The constituency of Batley and Spen came into being in 1983 when Batley, Birstall, Heckmondwike, Liversedge and Cleckheaton and surrounding villages were brought together. It was amended in 1997 when the biggest change was transferring Heckmondwike into the Dewsbury constituency.

Today the constituency is made up of five Kirklees Council wards: Batley East, Batley West, Birstall and Birkenshaw, Spen and Cleckheaton. These wards’ boundaries were amended for the council elections in 2004 and though this does not affect the Parliamentary boundaries, these will change at the next General Election. At this point the Council ward boundaries and Parliamentary ward boundaries will be brought into line and Heckmondwike will return to Batley and Spen.

Today, Batley and Spen is home to:

• The Aakash – the world’s biggest Asian restaurant.
• Fox’s Biscuits.
• Firms who produce five per cent of the country’s beds.
• Oakwell Hall – a majestic Elizabethan manor house.
• A host of Bronte family connections – residences, literary settings, Red House museum, Hartshead Parish Church.
• The internationally renowned Batley School of Art.
• West Yorkshire Fire Service’s headquarters.
• The Road Haulage Association.

In years past Batley and Spen was:

• Home to the Bronte family
• The scene of much Luddite activity including violent confrontations
• The birthplace of Joseph Priestley
• Home to Phelon and Moore – makers of Panther Motorcycles
• At the centre of the battle of Adwalton Moor during the English Civil War when Oakwell Hall played a role
• A major industrial centre for textiles, carding, coalmining, wire drawing and asbestos weaving