[3][4] Deirdre Williams and Paul Lendon left the party in July 2012 and then in May 2014 Joanne Gadd also became an independent councillor.
[5] The Liberal Democrats also dropped three seats to have two councillors, with the group leader Kevin Dixon defeated by 65 votes in Battle.
[5] A by-election was held in Battle Town on 16 July 2015 after the resignation of Conservative councillor Martin Noakes due to ill health.
[7][8] The seat was gained for the Liberal Democrats by Kevin Dixon with a 409-vote majority over Conservative Hazel Sharman.
[8] A by-election was held in Collington on 27 October 2016 after the resignation of independent councillor Tony Mansi for health reasons.