Forest of Dean
Represented in Parliament by Matt Bishop (Labour). Here is who won the last general election here, and a few numbers about the area.
Your MP at a glance
Matt Bishop, Labour. Open their full page →
These describe the record. They do not say why an MP voted or claimed as they did.
How Forest of Dean compares
Every dot is one of the 631 areas that have figures. The large red dot is this area; green dots are areas like it.
This area is 153 of 631 for pay, counting from the highest.
Higher than 198 areas and lower than 450.
Areas like this one
The three areas with the closest pay and claimant rate. This says nothing about politics or geography.
| Area | Weekly pay | Claimants |
|---|---|---|
| Forest of Dean | £836 | 2.6% |
| Braintree | £831 | 2.6% |
| Bromsgrove | £843 | 2.6% |
| Cheltenham | £829 | 2.7% |
| United Kingdom | £767 | 3.9% |
Who lives in Forest of Dean
From the 2021 Census, next to the figure for England and Wales as a whole. Census day was 21 March 2021, so some things will have changed.
| About the area | This area | England and Wales | Compared |
|---|---|---|---|
| Number of people | 91,563 | 59,597,740 in total | |
| Aged under 16 | 16% | 18% | 2 points lower |
| Aged 65 and over | 25% | 19% | 7 points higher |
| Adults with a degree or higher | 29% | 34% | 4 points lower |
| Households that own their home | 74% | 62% | 11 points higher |
| Households renting from a council or housing association | 13% | 17% | 4 points lower |
| Households renting privately | 13% | 20% | 7 points lower |
Source: ONS, Census 2021 (England and Wales), via the UK Data Service statistics portal. Fetched 2026-10-04. These describe who lives here. They do not explain how anyone votes.
Labour
votes ahead of second place
of people who could vote did
Matt Bishop won with 34% of the votes, and Mark Harper (Conservative) came second with 33%.
Votes for each party
Every candidate
| Candidate | Party | Votes | Share |
|---|---|---|---|
| Matt Bishop | Labour | 16,373 | 34.0% |
| Mark Harper | Conservative | 16,095 | 33.5% |
| Stan Goodin | Reform UK | 8,194 | 17.0% |
| Chris McFarling | Green Party | 4,735 | 9.8% |
| James Joyce | Liberal Democrat | 2,604 | 5.4% |
| Saiham Sikder | Socialist Labour Party | 90 | 0.2% |
2024 General Election, on today’s boundaries. Source: House of Commons Library via the Members API.
Your area at a glance
Median gross weekly pay, 2025. Source: ONS, Annual Survey of Hours and Earnings.
Share of people aged 16 to 64, August 2026. Source: ONS and DWP claimant count.
Updated 4 Oct 2026