The 1995 boundary changes saw Stafford change from a safe Conservative seat to something more marginal.
The historic town of Stafford, remains the heart of the constituency, and is usually fairly evenly split between Labour and the Conservatives, but the shape of the constituency changed with a number of smaller rural communities such as Eccleshall and Gnosall being lost to the new seat of Stone.
This removed swathes of Tory-leaning voters and the constituency’s profile became more urban. It undoubtedly helped David Kidney become the constituency's first Labour MP since 1945.
Stafford as currently constituted is a mix of the historical, with a Gothic castle standing on a Norman site, and the modern: a major technology park has recently been completed just outside the town.
It has been the epicentre of much transport development, with several major roads, including the M6, cutting a swathe through the constituency, as well as the West Coast Mainline railway.