How to win in Chingford and Woodford Green

According to Alan Milburn, to win the next election, Labour must win Chingford and Woodford Green. This is the seat currently held by Iain Duncan Smith, previously held by Norman Tebbit and never held by a Labour candidate. Mr Milburn’s intention was to illustrate how difficult our struggle will be to win in 2020. But having been Prospective Parliamentary Candidate (PPC) for Chingford and Woodford Green this past election, I’m more optimistic. Despite low expectations and limited resources, we achieved a 6% swing and the highest vote share since 1997. We slashed IDS’ share by around 4,500 votes. Here’s how.

First, and most importantly, is to reject the notion that Labour should have ‘no-go’ areas. While we must realistically deploy resources to target seats, we need a national party that speaks to all parts of society: ensuring those least advantaged have access to world-class public services so that their families can prosper. In Chingford, we framed that idea by talking about nurturing and supporting aspiration as a way of tackling inequality.

Remarkably, half the jobs in Chingford pay less than the living wage. We spent time understanding their concerns and explaining Labour’s plan for raising the minimum wage and tackling exploitative zero hour contracts. The other half wanted to discuss pensions, their savings and housing. We lack a set of cohesive policy ideas that directly address these concerns. We have to create viable solutions over the next five years in response to attractive Conservative policies such as the Northern Powerhouse.

Second, we campaigned smartly. Between few volunteers and dedicating support to assist key seats such as Ilford North and Enfield North, we had limited resources. More than visiting and speaking at public events, we focused on tapping into our local relationships, meeting them and campaigning around issues that mattered to them. This made us a local community force rather than just another political party. I’m indebted to Stella Creasy MP, who showed me the impact of engaging with the community about their concerns and building relationships with community activists.

Third, we adopted a business-like approach to the campaign. The local chair and agent run their own businesses, and I am a lawyer in the City of London. Our experience influenced our campaign, and we weren’t ashamed of it. We established campaign objectives early on and set monthly canvassing, fundraising and media key performance indicators. This kept us focused and, most importantly, allowed us to wisely deploy resources.

Winning Chingford and Woodford Green for many is a reflection of how hard our job is. In my opinion, it’s a chance to show what the movement is capable of.