Abdul Loyes will be looking to retain his seat as he stands again, but Labour will be mounting a strong challenge – they came close to winning the seat when contested last year, a turnaround from the 2019 result where they came third. However, Alex Heap has previous experience as a councillor and this might count in his favour with electorate.
2023 result
2019 result
| Candidate | Votes |
| Carol Jewell, Lib Dem | 807 |
| Abdul Loyes, Conservative | 1124 |
| Mary Young, Labour | 418 |
| Spoilt | 42 |
Polling station
- Woodley Baptist Church
- Emmanuel Church
The candidates
Alexander Heap, Lib Dem
I have lived in Woodley since 1986 and worked in finance in private and public organisations, retiring in 2021 after 12 years in the pharmaceutical industry.
I have been a member of Woodley Town Council for Loddon Airfield for 4 years and between 1987 and 1991 represented Loddon on Wokingham District Council.
I led the way on the installation of smoke alarms in Council Houses and, with the help of many residents, secured the installation of a traffic island at the northern end of Loddon Bridge Road.
Through the Town Council, I persuaded landowners to install cycle racks at the Loddon Vale Centre and have campaigned for the Charvil – Twyford cycleway that will benefit the London Airfield Ward.
Since Covid I have picked litter about once a week at four small Town Council parks, doing my bit to help our environment.
Abdul Loyes, Conservative
I’ve lived in the Wokingham Borough for over 40 years with my wife, Nina and our three children who attended local schools and then university.
For most of my life, I have been self-employed running my own restaurants. Since COVID, I changed my career and now work for the NHS as an ambulance care assistant.
In 2002, I became a trustee for Reading Citizens Advice and served for 20 years. This gave me a real insight of the struggles which people are going through and deeper understanding of the causes of homelessness, financial debt and domestic violence and how to help. I have also worked with the police youth offending team which deals with young people and restorative justice and have also volunteered as an Independent Custody Visitor.
As one of your borough councillors, I have helped many residents with a wide range of issues such as housing, planning, fly tipping and anti-social behaviour. I work hard to effectively resolve any concerns raised by residents on a day-to-day basis. Engagement with residents is essential.
I believe the Council must keep your costs low and offer you good value for money services.
My involvement with numerous communities in Woodley and my extensive experience in running small businesses equips me to understand the importance around costs such as business rates and I strongly value diversity and equal opportunities.
I would be honoured to continue to serve you as your local councillor and believe that we can make Loddon a safer and cleaner place to live.
Majid Nagra, Labour
Awaiting information from candidate.
