Ashford.
Conservative and Unionist Party-controlled district. £16m net revenue. 39 wards across 2 parliamentary constituencies.
31 May 2026
Conservative and Unionist Party chamber, 2-party MP geography.
Ashford is a district controlled by Conservative and Unionist Party (20 of 49 seats). Net revenue is £16m for 2025-26. It covers 39 wards spanning 2 parliamentary constituencies. The MP geography crosses 2 parties — a heterogeneous setup.
Who sits in the chamber.
Conservative and Unionist Party 41% · last contested 4 May 2023
Councillors — the people.
| Councillor | Ward | Elected | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Al Arnold | Grn | Aylesford East Stour | 2023 |
| Sojan Joseph | Lab | Aylesford East Stour | 2023 |
| Kate Leavey | Lab | Beaver | 2023 |
| Lyn Suddards | Lab | Beaver | 2023 |
| Neil Bell | Con | Biddenden | 2023 |
| Simon Bower Betty | Ind | Bircholt | 2023 |
| Diccon Jeremy Spain | Lab | Bockhanger | 2023 |
| Alan Edward Dean | Lab | Bybrook | 2023 |
| Yvonne Janet Roden | Con | Charing | 2023 |
| Katy Pauley | Ind | Conningbrook Little Burton Farm | 2023 |
| Geoff Meaden | Grn | Downs North | 2023 |
| Larry Krause | Con | Downs West | 2023 |
Where revenue comes from.
Revenue mix is close to the councils (district) median: 60% council tax, 29% central grants.
Source · MHCLG — Final LGFS 2025-26 Core Spending Power table · derived (CT exact; grants/rates split from SFA baseline)
Band-D bill.
| Council slice | £194 |
| County / upper-tier | £1,691 |
| Police | £270 |
| Fire & rescue | £95 |
| GLA precept | £0 |
| Parish average | £61 |
| Total Band-D | £2,311 |
Parish precepts apply on top, vary by parish
Use the income slider on My place to see income tax, NI, VAT and council tax against your earnings.
How does Ashford split its revenue across services, compared with peer councils (district)-class councils? Each row is one of the ten standard service buckets. The vertical line at the centre is the cohort median share; the coloured square is where this council sits. Squares to the right of centre mean a bigger share of revenue than the median peer; to the left, a smaller share.
The subtitle on each row (“X% of net spend”) is what share of this council’s revenue goes to that service. The rank (“15 of 61”) is where this council sits within the cohort, sorted by that share descending. The delta (“+26% vs median”) is a relative reading: the council allocates 26% more of its revenue to that service than the median peer would. A small absolute difference can still be a big relative one.
Higher share doesn’t mean waste — it can reflect demographic need (more older residents), rurality, or a policy choice (e.g. keeping a service in-house). Lower share doesn’t mean efficiency — some councils move costs to fees, ringfenced accounts, or grants. £-per-head would be sharper than share-of-revenue; LAD population is pending ingest. Comparisons are within the same council type only.
Ashford’s territory crosses 2 Westminster constituencies, with 2 MP parties represented. The middle column shows how much of the council each seat carries.
| Constituency | Wards | % of council | Current MP | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ashford | 23 | 59% | Sojan Joseph | Lab |
| Weald of Kent | 16 | 41% | Katie Lam | Con |
This council holds 1 Ind and 1 Ind MPs. That’s an unusually heterogeneous geography for a Conservative and Unionist Party-controlled district — most weeks one MP is asking the council for something and another is praising it.
Sources, methods & last update
DCLEAPIL v1.0 (historic)
Core Spending Power table · 2025-26
vs 163 other councils (district)
Police, Fire, Parish on top
Not yet ingested for Ashford
2023 boundaries
Pending ingest at LAD level