Abbey Ward (6 seats)
Elected
| *Michael Francis Coker | Conservative Party |
| *Jack Bastock | Liberal Democrats |
| Haydn Alan Thomas | Liberal Democrats |
| Enys Parthenia Thomas | Liberal Democrats |
| Helen Pavier | Liberal Democrats |
| Patrick Joseph Ryan | Liberal Democrats |
Not Elected
| *Kenneth Rawnsley | Conservative Party |
| *John Anthony Cooke | Conservative Party |
| John Wiles | Conservative Party |
| Maureen West | Conservative Party |
| *John Edward Hatfield | Conservative Party |
| Michael Jonathan Morris | Liberal Democrats |
| Geoffrey Ernest Cleave | Labour Party |
| Henry Scarborough | Labour Party |
| Muriel Johnston | Labour Party |
| Jill Murdoch | Labour Party |
| Rosemary May Ellis | Labour Party |
St. John’s Ward (6 seats)
Elected
| *Pauline Winifred Edwards | Conservative Party |
| *Peggy Grace Cox | Conservative Party |
| *Robert Ronald Wooller | Conservative Party |
| *Leslie Graham Windybank | Conservative Party |
| Felicity Gena Bunker | Conservative Party |
| Marjorie Helen Weaver | Conservative Party |
Not Elected
| Muriel Bastock | Liberal Democrats |
| Frences Marilyn Dutson | Liberal Democrats |
| Grace Lillian Gunter | Liberal Democrats |
| Barbara Ward | Liberal Democrats |
| Christopher John Payne | Labour Party |
| Thomas Swallow | Labour Party |
| Helen Maria Ruffles | Labour Party |
| David Peggs | Labour Party |
| Brenda May Payne | Labour Party |
| Diana Margaret Basham | Labour Party |
Park Hill Ward (4 seats)
Elected
| *Thomas Anthony Dalton | Conservative Party |
| *Spencer Charlton Harrison | Conservative Party |
| Peter John Durrant | Conservative Party |
| Joanna Mary Illingworth | Conservative Party |
Not Elected
| Eric Lewis Deal | Liberal Democrats |
| Judith Ann Rawson | Liberal Democrats |
| Dennis Edmond Royston | Liberal Democrats |
| Vera Maud Royston | Liberal Democrats |
| Robert Guy Field | Labour Party |
| Robin Rain Winn | Labour Party |
| Anthony Bowen | Labour Party |
*denotes retiring members
LIB-DEMS MUSCLE IN
Following the rout of 1987, the Liberal Democrats now have four new seats on the council. But the Tories still have a six seat majority.
The Liberal Democrats who got elected were husband and wife team of Haydn and Enys Thomas, who return to the council, with newcomers Helen Pavier and Pat Ryan. Jack Bastock kept his seat as well as winning back his seat on the District Council, which he lost eight years ago. He said “I’m very pleased. We can certainly have some good open debates now. The people of Kenilworth elected me, so I shall certainly be putting Kenilworth first”.
It was Abbey Ward that did all the damage for the Tories, where three of their high profile members failed to be re-elected. Kenneth Rawnsley, John Cooke and John Hatfield, being the casualties. Rawnsley and Cooke also lost their District Council seats.
Mr Rawnsley has dominated local politics since 1967, when he was first elected to the old KUDC. He was Mayor twice, and has been the leader of the District Council since it was created in 1973. The shocked 67 year-old retired BT sales superintentent, says he is already making plans for the future. “I believe I have great knowledge of local government, which I want to put to use. I hope to continue in public life”. He added; “The district and town were my life, I’ve been around a long time”. He believes there was a protest vote in Abbey ward against government issues such as the poll tax. Kenilworth people might also have been influenced by his decision to abstain from voting in the Eagle Lane planning application.
John Hatfield, after eight years on the council was also a disappointed man, he was due to become the next Mayor. But he said “I shall be back, they haven’t heard the last of me. I still have just as much influence, perhaps more. The council meetings are only a tenth of the work I did for the town, people will still come to me with their problems”. He is angry that national politics influenced voters. “We were the ones fighting against these cuts”. He also believes the long list of 17 names on the ballot paper confused many voters.
John Cooke, although he lost his town seat, is still a county councillor, where he will be taking over the chairmanship of the Social Services Committee in June. Mr Cooke, aged 33, said he would miss the town council where he started his political career back in 1979, but doesn’t take the result personally. He was Mayor in 1986/7.
Park Hill was dominated by the Tories. Tony Dalton and Spencer Harrison were re-elected plus two new faces to the council, Joanna Illingworth and Peter Durrant.
Kenilworth Town Councillors (16 seats)
11 Conservatives (T. Dalton, S. Harrison, P. Durrant, J. Illingworth, P. Cox, P. Edwards, R. Wooller, G. Windybank, F. Bunker, M. Weaver, M. Coker)
5 Liberal Democrats (J. Bastock, H. Thomas, E, Thomas, H. Pavier, P. Ryan)
Mayors
1991-92 Peggy Cox
1992-93 Spencer Harrison
1993-94 Jack Bastock
1994-95 Robert Wooller
Town Clerk – Susan Howell
Footnote – As viewers will see, no votes are shown against any of the candidates. This was due to the fact that the local press did not publish a full sets of results. Plus, none are available on the WDC website. If anyone has a full set of results, please contact us. Thank You.