Irvine Valley is one of the nine electoral wards of East Ayrshire Council. Created in 2007, the ward elects three councillors using the single transferable vote electoral system. Originally a four-member ward, Irvine Valley was reduced in size following a boundary review and has elected three councillors since the 2017 East Ayrshire Council election.

Irvine Valley
East Ayrshire
Outline map
Boundary of Irvine Valley in East Ayrshire from 2007–2017.
Population12,129 (2021)[1]
Electorate9,797 (2022)
Major settlementsDarvel
Galston
Newmilns
Scottish Parliament constituencyKilmarnock and Irvine Valley
Scottish Parliament regionSouth Scotland
UK Parliament constituencyKilmarnock and Loudon
Current ward
Created2007 (2007)
Number of councillors3
CouncillorBeverley Michele Clark (SNP)
CouncillorKevin McGregor (Labour)
CouncillorSally Cogley (Rubbish)
Created fromCrookedholm, Moscow, Galston West and Hurlford North
Darvel
Galston East
Hurlford
Kilmaurs and Stewarton South
Mauchline
Newmilns
North Kilmarnock, Fenwick and Waterside
Stewarton East and Dunlop

As a four-member ward, the area favoured the Scottish National Party (SNP) but since the boundary changes in 2017, the ward has been split between the SNP, Labour and The Rubbish Party.

Boundaries edit

The ward was created following the Fourth Statutory Reviews of Electoral Arrangements ahead of the 2007 Scottish local elections. As a result of the Local Governance (Scotland) Act 2004, local elections in Scotland would use the single transferable vote electoral system from 2007 onwards so Irvine Valley was formed from an amalgamation of several previous first-past-the-post wards. It contained part of the former Stewarton East and Dunlop, Kilmaurs and Stewarton South, North Kilmarnock, Fenwick and Waterside, Crookedholm, Moscow, Galston West and Hurlford North, Galston East, Mauchline and Hurlford wards as well as all of the former Darvel and Newmilns wards and initially elected four members. Irvine Valley lies in the northeast of the council area and took in the towns of Newmilns, Darvel, Galston, Fenwick, Moscow and Waterside. The original ward boundaries stretched from the council area's boundary with South Ayrshire in the west to its boundaries with East Renfrewshire and South Lanarkshire in the east.[2] Following the Fifth Statutory Reviews of Electoral Arrangements ahead of the 2017 Scottish local elections, the ward was reduced in size to elect three members. The towns of Fenwick, Moscow and Waterside to the east of the A77 became part of the Annick ward while the area surrounding the A76 up to the council's boundary with South Ayrshire became part of the Ballochmyle ward.[3]

Councillors edit

Election Councillors
2007 Alan Brown
(SNP)
Stuart Finlayson
(Labour)
Stephanie Young
(Conservative)
Bobby McDill
(SNP)
2012 George Mair
(Labour)
John McFadzean
(Conservative)
2015
by-election
Elena Whitham
(SNP)
2017 Sally Cogley
(Rubbish)
2022 Beverley Michele Clark
(SNP)
Kevin McGregor
(Labour)

Election results edit

2022 election edit

Irvine Valley - 3 seats
Party Candidate FPv% Count
1 2 3 4 5
SNP Beverley Michele Clark 30.8 1,309        
Labour Kevin McGregor 22.6 962 974 1,153    
Rubbish Sally Cogley (incumbent) 18.5 787 801 982 1,017 1,547
Conservative Susan McFadzean 17.3 737 739 763 782  
SNP Lee-Anne Margaret To 10.8 461 667      
Electorate: 9,797   Valid: 4,256   Spoilt: 46   Quota: 1,065   Turnout: 43.9%  

Source: [4][5]

