# Croydon North West (UK Parliament constituency)

Croydon North West was a borough constituency represented in the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. It elected one Member of Parliament (MP) by the first past the post system of election.

## Politics and history of the constituency

The Croydon North West constituency was created for the 1955 general election, just five years after a previous re-organisation of the three seats in the County Borough of Croydon.
It took in areas of the former Croydon North and Croydon West constituencies and bordered Croydon North East and Croydon South, as well as, when originally created, the constituencies of Streatham, Norwood, Beckenham and Mitcham.
The constituency was abolished at the 1997 general election and was entirely subsumed within the new Croydon North, with the addition of the Thornton Heath, Upper Norwood and South Norwood wards.
For almost all of its history, Croydon North West had Conservative Members of Parliament. It was the scene of a famous by-election in 1981, following the death of its MP, won by Bill Pitt for the SDP-Liberal Alliance. However, it returned to the Conservatives two years later, remaining so until it was snatched by Malcolm Wicks for the Labour Party at the 1992 general election.

## Boundaries

| Dates | Local authority | Wards |
| 1955–1974 | County Borough of Croydon | Bensham Manor, Norbury, Upper Norwood, West Thornton, and Whitehorse Manor. |
| 1974–1983 | London Borough of Croydon | Bensham Manor, Norbury, Upper Norwood, West Thornton, and Whitehorse Manor. |
| 1983–1997 | London Borough of Croydon | Bensham Manor, Beulah, Broad Green, Norbury, West Thornton, and Whitehorse Manor. |
When first created, Croydon North West included the areas of Norbury, Upper Norwood and parts of west Croydon and Thornton Heath. It saw various boundary changes, largely stretching further south and losing its more easterly parts. At the time of its abolition in 1997, Croydon North West covered all of West Croydon, Selhurst, Norbury and parts of Thornton Heath around the Thornton Heath Pond, within the London Borough of Croydon.

## Members of Parliament

| Election | Member | Party | Notes |
| 1955 | Fred Harris | Conservative | Member for main predecessor seat (1948–1955) |
| 1970 | Robert Taylor | Conservative | Died 1981 |
| 1981 by-election | Bill Pitt | Liberal |
| 1983 | Humfrey Malins | Conservative |
| 1992 | Malcolm Wicks | Labour |
| 1997 | constituency abolished: see Croydon North | constituency abolished: see Croydon North |

## Elections
### Elections in the 1950s

General election 1955: Croydon North West :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % |
| | Conservative | Fred Harris | 26,297 | 56.9 |
| | Labour | Ronald Huzzard | 15,760 | 34.1 |
| | Liberal | Ivy Thurston | 4,139 | 9.0 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 10,537 | 22.8 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 46,196 | 77.5 |
| Registered electors | Registered electors | Registered electors | 59,575 | |
| | Conservative win (new seat) | Conservative win (new seat) | Conservative win (new seat) | Conservative win (new seat) |
General election 1959: Croydon North West :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Conservative | Fred Harris | 25,111 | 54.8 | –2.1 |
| | Labour | David W. Chalkley | 14,658 | 32.0 | –2.1 |
| | Liberal | Ivy Thurston | 6,061 | 13.2 | +4.2 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 10,453 | 22.8 | ±0.0 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 45,830 | 78.8 | +1.2 |
| Registered electors | Registered electors | Registered electors | 58,177 | | |
| | Conservative hold | Conservative hold | Swing | –0.0 | |

### Elections in the 1960s

General election 1964: Croydon North West :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Conservative | Fred Harris | 19,577 | 46.9 | –7.9 |
| | Labour | J.A.P. Palmer | 13,967 | 33.5 | +1.5 |
| | Liberal | Ronald E J Banks | 8,201 | 19.7 | +6.4 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 5,610 | 13.4 | –9.4 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 41,745 | 74.4 | –4.4 |
| Registered electors | Registered electors | Registered electors | 56,122 | | |
| | Conservative hold | Conservative hold | Swing | –4.7 | |
General election 1966: Croydon North West :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Conservative | Fred Harris | 18,578 | 45.4 | –1.5 |
| | Labour | Michael J Stewart | 15,882 | 38.8 | +5.3 |
| | Liberal | Ronald E J Banks | 6,466 | 15.8 | –3.8 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 2,696 | 6.6 | –6.9 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 40,926 | 74.4 | –0.0 |
| Registered electors | Registered electors | Registered electors | 55,042 | | |
| | Conservative hold | Conservative hold | Swing | –3.4 | |

