The Liberal Democrats in Hammersmith and Fulham have been urged to proofread their election materials after a leaflet misspelled the name of a local ward. The party incorrectly wrote 'Shepard's Bush' instead of 'Shepherd's Bush' on two occasions, though the name was spelled correctly elsewhere in the leaflet.
Embarrassing error in key target ward
Shepherd's Bush Green is a primary target for the Lib Dems in the upcoming local elections. In 2022, their candidate finished behind the two Labour members who secured both seats. This year, the party is fielding two candidates on May 7: data consultant Fergus Ustianowski and communications professional Elsie Gisslegard.
The leaflet, distributed to residents and seen by the Local Democracy Reporting Service (LDRS), compared the Lib Dems' plans on issues like social housing and council tax with the records of Labour and the Greens. For example, it noted that in 2024, the Green-led council in Bristol received the regulator's second-worst rating for repairs, while highlighting Labour's maladministration rate in Hammersmith and Fulham for housing under the current administration.
Under the header 'The Lib Dem Plan', the party proposed strict housing repair deadlines with automatic compensation for breaches, publishing contractor performance data, and conducting proactive damp and mould inspections. However, the repeated misspelling of the ward name drew attention.
Previous spelling errors
The LDRS also found evidence that the ward's name had been misspelled on at least one previous occasion, when it was called 'Shephards Bush Green'. A Shepherd's Bush resident who received the leaflet commented: "Might be a good idea to proof-read publicity materials in future. Doesn't look good when you can't spell the ward you are representing."
Ms Gisslegard responded: "Yes, we misspelled Shepherd's Bush. We apologise, our leaflets get written late at night after a full day knocking on doors, with no paid staff and no party war chest behind us. But while people are talking about our spelling, Labour councillors have presided over rising crime, filthy streets, and residents who feel completely ignored. We'd rather misspell the ward than misrepresent it."
She added: "The fact that a typo is the story tells you everything about how close this race is, and how little anyone can find wrong with what we're actually saying."
Upcoming elections
All 50 seats on Hammersmith and Fulham Council are up for election on May 7. A recent poll by JL Partners suggested the Liberal Democrats could secure the second-largest vote share at 20 per cent, behind Labour on 39 per cent.
