# Norwood (UK Parliament constituency)

Norwood was a parliamentary constituency in south London which returned one Member of Parliament (MP) to the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom by the first past the post system.

## History

The constituency existed from 1885 until it was abolished for the 1997 general election. It was held by the Conservative Party for the first 60 years of its existence. It then oscillated between the Conservatives and Labour until 1966, from which point it was held by Labour until its abolition.

## Boundaries

1885–1918: Parliamentary borough of Lambeth division no 4: the ward of Norwood and those parts of the wards of Brixton and Stockwell lying south of Coldharbour and Acre Lanes.
1918–1950: The Metropolitan Borough of Lambeth ward of Norwood, and parts of the wards of Herne Hill and Tulse Hill.
1950–1974: The Metropolitan Borough of Lambeth wards of Herne Hill, Knight's Hill, and Tulse Hill.
1974–1983: The London Borough of Lambeth wards of Herne Hill, Knight's Hill, Leigham, Thurlow Park, and Tulse Hill.
1983–1997: The London Borough of Lambeth wards of Angell, Gipsy Hill, Herne Hill, Knight's Hill, St Martin's, Thurlow Park, and Tulse Hill.

### Abolition

In 1997 areas were split between the newly created seats Dulwich and West Norwood towards the east, Streatham to the west and Vauxhall to the north. The first of these is cross-borough, spanning elements of firmly Labour-leaning Lambeth and Southwark London Boroughs.

## Members of Parliament

| Year | Member | Party |
| 1885 | Thomas Bristowe | Conservative |
| 1892 | Sir Ernest Tritton | Conservative |
| 1906 | George Bowles | Conservative |
| 1910 | Harry Samuel | Unionist |
| 1922 | Walter Greaves-Lord | Unionist |
| 1935 by-election | Duncan Sandys | Conservative |
| 1945 | Ronald Chamberlain | Labour |
| 1950 | John Smyth | Conservative |
| 1966 | John Fraser | Labour |
| 1997 | constituency abolished | constituency abolished |

## Election results
### Elections in the 1880s

General election 1885: Norwood :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Conservative | Thomas Bristowe | 3,496 | 57.7 | |
| | Liberal | Peter Clayden | 2,563 | 42.3 | |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 933 | 15.4 | |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 6,059 | 80.8 | |
| Registered electors | Registered electors | Registered electors | 7,501 | | |
| | Conservative win (new seat) | Conservative win (new seat) | Conservative win (new seat) | Conservative win (new seat) | Conservative win (new seat) |
General election 1886: Norwood :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Conservative | Thomas Bristowe | 3,334 | 67.5 | +9.8 |
| | Liberal | Oscar Browning | 1,606 | 32.5 | −9.8 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 1,728 | 35.0 | +19.6 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 4,940 | 65.9 | −14.9 |
| Registered electors | Registered electors | Registered electors | 7,501 | | |
| | Conservative hold | Conservative hold | Swing | +9.8 | |

### Elections in the 1890s

General election 1892: Norwood :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Conservative | Ernest Tritton | 4,147 | 61.6 | −5.9 |
| | Liberal | Harry Walter Verdon | 2,584 | 38.4 | +5.9 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 1,563 | 23.2 | −11.8 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 6,731 | 75.8 | +9.9 |
| Registered electors | Registered electors | Registered electors | 8,884 | | |
| | Conservative hold | Conservative hold | Swing | −5.9 | |
General election 1895: Norwood :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Conservative | Charles Tritton | Unopposed | Unopposed | Unopposed |
| | Conservative hold | Conservative hold | Conservative hold | Conservative hold | Conservative hold |

