How to stand for election to the Parish Council

From Camlink

Eligibility

To stand for election on a parish council, you must:

• be a UK or Commonwealth citizen, or;
  
• be a citizen of the Republic of Ireland, or;
  
• be a citizen of another Member state of the European Union;
  
• be at least 18 years old.

To be eligible to stand for an election for a particular parish, you must:

be an elector of the parish, or;

• for the whole of the previous 12 months have occupied (as owner or tenant) land or other premises in the parish, or;
  

• during the previous 12 months have worked in the parish (as your principal or only place of work), or;
  

• for the whole of the previous 12 months lived in the parish or within three miles of the parish boundary.

You may stand for election as the representative of a political party, or as an independent councillor.

Process

Parish Council elections are held every four years. To stand for election it is necessary to obtain a nomination form from the Parish Clerk. Contact details for Parish Clerks are given on the websites of each District Council in Cambridgeshire. These are:

Fenland District Council
East Cambridgeshire District Council
Hungtindonshire District Council
South Cambridgeshire District Council

There are no Parish Councils within the boundary of the City of Cambridge.

Co-option

If insufficient candidates stand to fill all the places on a Parish Council, or if no-one calls for an election when there is a vacancy, the Parish Council normally has power to co-opt people to fill the vacant places. This provides an additional route for joining the Parish Council.

Next page: The duties of a Parish Councillor.