Croydon South (historic UK Parliament constituency) facts for kids

This seat should not be confused with the current Croydon South constituency

Croydon South was a special area in the UK that elected one person to represent it in the House of Commons. This person is called a Member of Parliament (MP). They are chosen using a system called "first past the post." This means the candidate with the most votes wins, even if they don't get more than half of all the votes.

The Croydon South area was first created for the election in 1918. Back then, the town of Croydon had grown a lot. So, the original Croydon seat was split into two new areas.

This specific Croydon South area stopped existing in 1974. Its boundaries were changed, and most of it became part of a new area called Croydon Central. A small part of it also joined a new Croydon South seat, which was mostly made from a different area called East Surrey.

For a short time, from 1950 to 1955, Croydon South didn't exist. Instead, Croydon was divided into an east and west part. In its history, the Croydon South area elected a Labour Party MP twice. These wins happened in the 1945 and 1966 elections, when the Labour Party was very popular across the country. At all other elections, the people of Croydon South chose Conservative Party MPs.

Where Was Croydon South?

The boundaries of the Croydon South area changed a few times over the years.

What Were the Boundaries from 1918 to 1950?

From 1918 to 1950, Croydon South included specific parts of the County Borough of Croydon. These parts were known as the Central, East, South, and West wards.

What Were the Boundaries from 1955 to 1965?

When the seat was brought back in 1955, its boundaries were different. It covered the Addington, Broad Green, Central, Shirley, South, and Waddon wards of the County Borough of Croydon.

What Were the Boundaries from 1965 to 1974?

After 1965, Croydon became part of Greater London. The boundaries for Croydon South remained the same as before, but they were now part of the London Borough of Croydon. These wards were Addington, Broad Green, Central, Shirley, South, and Waddon.

Who Represented Croydon South?

A Member of Parliament (MP) represents their local area in the UK Parliament. They speak up for the people who live there and help make laws for the country. Here are the MPs who represented Croydon South during its history.

MPs from 1918 to 1950

From 1950 to 1955, the Croydon South area was split into two new areas: Croydon East and Croydon West.

MPs from 1955 to 1974

What Was the Politics Like?

The Croydon South area was created in 1918. Its first MP was Ian Malcolm. He had been the MP for the entire Croydon area before it was split. H.T. Muggeridge, whose son Malcolm Muggeridge became a famous journalist, tried to win the seat for the Labour Party four times starting in 1918. He later became an MP for a different area. In 1932, there was a special election (called a by-election) in Croydon South, which was won by Herbert Williams.

Croydon South was special because it elected the only two Labour MPs from Croydon before the 1990s. David Rees-Williams was a Labour MP for the area after the big Labour win in 1945. He lost his seat in 1950 because the boundaries of the area changed. Later, David Winnick won the seat for Labour in 1966. However, he lost it in the 1970 election. Other than these two times, Croydon South, and most of Croydon, was usually a strong area for the Conservative Party.

When the seat was divided from 1950 to 1955, the east and west parts of Croydon were represented by Conservative MPs. These were Herbert Williams and Richard Thompson.

Sources

• Leigh Rayment's Historical List of MPs – Constituencies beginning with "C" (part 6)