigned from the Labour Party and stood as an independent candidate for the constituency. Prior to that, it was described as the 10th most likely seat to switch in a ranking of Labour's targets.

Boundaries

1997–2024 The London Borough of Waltham Forest wards of Chingford Green, Endlebury, Hale End and Highams Park, Hatch Lane, Larkswood, Valley, and the London Borough of Redbridge wards of Church End and Monkhams.

Following a review of ward boundaries which became effective in May 2017, the parts in the London Borough of Redbridge comprised the Monkhams ward, most of the Churchfields ward and part of the South Woodford ward.

Current Further to the 2023 review of Westminster constituencies and taking account of a local government boundary review in Waltham Forest in May 2022, the constituency comprises the following from the 2024 general election:

The London Borough of Redbridge wards of Bridge, Churchfields, and Monkhams. The London Borough of Waltham Forest wards of Chingford Green, Endlebury, Hale End and Highams Park South (most), Hatch Lane and Highams Park North, Larkswood (most), Valley, and Upper Walthamstow (part). In Redbridge Borough, the constituency was expanded to the east to include the Bridge ward and the remainder of the Churchfields ward, transferred from Ilford North. The part of the South Woodford ward was transferred to Leyton and Wanstead. The boundaries within Waltham Forest Borough were unchanged.

Member of Parliament Election MemberPartyNotes1997Iain Duncan SmithConservative MP for Chingford (1992–1997)

Elections

Elections in the 2020s

Elections in the 2010s

2019 notional result Party Vote % Conservative 26,322 48.2 Labour 24,718 45.3 Liberal Democrats 3,193 5.8 Green 213 0.4 Brexit Party 160 0.3Majority1,6042.9Turnout54,60672.2Electorate75,677

Elections in the 2000s

Elections in the 1990s

See also Parliamentary constituencies in London

Notes

References

Sources Election result, 2005 (BBC) Election results, 1997 – 2001 (BBC) Election results, 1997 – 2005 (Election Demon) (Guardian)

External links nomis Constituency Profile for Chingford and Woodford Green — presenting data from the ONS annual population survey and other official statistics. Politics Resources (Election results from 1922 onwards) Electoral Calculus (Election results from 1955 onwards) Chingford and Woodford Green UK Parliament constituency (boundaries April 1997 – April 2010) at MapIt UK Chingford and Woodford Green UK Parliament constituency (boundaries April 2010 – May 2024) at MapIt UK Chingford and Woodford Green UK Parliament constituency (boundaries from June 2024) at MapIt UK