Rise of the independents but Conservatives stay in control in Fenland

The number of independents rose from three to 10, while the Tories saw their number of councillors drop by eight to 26.

The Greens also saw their first ever district councillor in Fenland elected, while the Liberal Democrats remained at two representatives.

It was revealed before the elections that Fenland had the highest number of uncontested seats (12) in England.

Meanwhile, the Lib Dems had a big surge in East Cambridgeshire but narrowly failed to take control of the district council.

The Lib Dems saw their number of councillors rise from one to 13, while the Conservatives dropped from 26 to 15.

In Cambridge Labour comfortably held onto the city council, with the Lib Dems gaining one seat and the Greens losing their sole representative.

The elections in Cambridgeshire are important to residents in Peterborough because a change in party taking control of a council means a different representative on the Cambridgeshire and Peterborough Combined Authority - the county’s mayoral body.

Currently the Conservatives have a majority on the combined authority, with five council leaders on the board compared to one Labour and one Liberal Democrat.

Metro mayor James Palmer, who was formerly leader of East Cambs, is also a Conservative politician.

Decision made by the combined authority can have huge ramifications for Peterborough, as the body responsibility has for new affordable housing, transport schemes and infrastructure projects, including the new University of Peterborough which is due to open in 2022.