### Elections in the 1900s

General election 1900: Norwood :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Conservative | Charles Tritton | Unopposed | Unopposed | Unopposed |
| | Conservative hold | Conservative hold | Conservative hold | Conservative hold | Conservative hold |
General election 1906: Norwood :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Conservative | George Bowles | 5,567 | 54.0 | N/A |
| | Liberal | Nathaniel William Hubbard | 4,748 | 46.0 | New |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 819 | 8.0 | N/A |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 10,315 | 80.2 | N/A |
| Registered electors | Registered electors | Registered electors | 12,867 | | |
| | Conservative hold | Conservative hold | Swing | N/A | |

### Elections in the 1910s

General election January 1910: Norwood :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Conservative | Harry Samuel | 6,958 | 57.3 | +3.3 |
| | Liberal | Alexander Waldemar Lawrence | 5,180 | 42.7 | −3.3 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 1,778 | 14.6 | +6.6 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 12,138 | | |
| | Conservative hold | Conservative hold | Swing | +3.3 | |
General election December 1910: Norwood :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Conservative | Harry Samuel | 6,291 | 59.6 | +2.3 |
| | Liberal | George Shrubsall | 4,265 | 40.4 | −2.3 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 2,026 | 19.2 | +4.6 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 10,556 | | |
| | Conservative hold | Conservative hold | Swing | +2.3 | |
General Election 1914–15:
Another General Election was required to take place before the end of 1915. The political parties had been making preparations for an election to take place and by the July 1914, the following candidates had been selected;
* Unionist: Harry Samuel
* Liberal: William Llewellyn Williams
General election 1918: Norwood :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| C | Unionist | Harry Samuel | 12,848 | 65.8 | +6.2 |
| | NFDDSS | Harold Bignold | 6,665 | 34.2 | New |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 6,183 | 31.6 | +12.4 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 40,253 | 48.5 | |
| | Unionist hold | Unionist hold | Swing | N/A | |
| C indicates candidate endorsed by the coalition government. ||||||

### Elections in the 1920s

General election 1922: Norwood :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Unionist | Walter Greaves-Lord | 16,121 | 60.8 | −5.0 |
| | Liberal | Richard Evan Williams Kirby | 6,253 | 23.5 | New |
| | Labour | William Archer Hodgson | 4,180 | 15.7 | New |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 9,868 | 37.3 | +5.7 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 43,029 | 61.7 | +13.2 |
| | Unionist hold | Unionist hold | Swing | N/A | |
General election 1923: Norwood :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Unionist | Walter Greaves-Lord | 12,725 | 49.3 | −11.5 |
| | Liberal | Frank Dawson Lapthorn | 8,127 | 31.4 | +7.9 |
| | Labour | William Archer Hodgson | 5,002 | 19.3 | +3.6 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 4,598 | 17.9 | −19.4 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 43,495 | 59.4 | −2.3 |
| | Unionist hold | Unionist hold | Swing | -9.7 | |
General election 1924: Norwood :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Unionist | Walter Greaves-Lord | 22,178 | 71.3 | +22.0 |
| | Labour | George James Anstey | 8,927 | 28.7 | +9.4 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 13,251 | 42.6 | +24.7 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 44,315 | 70.2 | +10.8 |
| | Unionist hold | Unionist hold | Swing | +6.3 | |
General election 1929: Norwood :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Unionist | Walter Greaves-Lord | 19,281 | 50.6 | −20.7 |
| | Labour | William Obrien Reeves | 11,042 | 28.9 | +0.2 |
| | Liberal | Edward Stacey Layton | 7,823 | 20.5 | New |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 8,239 | 21.7 | −20.9 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 58,163 | 65.6 | −4.6 |
| | Unionist hold | Unionist hold | Swing | -10.4 | |

