The candidates in an upcoming by-election following the death of a councillor have been revealed.

The by-election will be held in the city’s Warndon Parish division for a place on Worcestershire County Council following the death of long-standing Conservative councillor Andy Roberts.

Polls will be open for voters in the Warndon Parish division from 7am until 10pm on Thursday, October 19.

There are four candidates in the race with Andrew Cross representing the Green Party, Sarah Murray for the Lib Dems and Labour’s Robyn Norfolk up against Lucy Hodgson who is looking to keep hold of the seat for the Conservatives as well as make a return to County Hall after losing her seat in 2021.

Andrew Cross is currently a councillor for Warndon Parish South on Worcester City Council – a ward he had only briefly shared with Andy Roberts since being elected in May this year – and recently served as chair of Warndon Parish Council.

Lucy Hodgson, who is the current chair of Warndon Parish Council, served as the city councillor for Warndon Parish South for nearly 20 years between 2004 and May this year.

The last election which saw Andrew Cross and Lucy Hodgson go head-to-head saw the Conservatives victorious with Mrs Hodgson re-elected by just 34 votes in 2019.

Sarah Murray is the current city councillor for neighbouring Warndon Parish North – a seat she finally won in May this year with an impressive majority of nearly 400 votes.

The victory came after a handful of attempts to capture the Warndon Parish North seat for the Lib Dems, turning a lowly fourth-place finish with only 55 votes in 2018 to a clear win and big gain for the party just five months ago.

Labour’s Robyn Norfolk is another familiar face in this county council contest having represented St John’s on the city council since 2021 – but previous to that she was chair of Warndon Parish Council.

The last election in Warndon Parish division saw Andy Roberts re-elected by a landslide with a majority of more than 1,300 votes. He had held the seat since 2009 and had been a county councillor since 2001 having previously represented the city’s Claines division for eight years.

Cllr Roberts also served as a city councillor which means a by-election will be held on the same day in the Warndon Parish South Ward for a place on Worcester City Council.