Rotherham's new MP has officially taken her seat in the House of Commons this afternoon. Sarah Champion was welcomed to Westminster by some of her new colleagues before taking the oath on the floor of the House.
She became the town's first ever female Member of Parliament when she won last week's by-election and she replaces Denis MacShane, who resigned after a Commons Committee found he had wrongly claimed thousands of pounds in Parliamentary expenses
The new Labour MP for Rotherham is welcomed to Parliament by Labour Leader Ed Miliband.
Read the full storySarah Champion, the new MP for Rotherham, has said the Labour Party took "nothing for granted" as it fought to retain the seat.
Labour held onto Rotherham in a parliamentary by-election which saw a surge towards the UK Independence Party and disastrous results for both coalition parties.
Conservatives finished fifth behind not only Ukip but also the British National Party and Respect while Tory candidate Simon Wilson only held onto his deposit by a whisker. And LibDem Michael Beckett limped in eighth and lost his deposit, trailing behind the English Democrats and an Independent.
Labour's Sarah Champion won comfortably with 9,866 votes, a majority of 5,218 (24.46%) over Ukip. The party's majority in a seat it has held since 1933 was marginally down on the 27.9% it recorded in the 2010 general election.
A shortlist of two women has been drawn up to replace disgraced Labour MP Denis MacShane. A former RAF wing commander and the head of a children's hospice have been chosen by the Labour party's executive.
A selection meeting will be held by local party officials in Rotherham to decide who will stand for Labour in the by-election on November 29.
Former Labour minister Mr MacShane quit as an MP earlier this month after he wrongfully claimed at least £7,500 in expenses.
The two women chosen by Labour's executive are Sophy Gardner, who had a 19-year career in the RAF, and Sarah Champion, who runs the Bluebell Wood children's hospice in South Yorkshire.