2017 election edit

Irvine Valley - 3 seats
Party Candidate FPv% Count
1 2 3 4 5 6 7
SNP Elena Whitham (incumbent) 24.4 1,128 1,131 1,132 1,179      
Conservative Susan McFadzean 19.9 920 921 922 964 964 989  
Rubbish Sally Cogley 16.9 784 788 792 888 889 1,036 1,403
Labour George Mair (incumbent) 16.8 775 778 780 879 880 991 1,233
SNP Margaret Young 11.9 551 551 551 587 605    
Independent Ian King 9.5 438 438 444        
Independent David Gartland 0.3 16 16          
Libertarian Stevie Brannagan 0.3 14            
Electorate: 9,677   Valid: 4,626   Spoilt: 71   Quota: 1,157   Turnout: 48.5%  

Source: [6]

2015 by-election edit

Irvine Valley by-election (1 October 2015) – 1 seat
Party Candidate FPv% Count
1 2
SNP Elena Whitham 49.8 1,797 1,832
Conservative Susan McFadzean 24.5 865 884
Labour Alex Walsh 23.8 860 884
Scottish Green Jen Broadhurst 2.4 88  
Electorate: 11,570   Valid: 3,610   Spoilt: 42   Quota: 1,805   Turnout: 31.2%  

Source: [7]

2012 election edit

Irvine Valley – 4 seats
Party Candidate FPv% Count
1 2 3 4 5
Labour George Mair 29.7 1,423        
SNP Alan Brown (incumbent)[note 1] 26.1 1,252        
Conservative John McFadzean 17.9 857 896 940 942 1,188
SNP Bobby McDill (incumbent) 17.7 847 961      
Independent May Anderson 7.1 339 451 541 547  
Electorate: 11,401   Valid: 4,718   Spoilt: 72   Quota: 944   Turnout: 41.4%  

Source: [9][10]

2007 election edit

Irvine Valley - 4 seats
Party Candidate FPv% Count
1 2
SNP Alan Brown 23.7 1,497  
Labour Stuart Finlayson 22.4 1,416  
Conservative Stephanie Young 20.5 1,293  
SNP Bobby McDill 19.8 1,251 1,421
Labour Isabella MacRae 9.2 580 592
Independent May Anderson 4.3 274 286
Electorate: 11,324   Valid: 6,311   Spoilt: 135   Quota: 1,263   Turnout: 55.7%  

Source:[11]

Notes edit

  1. ^ Irvine Valley councillor Alan Brown was elected as MP for Kilmarnock and Loudoun on 7 May 2015.[8] He resigned his council seat on 17 July 2015 and a by-election was held on 1 October 2015.

References edit

  1. ^ "Irvine Valley". Scottish Government. Retrieved 9 March 2023.
  2. ^ "Fourth Statutory Review of Electoral Arrangements; East Ayrshire Council Area" (PDF). Local Government Boundary Commission for Scotland. May 2006. Retrieved 3 November 2022.
  3. ^ "Fifth Statutory Review of Electoral Arrangements; East Ayrshire Council Area" (PDF). Local Government Boundary Commission for Scotland. May 2016. Retrieved 3 November 2022.
  4. ^ "Declaration of Results Report Ward 6 Irvine Valley" (PDF). East Ayrshire Council. 6 May 2022. Retrieved 7 May 2022.
  5. ^ "Detailed Results Ward 6 Irvine Valley" (PDF). East Ayrshire Council. 6 May 2022. Retrieved 7 May 2022.
  6. ^ "Detailed Results Report Ward 6 - Irvine Valley" (PDF). East Ayrshire Council. 5 May 2017. Retrieved 4 May 2022.
  7. ^ "Detailed Results Report Ward 6 – Irvine Valley" (PDF). East Ayrshire Council. 1 October 2015. Retrieved 2 November 2022.
  8. ^ By-Election In The Irvine Valley
  9. ^ "Declaration of Results Report Ward 6 Irvine Valley" (PDF). East Ayrshire Council. 4 May 2012. Retrieved 2 November 2022.
  10. ^ "Detailed Results Ward 6 Irvine Valley" (PDF). East Ayrshire Council. 4 May 2012. Retrieved 2 November 2022.
  11. ^ Teale, Andrew. "Local Elections Archive Project - 2007 - East Ayrshire". Retrieved 3 November 2022.