Remember the Grange Park Social Action Project at Conference last year? Party members helped in the rapid renovation of some wasteland into a community garden. William Hague helped by planting some Ffion Hague daffodil bulbs.
See our report on it here, and the Webcameron video below for more info:
The project was in the area of Park Ward, one of the Labour councillors for which recently passed away. We selected a local post master and community activist - Peter Collins - as candidate, Labour selected their ex-Council leader who lost his seat.
Two thirds of the ward is Lancashire's largest council estate and hasn't been held by a Conservative councillor in recent memory, but on the back of the social action project and the textbook campaign that was run there were Conservative posters up across the estate. The campaign was run by Simon Renwick, councillor from Fylde, and local PPC Paul Maynard.
The swing was still much bigger than could have been expected:
Conservative: 977
Labour: 448
BNP: 218
Lib Dems: 97
UKIP: 30
Conservative majority of 529.
Well done to Peter Collins (pictured next to Chairman Sue Ridyard, Paul Maynard and Simon Renwick), everybody in Blackpool, activists in the North West, and everybody who helped at conference for helping turn this seat blue!
Gordon Brown was rumoured to be coming to Blackpool for Veterans Day but suddenly doesn't seem so sure.