### Elections in the 1930s

General election 1931: Norwood :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Conservative | Walter Greaves-Lord | 30,851 | 81.0 | +30.4 |
| | Labour | Ann Jane Anstey | 7,217 | 19.0 | −9.9 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 23,634 | 62.0 | +40.3 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 59,555 | 63.9 | −1.7 |
| | Conservative hold | Conservative hold | Swing | +20.2 | |
1935 Norwood by-election :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Conservative | Duncan Sandys | 16,147 | 51.1 | −29.9 |
| | Labour | Barbara Ayrton-Gould | 12,799 | 40.4 | +21.4 |
| | Ind. Conservative | Richard Findlay | 2,698 | 8.5 | New |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 3,348 | 10.7 | −51.3 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 59,305 | 53.4 | −10.5 |
| | Conservative hold | Conservative hold | Swing | -25.7 | |
General election 1935: Norwood :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Conservative | Duncan Sandys | 24,651 | 66.9 | −14.1 |
| | Labour | Charles Gibson | 12,195 | 33.1 | +14.1 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 12,456 | 33.8 | −28.2 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 59,219 | 62.2 | −1.7 |
| | Conservative hold | Conservative hold | Swing | +11.6 | |

### Elections in the 1940s

General election 1939–40
Another general election was required to take place before the end of 1940. The political parties had been making preparations for an election to take place and by the Autumn of 1939, the following candidates had been selected;
* Conservative: Duncan Sandys
* Labour:
* Liberal:
General election 1945: Norwood :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Labour | Ronald Chamberlain | 16,667 | 47.3 | +14.2 |
| | Conservative | Duncan Sandys | 14,644 | 41.5 | −25.4 |
| | Liberal | Alfred Wintle | 3,944 | 11.2 | New |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 2,023 | 5.8 | N/A |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 49,445 | 71.3 | +9.1 |
| | Labour gain from Conservative | Labour gain from Conservative | Swing | +19.8 | |

### Elections in the 1950s

General election 1950: Norwood :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Conservative | John Smyth | 24,811 | 48.4 | +6.9 |
| | Labour | Ronald Chamberlain | 22,736 | 44.3 | −3.0 |
| | Liberal | Robin Bruce Fredericke | 3,770 | 7.3 | −3.9 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 2,075 | 4.1 | N/A |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 60,961 | 84.2 | +12.9 |
| | Conservative gain from Labour | Conservative gain from Labour | Swing | +5.0 | |
General election 1951: Norwood :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Conservative | John Smyth | 27,200 | 52.9 | +4.5 |
| | Labour | Ronald Chamberlain | 24,251 | 47.1 | +2.8 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 2,949 | 5.8 | +1.7 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 62,231 | 82.7 | −1.5 |
| | Conservative hold | Conservative hold | Swing | +0.9 | |
General election 1955: Norwood :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Conservative | John Smyth | 24,831 | 55.6 | +2.7 |
| | Labour | James Avery Joyce | 19,799 | 44.4 | −2.7 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 5,032 | 11.2 | +5.4 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 59,385 | 75.2 | −7.5 |
| | Conservative hold | Conservative hold | Swing | +2.7 | |
General election 1959: Norwood :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Conservative | John Smyth | 22,958 | 52.6 | −3.0 |
| | Labour | Leslie Leonard Reeves | 15,975 | 36.6 | −7.8 |
| | Liberal | Dennis Raymond Chapman | 4,744 | 10.8 | New |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 6,983 | 16.0 | +4.8 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 57,807 | 75.6 | +0.4 |
| | Conservative hold | Conservative hold | Swing | +2.4 | |

### Elections in the 1960s

General election 1964: Norwood :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Conservative | John Smyth | 17,624 | 45.5 | −7.1 |
| | Labour | John Fraser | 17,173 | 44.3 | +8.7 |
| | Liberal | Dennis Raymond Chapman | 3,929 | 10.2 | −0.6 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 451 | 1.2 | −14.8 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 57,090 | 67.8 | −7.8 |
| | Conservative hold | Conservative hold | Swing | -7.4 | |
General election 1966: Norwood :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Labour | John Fraser | 19,103 | 48.8 | +4.5 |
| | Conservative | W. Douglas Wilson | 16,830 | 42.9 | −2.6 |
| | Liberal | Michael A. Green | 3,256 | 8.3 | −1.9 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 2,273 | 5.9 | N/A |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 54,592 | 71.8 | +4.0 |
| | Labour gain from Conservative | Labour gain from Conservative | Swing | +3.6 | |

