North Wiltshire was a
constituency[n 1] in the
House of Commons of the
UK Parliament. It was represented since its 1983 recreation by the
Conservative Party.[n 2] In the period 1832–1983, North Wiltshire was an alternative name for Chippenham or the Northern Division of Wiltshire and as Chippenham dates to the original countrywide Parliament, the
Model Parliament, this period is covered in more detail in that article.
The seat was abolished for the
2024 general election and replaced by parts of three other constituencies.[2]
Boundaries
Map of boundaries 2010–2024
1832–1885: The Hundreds of Chippenham, North Damerham, Bradford, Melksham, Potterne and Cannings, Calne, Selkley, Ramsbury, Whorwelsdown, Swanborough, Highworth, Cricklade and Staple, Kingsbridge, and Malmesbury.[3]
1983–1997: The District of North Wiltshire.
1997–2010: The District of North Wiltshire wards of Allington, Ashton Keynes, Audley, Avon, Box, Bremhill, Brinkworth, Colerne, Corsham, Crudwell, Hill Rise, Hilmarton, Kington Langley, Kington St Michael, Lacock, Lyneham, Malmesbury, Malmesbury Road, Minety, Monkton Park, Neston and Gastard, Nettleton, Park, Pickwick, Purton, Queen's, Redland, St Paul Malmesbury Without, Sherston, Somerford, The Lydiards, Town, Westcroft, Wootton Bassett North, and Wootton Bassett South.
2010–2024: The District of North Wiltshire wards of Ashton Keynes and Minety, Box, Bremhill, Brinkworth and The Somerfords, Calne Abberd, Calne Chilvester, Calne Lickhill, Calne Marden, Calne Priestley, Calne Quemerford, Calne Without, Colerne, Cricklade, Hilmarton, Kington Langley, Kington St Michael, Lyneham, Malmesbury, Nettleton, Purton, St Paul Malmesbury Without and Sherston, The Lydiards and Broad Town, Wootton Bassett North, and Wootton Bassett South.
The constituency covered most of the northern third of
Wiltshire. However, it excluded the eastern town of
Swindon which was represented as
North Swindon and
South Swindon.
North Wiltshire constituency was formed by a renaming for the
1983 general election, with boundaries identical to the former Chippenham constituency (1885–1983).[4] The constituency sits between the
Cotswolds and
Swindon. Its main towns are
Calne,
Royal Wootton Bassett (a town which was a
borough constituency until abolished as a
'rotten borough' in 1832),
Cricklade and
Malmesbury, and it also contains a number of villages, both small and large, spread over a large area of farming countryside, including the well-known (often-painted and photographed) village of
Castle Combe.
For the
2010 general election the North Wiltshire
constituency changed radically as a result of boundary change recommendations. The constituency now covers a northern swathe of the previous version retaining the towns of Malmesbury, Cricklade, Royal Wootton Bassett and Calne[n 3] while the largest southern town of
Chippenham was given its own seat (which was previously abolished in 1983) that brought in the nearby market towns of
Bradford on Avon and
Melksham including parts of other seats.[5]
While North Wiltshire has a long history of returning Conservative candidates, its district council (created in 1973 and abolished in 2009) was closely contested between the Conservatives and the Liberal Democrats with many electoral wards being
marginal.