It’s probably safe to say that a win for anyone but a Conservative candidate in St Peter’s Parish would be classified as a surprise.

The leafy prosperous suburb to the south west of the city, one of three wards on the western bank of the River Severn has been one of the Conservatives’ safer ones, regardless of the local or national party’s fortunes.

The sitting councillor fighting the seat this election is Mike Johnson, who won it in 2014, with 47 per cent of the vote.

His vote of 808 saw him home by more than 400 votes over his closest challenger, Brenda Wheeler of UKIP at a time when the party was riding high nationally. The Labour Party were in third place with just 326 votes.

That result, comfortable as it was, was actually the worst performance by a Conservative candidate in a decade.

Councillor Johnson’s predecessor in the seat up for election in this cycle Aubrey Tarbuck, won a three-horse race in 2010 with 57 percent of the vote, while Roger Knight, the ward's other councillor won in 2011 and 2015 with a share of the vote over 60 per cent each time.

While it’s a prosperous suburb, the growth of Worcester as an urban area is an important issue.

With the A4440 Southern link road forming, in essence, the southern boundary of the ward, congestion, expansion, and plans for doubling the road and increasing capacity of the roundabouts makes a difference to residents.

Almost everyone around here has a view on the South Worcestershire Development Plan too, as the south Worcester urban extension could bring 2,200 new homes, a school and 14 hectares of employment land right on its doorstep.

For the last few elections, possibly because other parties have not felt they’d get much change out of the ward, there haven’t been large slates of candidates, and this year is no different.

Opposing Councillor Johnson are candidates from the Greens Party, UKIP and the Labour Party. The four parties running a candidate in this ward are the only ones to be standing in all twelve wards this year.

They’ll all be working hard for every vote, especially with the council as a whole so delicately balanced, but if a non-Conservative wins then something extraordinary is happening in Worcester politics.

Lisa Barras - UKIP

Whilst the Council provide services for residents, I’ve found that access to areas both for businesses and Council are wholly inadequate.

I have to get around in a wheelchair and every day I find obstacles that need to be overcome.

And each day I tackle these issues and address them.

That is why I want to be your councillor in the ward because it is the resident and voter that needs to be listened to and actions need to be followed through to ensure the well being of them.

If you vote for me, I will represent the ward with a passion to ensure local issues and obstacles are overcome!

Mike Johnson - Conservative

I am one of the two Ward Councillors for St Peters.

I am married with grown up step children.

Currently I am chairman of the Communities Committee and have also previously been cabinet member for Sport Leisure and Retail.

During that year I delivered the approval for the now opened Perdiswell Swimming pool complex, and delivered a contract which turned a £300,000 cost to the City into a near £400,000 income!

I am standing for re-election to continue to deliver for both the residents of St Peters and the city as a whole - value for the money you pay as council tax payers, improvements and enhancements to our green spaces together with economic development to maintain the City and St Peter’s as a great place to live and work.

I will continue to work hard for my residents. Thank you.

Bob Southern - Labour Party

I have almost 40 years in public service, starting as a mental health nurse moving into clinical and general management.

I am committed to an NHS that is funded through general taxation and free at the point of delivery. I will fight for that.

On my retirement from the health service, I emigrated to New Zealand, returning to the UK after six years, settling in Worcester, a city I have known since the ‘70s, working as a team member establishing a community-based approach to the provision of mental health services throughout Worcestershire.

I will work to support young people with mental health issues in the city.

I am ‘Dad’ to two grown-ups and Grandad to their five children living a distance away. Free evenings will find me sampling the thriving Worcester music scene.

Worcester has much potential and a Labour-led city council will provide improvements for the many.

Nicky Williams - Green

I am a librarian who has lived in St Peters for over 20 years and I have two grown-up children.

I am a keen walker and cyclist. Worcester’s open spaces are beautiful but we need to promote much safer cycling and walking, not just to improve physical well-being but also the air quality.

I believe we should take a preventative approach to health care. The council should work with health authorities to ensure that local, community-based GP clinics and health services remain publicly run and accessible to all. I favour policies to encourage more people to walk and cycle to improve their health and support for local food production via allotments and farmers markets.

I joined the Greens because they are the only political party to take climate change seriously and have practical plans to use the battle against global warming to help create a fairer world for everyone.