### Elections in the 1970s

General election 1970: Norwood :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Labour | John Fraser | 16,634 | 47.4 | −1.4 |
| | Conservative | Peter Temple-Morris | 16,003 | 45.6 | +2.7 |
| | Liberal | Eric Hawthorne | 2,436 | 7.0 | −1.3 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 631 | 1.8 | −4.1 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 54,432 | 64.4 | −7.4 |
| | Labour hold | Labour hold | Swing | -2.1 | |
General election February 1974: Lambeth, Norwood :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Labour | John Fraser | 17,320 | 46.2 | −1.2 |
| | Conservative | B. Hancock | 13,298 | 35.4 | −10.2 |
| | Liberal | M. Drake | 6,885 | 18.4 | +11.4 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 4,022 | 10.8 | +9.0 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 52,567 | 71.3 | +6.9 |
| | Labour hold | Labour hold | Swing | +4.5 | |
General election October 1974: Lambeth, Norwood :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Labour | John Fraser | 16,449 | 50.2 | +4.0 |
| | Conservative | B. Hancock | 11,678 | 35.7 | +0.3 |
| | Liberal | Eric Hawthorne | 4,377 | 13.4 | −5.0 |
| | Gay Liberal | M.J. Greatbanks | 223 | 0.7 | New |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 4,771 | 14.5 | +3.7 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 52,893 | 61.9 | −9.4 |
| | Labour hold | Labour hold | Swing | +1.9 | |
General election 1979: Lambeth, Norwood :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Labour | John Fraser | 16,282 | 47.3 | −2.9 |
| | Conservative | John Pritchard | 14,342 | 41.7 | +6.0 |
| | Liberal | David Charlesworth | 3,051 | 8.9 | −4.5 |
| | National Front | Catherine Williams | 707 | 2.1 | New |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 1,940 | 5.6 | −8.9 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 48,857 | 70.4 | +8.5 |
| | Labour hold | Labour hold | Swing | -4.5 | |

### Elections in the 1980s

General election 1983: Norwood :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Labour | John Fraser | 16,280 | 44.6 | −2.7 |
| | Conservative | John Parfitt | 13,397 | 36.7 | −5.0 |
| | SDP | Malcolm Noble | 6,371 | 17.5 | +8.6 |
| | National Front | C.M. Williams | 343 | 0.9 | −1.2 |
| | Independent | J.C. Sanderson | 123 | 0.3 | New |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 2,883 | 7.9 | +2.3 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 55,663 | 65.6 | −4.8 |
| | Labour hold | Labour hold | Swing | +1.2 | |
General election 1987: Norwood :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Labour | John Fraser | 18,359 | 48.4 | +3.8 |
| | Conservative | Dominic Grieve | 13,636 | 36.0 | −0.7 |
| | SDP | Malcolm Noble | 5,579 | 14.7 | −2.8 |
| | Rainbow | Francis Jackson | 171 | 0.5 | New |
| | Independent Christian Democrat | Roger Hammond | 151 | 0.4 | New |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 4,723 | 12.4 | +4.5 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 56,602 | 67.0 | +1.4 |
| | Labour hold | Labour hold | Swing | +2.3 | |

### Elections in the 1990s

General election 1992: Norwood :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Labour | John Fraser | 18,391 | 53.2 | +4.8 |
| | Conservative | J. P. E. Samways | 11,175 | 32.3 | −3.7 |
| | Liberal Democrats | Sandra Lawman | 4,087 | 11.8 | −2.9 |
| | Green | W. S. B. Collins | 790 | 2.3 | New |
| | Natural Law | M. C. Leighton | 138 | 0.4 | New |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 7,216 | 20.9 | +8.5 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 34,581 | 66.1 | −0.9 |
| | Labour hold | Labour hold | Swing | +4.2 | |