Voters will head to the polls on Thursday, May 1 to elect their representatives on Gloucestershire County Council.

The authority, which has a budget of more than £665m this year, is responsible for the county’s roads and highways, education, social care, libraries, and environmental services.

The Conservatives have led Shire Hall for almost 20 years and going into these elections they are the largest group with 26 councillors.

The Liberal Democrats currently have 16 seats on the council while the Greens and Labour have four councillors each.

There are also two former Tory Independent councillors on the authority. And there is a vacancy due to the sudden resignation of David Dew in February.

This time there are 55 seats up for grabs after two new divisions were created.

With just a few weeks to go the major parties fielding candidates in this year’s election have set out their vision for the county in their own words...

Conservative Party

We will fight to keep Gloucestershire united in the current Local Government Reform process—avoiding an East-West split that would divide our county and duplicate bureaucracy. Instead, we’ll deliver real savings and better services for residents.

  • £100 refund for all Council Tax payers upon the creation of a single Gloucestershire Council
  • Cut the cost of garden waste bins by 50per cent

We’re delivering real improvements to roads and transport. Over the next four years.

  • £100 million investment in resurfacing and pothole repair
  • Launch of a Rural Roads Programme tailored for countryside communities
  • New Pavement Maintenance Programme for safer walking routes
  • 90,000 potholes fixed over the last two years – up 100per cent and counting

We will stand firm against inappropriate and unsustainable housing developments.

  • Oppose housebuilding without infrastructure to match
  • Support a unitary authority model for clearer, more accountable planning decisions
  • Continue investing in rural transport

We’re driving forward economic growth while protecting the environment.

  • Push forward the M5 Junction 10 upgrade to unlock jobs and cut congestion
  • Invest in recycling infrastructure to build a greener, circular economy
  • Promote sustainable tourism, balancing economic benefit with environmental care
  • Deliver our Economic Growth Plan

Every child deserves the support they need to succeed.

  • £10 million investment over four years to boost Special Educational Needs and Disabilities support
  • Build three new Special Schools to ensure tailored support across the county

Our environment is one of our greatest assets—and we’re acting to protect it.

  • Continue our tree-planting drive, from 500,000 to 1 million trees
  • Expand solar energy—building on success at Shire Hall, the Coroner’s Court and 6 schools, with six more already in the pipeline

Green Party

Green Party ambitions for Gloucestershire County Council.

  1. Preventative-led Public Health and Care at a community scale – providing improved social care for the most vulnerable; greater prominence for preventative work, including social prescribing.
  2. Education for the future – raising attainment for all young people, embedding sustainability and nature-recovery into Gloucestershire’s educational system; investing in youth programmes.
  3. Safe Streets and Better Public Transport – prioritising the maintenance and safety of the existing road network; improving public transport.
  4. Nature and Green Spaces – properly funding and delivering the Gloucestershire Local Nature Strategy.
  5. A Thriving Local Economy- supporting local businesses of all sizes; maximising public procurement from the County’s sustainable businesses.
  6. Clean, green jobs – further developing the low carbon economy, to bring jobs and income to the county.
  7. Buildings Fit for the Future – working to convert homes and public buildings to low-carbon heating systems.
  8. Waste Less, Pollute Less – making ‘reduce, reuse, recycle’ central to planning in all areas.
  9. Food and Farming – lobbying for proper funding for farmers, including the restoration of the Sustainable Farming Incentive.
  10. Local government reorganisation – engaging fully with the process and considering all the options for new unitary councils, including consulting our residents, and supporting the one which gives the best future for local communities..

Labour Party

Gloucestershire Labour Party is ambitious to build on the outstanding success of the national party at the General Election last July. Labour County Councillors will be committed to improving the quality of life of all residents, and to ensuring the County Council operates to the highest standards of transparency and value for money.

Labour County Councillors will do this by:

  • Raising Living Standards Ensuring working people in every part of the County have more money in their pockets, by supporting local businesses and increasing access to well-paid jobs.
  • Securing Sustainable Growth Through Genuine Partnership Working Becoming an accountable council, single-mindedly focused on delivering sustainable growth for local people, and taking new opportunities to work in partnership.
  • Building Affordable Homes for Residents Enabling the building of thousands of new homes across the County with a focus on affordability and sustainable development, ensuring local families have access to decent housing.
  • Supporting Health Services in Gloucestershire and Cutting Waiting Times Supporting NHS services to ensure residents receive timely care, aiming to meet the NHS target of 92per cent of patients waiting no longer than 18 weeks for elective treatment.
  • Increasing Local Policing and Improving Community Safety Ensuring every Gloucestershire community has access to dedicated local officers, building stronger relationships between the police and local people and making our neighbourhoods safer.
  • Supporting Children and Families Giving children the best possible start in life, with targeted support to ensure that at least 75per cent of five- year-olds in Gloucestershire are ready to learn when they start school.
  • Tackling Climate Change and Supporting Nature Recovery Securing a reliable supply of local renewable energy, to reduce household bills while working towards a greener, more sustainable future for the County.

Liberal Democrats

Liberal Democrats are already striving to make things better, fairer, greener and more inclusive for residents. Our network of MPs, councillors, members and activists work hard all year round in their local areas to ensure that common sense, liberal values are at the heart of decision making.

We have an historic opportunity to grow and enhance that offering at this year’s elections. These are uncertain times with local government finances at breaking point and councils across the country facing existential challenges around delivering care in a broken system whilst also trying to break cycles of poverty and deprivation, tackle the climate and ecological emergencies, support economic growth and maintain our schools, roads and pavements.

After 20 years of the Conservatives in Gloucestershire failing on so many of these critical issues, this manifesto sets out the Liberal Democrat vision to Fix Gloucestershire. We will work hard to ensure that the potential of our local economy is unleashed, that our roads are well maintained and safe, that our most vulnerable children and adults are well cared for, that we can take pride in how our county looks and that residents and communities can flourish.

This will not be an easy job, but working with partners, our team has the ambition, drive and energy to make a difference. We aim to transform services so that resources can be put back into tackling the inequalities which persist in our communities, providing opportunity for all and looking after those that need help. We hope that these values and this vision is one which you also support.

Reform UK

Reform isn’t here to make empty promises. Gloucestershire County Council is fundamentally broken and no longer able to deliver for local people. The Council is over £220 million in debt, with interest payments alone costing local taxpayers over £25,000 per day.

A Reform-led council would set up a British-style Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) and send in auditors, get rid of any fraudulent contracts and cut wasteful spending. We must diagnose the problem and stop the bleeding before we can begin the treatment, cut tax and fill in the 37,766 potholes that plague Gloucestershire’s roads.