With the Warwickshire County Council elections taking place on Thursday, 1 May, the Local Democracy Reporting Service spoke to each of the political parties vying for power at Shire Hall about why they should gain your vote.

Labour leader and current Benn Cllr Sarah Feeney tackles the questions on behalf of the party, looking to emulate last year's general election outcome.

What are your policy priorities?

One of the clear issues we picked up across the county has been that of transport and roads, people being able to get to where they need to be and when they need to get there.

Another key priority is special educational needs and disabilities (SEND). We have around 40 per cent of children not being assessed within the 20-week limit and we are really concerned about that. We want to make sure the resources are put towards those children rather than fighting cases and appeals through court.

We also want to work with businesses to try to encourage growth. Warwickshire isn't reaching its full potential and we want to attract new business to the area and work with those businesses to get new jobs for our people. 

The council has well documented financial pressures – how will your party fund its ambitions? 

We haven't set out a massively expensive spending programme as part of this election campaign because we know the situation the county council is in. We believe a lot can be delivered by retargeting money, particularly with SEND, trying to deal with things through early interventions.

Quite often that is not only the best outcome for the child but it is also the best option financially for the council. 

In terms of the roads, the government has just given us another £23 million for potholes. We will engage with the government to see what other funding we can get, potentially looking at what we can insource (the council running its own services rather than going out to the private sector) and what the benefits of insourcing might be, particularly when you consider the costs of national insurance contributions. 

What does a vote for your party represent? 

A fresh start for Warwickshire. The Tories have been in for 20 years, it is fairly stagnant, there is no ambition there and we want the best for the citizens of Warwickshire. 

A vote for us is a vote to change the norm. We will work with the government to try to ensure we get the best outcomes for local residents and we are the only party that can offer that.

What would success look like for your party? 

Simply put, a majority on the council. 

The polls have swung back our way more over the past few weeks. While Reform talks a good game, I don't think they are landing in a way that they had hoped in many areas of the county. 

People clearly want change. They are fed up with the Conservatives, they don't feel like they have delivered and they look to us as the only party that can deliver across the county.

In reality, success would mean fewer teenage pregnancies, people feeling more secure, better outcomes in schools for our children, better health outcomes, the roads being fixed and people getting to where they need to be on public transport.