Election and Electoral Registration Service Review

Published 10:21 - 03/10/2017 Updated 14:05 - 17/06/2019

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This consultation has now closed.

Overview

Following completion of the independent investigation into problems with the electoral registers during the London Mayoral and GLA elections on the morning of Thursday 5th May, the council is now undertaking a full and independent review of our election service to ensure any wider concerns are investigated and addressed where needed. Former Chief Executive and Returning Officer for Sunderland City Council, Dr Dave Smith has been appointed to carry out this review.

Enabling residents to exercise their democratic right is a fundamental part of the electoral services the council delivers. As part of this review we want to make sure we capture feedback from residents who have experienced using these services in Barnet.

We would like to hear from residents about the effectiveness of the election and electoral registration service, specifically we would like to hear about personal experiences of:

  • publicity information provided about elections in Barnet
  • registering to vote
  • polling stations
  • applying for a proxy vote or postal vote
  • using the elections helpline
  • any general comments you would like to make about your experiences.

The feedback received will feed into the overall review and action plan, which will be presented publicly to General Functions Committee on 9th November 2016.

What happens next

The consultation has now closed.

We would like to thank everyone who took part in the consultation, without whose valuable input the consultation would not have been possible.

You can see how we have acted on the results under 'We asked, You said, We did'.

Overview

Following completion of the independent investigation into problems with the electoral registers during the London Mayoral and GLA elections on the morning of Thursday 5th May, the council is now undertaking a full and independent review of our election service to ensure any wider concerns are investigated and addressed where needed. Former Chief Executive and Returning Officer for Sunderland City Council, Dr Dave Smith has been appointed to carry out this review.

Enabling residents to exercise their democratic right is a fundamental part of the electoral services the council delivers. As part of this review we want to make sure we capture feedback from residents who have experienced using these services in Barnet.

We would like to hear from residents about the effectiveness of the election and electoral registration service, specifically we would like to hear about personal experiences of:

  • publicity information provided about elections in Barnet
  • registering to vote
  • polling stations
  • applying for a proxy vote or postal vote
  • using the elections helpline
  • any general comments you would like to make about your experiences.

The feedback received will feed into the overall review and action plan, which will be presented publicly to General Functions Committee on 9th November 2016.

What happens next

The consultation has now closed.

We would like to thank everyone who took part in the consultation, without whose valuable input the consultation would not have been possible.

You can see how we have acted on the results under 'We asked, You said, We did'.

This consultation has now closed.

  • Feedback updated 6 February 2017

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    We Asked

    We asked residents to give us their views on the effectiveness of the election and electoral registration services – especially those based upon personal experience, so that the independent reviewer, former Chief Executive and Returning Officer for Sunderland City Council, Dr Dave Smith,could use these to inform his findings and contribute to the recommendations that he made.

    You Said

    Overall we received 38 responses covering a wide range of topics related to voting and registering to vote in Barnet. This included feedback on personal experiences of registering to vote and of voting in polling stations, by post and by proxy. Respondents also gave us information about how easily they were able to access the necessary materials for registering and voting and the effectiveness of the communication channels used by Barnet’s Electoral Services.

    We Did

    All of the responses received in the consultation were provided to the independent reviewer. He used the responses, along with all of the other information that he collated and reviewed and the evidence gathered by conducting interviews with staff, councillors, Barnet MPs and Barnet and Camden’s GLA Assembly Member. He used all the feedback to produce his findings and recommendations in a report that went to the Council’s General Functions Committee on 9 November 2016. All of the recommendations from the independent review were accepted at the committee meeting. Council staff are now actively working on implementing these recommendations. You can read the report of the independent review and the council’s initial responses here.