Labour has regained the Walkley seat on Sheffield City Council just four months after losing it to the Green Party, with Hannah Cawley winning a majority of more than 1,000 votes in the by-election held on Thursday 17 September.
Cawley received 2,315 votes, or 53.4%, ahead of Green candidate Seb Van Bilsen Irias on 1,249 votes, or 28.8%. Reform UK's Andrew John Telford finished third with 541 votes, equivalent to 12.5%.
The election was triggered by the resignation of Green councillor Andy Davies, who had defeated Labour's then council leader Tom Hunt by just 73 votes in the May 2026 local elections.
Labour gains seat from Greens
The full result was:
- Hannah Cawley — Labour: 2,315 (53.4%)
- Seb Van Bilsen Irias — Green: 1,249 (28.8%)
- Andrew John Telford — Reform UK: 541 (12.5%)
- Alex Purvis — Liberal Democrats: 112 (2.6%)
- Sonny Ullah — Conservative: 59 (1.4%)
- Isabelle Amy France — Trade Unionist and Socialist Coalition: 56 (1.3%)
Turnout was 28.18%.
Cawley's majority over the Greens was 1,066 votes.
Seat changes hands four months after Green victory
The result reverses one of the notable results from Sheffield's May 2026 local elections.
In May, Green candidate Andy Davies won Walkley with 2,794 votes, or 40.1%, defeating Labour council leader Tom Hunt, who received 2,721 votes, or 39.0%. Reform UK was third on 980 votes, or 14.1%.
Davies subsequently resigned from the council, citing mental health and associated personal reasons, triggering the September by-election.
Sheffield City Council confirmed that the vacancy arose following Davies' resignation.
Fourteen-point rise in Labour share
Compared with the May 2026 election, Labour's share rose from 39.0% to 53.4%, an increase of around 14.4 percentage points.
The Green share fell from 40.1% to 28.8%, while Reform UK's share moved from 14.1% to 12.5%.
The Liberal Democrats polled 2.6%, the Conservatives 1.4% and the Trade Unionist and Socialist Coalition 1.3%.
Turnout was substantially lower than at the May election, when 46.13% of the electorate voted, compared with 28.18% in the by-election.
Labour and Greens have repeatedly contested Walkley
Walkley has been closely fought between Labour and the Greens in recent years. Labour won the ward's contests in 2023 and 2024, while the Greens won seats in 2021 and May 2026.
Sheffield elects councillors by thirds, meaning the three councillors representing a ward can be elected in different years and can represent different parties.
Cawley's victory therefore represents a Labour gain from Green for the specific seat vacated by Davies.