Annual canvass 2026

Annual registration forms will be delivered to every household in the district from Monday 10 August 2026 to make sure we know who is eligible to register to vote. 

A new register of electors will be published from 1 December 2026 and will be used at any elections that may take place until 30 November 2027.

Read more about the annual canvass

New legislation came into force in 2020 and we are required to match the names and addresses of our registered electors against data held by the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP). We can also compare our electoral data against data held by other departments of the district council.

Data matching

The current electoral register data is securely uploaded to the DWP and elector names and addresses are matched against information that they hold. We may also match against data from our departments.

If all electors registered at a property can be matched, the property will be allocated to the matched property route.

If there are any electors at a property that cannot be matched or no electors are registered to vote, the property will be allocated to the unmatched property route.

Matched property route

If the details on the household form are correct, you do not need to do anything. 

If you need to make changes or add/remove someone, you can go to the website link given on the form and use the security codes to log in and complete any changes required.

If you cannot respond online and you need to make changes, you can call us:

Telephone: 01636 650 000

Unmatched property route

If we have not been able to match every elector currently registered at a household, a form will be posted out to you. This will include the names of the electors that are currently registered to vote at the property.

You can respond using the household registration website link given on the form. You will need your security codes from your form to do this. 

If you cannot respond online, you can post the form back to us using the pre-paid reply envelope or call us if you need any help:

Telephone: 01636 650 000

You must respond to this form even if you do not need to make any changes.

To avoid reminders being sent or a personal visit by our canvass staff, please respond immediately. As well as ensuring you have your right to vote, responding immediately will help us to save money by not needing to send reminders or having to make personal visits.

If we do not receive a response from the initial form by Friday 28 August 2026, a reminder will be sent. If we do not receive a response from either the initial or reminder forms by Wednesday 23 September 2026, a second and final reminder will be sent.

How to respond 

You can respond to your household form either online or by post.

Online

You can respond online using our household information response website to confirm all the details on the household form are correct or to make any changes, such as adding or removing people or making any necessary amendments to the information.

Start now

To access your household form, you must enter the 6 digital security code part 1, the 5 digit security code part 2 and the property postcode as printed on your letter.

If you respond online, please do not return the form by post.

Post

If you cannot respond online, please complete the form and post it back to us using the pre-paid envelope provided.

Adding people to your household

If any names are added to the household form, the newly added people will be sent an individual registration form in the post. 

This registration form will ask them to either complete their registration to vote online through the government website or by completing the form and returning it to us in the enclosed pre-paid envelope. 

Register to vote - GOV.UK

More information about registering to vote can be found on our website: Register to vote.

It is the individual’s responsibility to ensure they complete an application to register so they are registered to vote.

You should register as soon as possible to ensure that you don’t miss out on the chance to vote. 

For more information on voting, visit the government website: Voting in the UK - GOV.UK.