Honiton and Sidmouth

Honiton and Sidmouth is a rural constituency located in Devon. It is named after its two largest towns, the inland Honiton and the coastal Sidmouth, which each have populations of around 13,000.^[6][7] The other towns in the constituency are Seaton, Colyton, Axminster, Ottery St Mary and Cullompton. Sidmouth and Seaton are popular with tourists and lie along the Jurassic Coast, a UNESCO World Heritage Site. The constituency has average levels of wealth, with the coastal areas generally being more affluent than the inland parts.^[8] House prices across the constituency are above the national average.^[9]

On average, residents of the constituency are considerably older than the rest of the country. Levels of education and income are similar to national averages,^[9] and a high proportion of residents work in agriculture, retail and tourism.^[10] White people made up 97% of the population at the 2021 census.^[9] At the local council level, the constituency's political representation is a mixture of Liberal Democrats, Conservatives and independents, with the Liberal Democrats being more popular in the inland areas. An estimated 55% of voters in the constituency supported leaving the European Union in the 2016 referendum, marginally higher than the nationwide figure of 52%.^[9]

The constituency was established by the 2023 review of Westminster constituencies and is composed of the following electoral wards:^[11]

• The District of East Devon wards of Axminster, Beer & Branscombe, Coly Valley, Dunkeswell & Otterhead, Feniton, Honiton St Michael's, Honiton St Paul's, Newbridges, Newton Poppleford & Harpford, Ottery St Mary, Seaton, Sidmouth Rural, Sidmouth Sidford, Sidmouth Town, Tale Vale, Trinity, West Hill & Aylesbeare, and Yarty.
• The District of Mid Devon wards of Cullompton Padbrook, Cullompton St Andrews, Cullompton Vale, Lower Culm (part); and very small parts of Bradninch and Halberton wards.

It comprises the following areas:^[12]

• The towns of Axminster, Honiton and Seaton and the surrounding rural areas of East Devon District, transferred from the abolished constituency of Tiverton and Honiton
• The towns of Ottery St Mary and Sidmouth in East Devon District transferred from the abolished constituency of East Devon
• The town of Cullompton in Mid Devon District, also transferred from Tiverton and Honiton