Dudley Council elections: Candidate new to politics in hotly contested ward
Dudley Council elections will be hotly contested across the borough, including by a newcomer to local politics in Stourbridge.
In the 2026 election on May 7, Steve Hancock will be representing the Conservative Party in the Wollaston and Stourbridge Town ward where winners can be difficult to predict.
The ward will be interesting to local campaigners because two of its three seats in the council chamber will be up for grabs after Cat Eccles MP confirmed she will be standing down as a councillor.
Election first-timer Mr Hancock believes galvanising community activists to carry out projects like cleaning up graffiti can bring optimism back for people who have lost hope.
He added: “That links in with respect. Our built environment is being vandalised, if it is being treated with disrespect that starts to affect people’s mood as well and people’s perception of what is acceptable in the local area.”
The former maths teacher says he believes that, while some mistakes were made, the Conservatives in government had some successes including what he calls "big wins in education".
He added: “One of the issues I’m passionate about is people who are unfortunately caught in addiction and trapped on the streets.
“People in Stourbridge are very generous and want to help, that sometimes involves giving them money.
“That money is being used for drugs; it’s not helping – it’s hurting. They can get food and accommodation, it is available but the public are not aware of that.
“If we could have a public awareness campaign so people knew what services were available they can be confident people’s needs would be met without giving them cash.”
At the last election, in 2024, Labour won all three seats in Wollaston and Stourbridge Town although Councillor Andrew Tromans later defected to the Liberal Democrats.
The 2024 election was an ‘all out’ ballot where all 72 council seats were fought for. In 2026 a third of seats are scheduled to be up for election along with any that will be vacant for other reasons.