### Elections in the 1970s

General election 1970: Croydon North West :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Conservative | Robert Taylor | 19,260 | 49.9 | +4.5 |
| | Labour | Stanley Boden | 14,687 | 38.0 | –0.8 |
| | Liberal | Ronald E J Banks | 4,666 | 12.1 | –3.7 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 4,573 | 11.8 | +5.3 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 38,613 | 67.7 | –6.7 |
| Registered electors | Registered electors | Registered electors | 57,066 | | |
| | Conservative hold | Conservative hold | Swing | +2.6 | |
1970 notional result :
| Party | Party | Vote | % |
| | Conservative | 19,100 | 49.2 |
| | Labour | 15,000 | 38.7 |
| | Liberal | 4,700 | 12.1 |
| Turnout | Turnout | 38,800 | 67.8 |
| Electorate | Electorate | 57,228 |
General election February 1974: Croydon North West :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Conservative | Robert Taylor | 17,887 | 42.2 | –7.1 |
| | Labour | Stanley Boden | 14,816 | 34.9 | –3.7 |
| | Liberal | Bill Pitt | 9,707 | 22.9 | +10.8 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 3,071 | 7.2 | –3.3 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 42,410 | 77.4 | +9.6 |
| Registered electors | Registered electors | Registered electors | 54,759 | | |
| | Conservative hold | Conservative hold | Swing | –1.7 | |
General election October 1974: Croydon North West :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Conservative | Robert Taylor | 16,035 | 42.0 | –0.2 |
| | Labour | Stanley Boden | 14,556 | 38.1 | +3.2 |
| | Liberal | Bill Pitt | 6,563 | 17.2 | –5.7 |
| | National Front | Peter John Holland | 1,049 | 2.7 | New |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 1,479 | 3.87 | –3.4 |
| Registered electors | Registered electors | Registered electors | 55,176 | | |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 38,203 | 69.2 | –8.2 |
| | Conservative hold | Conservative hold | Swing | –1.7 | |
General election 1979: Croydon North West :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Conservative | Robert Taylor | 19,928 | 49.4 | +7.4 |
| | Labour | Stanley Boden | 16,159 | 40.1 | +2.0 |
| | Liberal | Bill Pitt | 4,239 | 10.5 | –6.7 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 3,769 | 9.4 | +5.5 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 40,326 | 72.5 | +3.3 |
| Registered electors | Registered electors | Registered electors | 55,608 | | |
| | Conservative hold | Conservative hold | Swing | +2.7 | |

### Elections in the 1980s

By-election 1981: Croydon North West :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Liberal | Bill Pitt | 13,800 | 40.0 | +29.4 |
| | Conservative | John Butterfill | 10,546 | 30.5 | –18.9 |
| | Labour | Stanley Boden | 8,967 | 26.0 | –14.1 |
| | National Front | Nick Griffin | 429 | 1.2 | New |
| | Independent Pro-Life | Marilyn Gillies Carr | 340 | 1.0 | New |
| | Ecology | John Foster | 155 | 0.4 | New |
| | Constitutional Movement | Suzan McKenzie | 111 | 0.3 | New |
| | Disabled War Pensioners Association | Lawrence Brooks | 81 | 0.2 | New |
| | Democratic Monarchist, Public Safety, White Resident | Bill Boaks | 51 | 0.1 | New |
| | Family Law Reform Party | George Major | 31 | 0.1 | New |
| | London Federation of Self-Employed | Josef Joseph | 20 | 0.1 | New |
| | Anti-Common Market - Free Trade | Stephen Done | 11 | 0.0 | New |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 3,254 | 9.4 | N/A |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 34,542 | 62.8 | –9.7 |
| Registered electors | Registered electors | Registered electors | 55,009 | | |
| | Liberal gain from Conservative | Liberal gain from Conservative | Swing | +24.2 | |
1979 notional result :
| Party | Party | Vote | % |
| | Conservative | 19,415 | 46.3 |
| | Labour | 18,006 | 42.9 |
| | Liberal | 4,491 | 10.7 |
| | Others | 46 | 0.1 |
| Turnout | Turnout | 41,958 | |
| Electorate | Electorate | |
General election 1983: Croydon North West :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Conservative | Humfrey Malins | 16,674 | 42.3 | –4.0 |
| | Liberal | Bill Pitt | 12,582 | 31.9 | +21.2 |
| | Labour | Ian Smedley | 9,561 | 24.2 | –18.7 |
| | National Front | Nick Griffin | 336 | 0.9 | N/A |
| | Ecology | Tim A.J. Rowe | 286 | 0.7 | N/A |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 4,092 | 10.4 | +7.0 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 39,439 | 67.6 | –4.9 |
| Registered electors | Registered electors | Registered electors | 58,333 | | |
| | Conservative hold | Conservative hold | Swing | –12.6 | |
General election 1987: Croydon North West :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Conservative | Humfrey Malins | 18,665 | 47.0 | +4.7 |
| | Labour | Malcolm Wicks | 14,677 | 37.0 | +12.7 |
| | Liberal | Leslie Rowe | 6,363 | 16.0 | −15.9 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 3,988 | 10.0 | –0.3 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 39,705 | 69.2 | +1.6 |
| Registered electors | Registered electors | Registered electors | 57,369 | | |
| | Conservative hold | Conservative hold | Swing | –4.0 | |

### Elections in the 1990s

General election 1992: Croydon North West :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Labour | Malcolm Wicks | 19,152 | 47.3 | +10.3 |
| | Conservative | Humfrey Malins | 17,626 | 43.5 | −3.5 |
| | Liberal Democrats | Linda F. Hawkins | 3,728 | 9.2 | −6.8 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 1,526 | 3.8 | N/A |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 40,506 | 70.8 | +0.9 |
| Registered electors | Registered electors | Registered electors | 57,241 | | |
| | Labour gain from Conservative | Labour gain from Conservative | Swing | +6.9 | |