Example tactics for reaching target audiencesLocal activity and partners for under-registered and less-engaged groups

Example tactics for reaching target audiences

Targeting harder to engage groups remains a challenge for Electoral Registration Officers. Below are a range of example tactics for reaching various audiences. These are intended to act as a basis for generating ideas about approaches effective for the demographics and registration challenges in your local area. As you develop tactics, think also about potential ways to measure their value. You should read this document with the core registration guidance available on our website, and in particular with Part 1: Planning for the delivery of electoral registration activity.

This is a living document so we welcome examples of activities undertaken in your area.

We have been working with the AEA and the SAA to identify specific examples of good practice in electoral registration. The following resources have been published on our website and are highlighted in break-out boxes throughout the guidance:

Use of tablets in electoral registration Communications Reaching care home residents Effective personal canvassing Encouraging response s Reaching students Effective use of available data Effective management of registration processes

EU General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) and Data Protection Bill

Data protection principles should be integral to all of your engagement work – including your work with partners. You should maintain records of your data processing in order to demonstrate that all information obtained complies with the principles of processing personal data, ensuring that it is processed lawfully, fairly and in a transparent manner (see sections 2, 8 and 11 of our resource for administrators on GDPR for further information).

Audiences:

Students

Homemovers

Young people

Attainers

Transient population and multiple occupancy homes

Black and ethnic minority groups

People with disabilities

Over-75s

Disengaged families

Rural residents

Residents living in gated communities or caravan parks

Reaching students

See also: Young people, Attainers

Key factsi

3.7 million in the UK 88% aged 15 to 24 89% single 46% renting

128,000 are in student halls of residence

Reaching students will involve using a combination of the approaches set out in the guidance – direct contact, working with partners, raising awareness. Students aged 16+ may be at college, university, or in sixth forms, either living at home or in rented accommodation. In Scotland, where 14-15 year olds are eligible to register, some of the target students may be in school and living with parents or guardians who may have influence on whether they register.

Characteristics that affect engagement Highly influenced by peers, getting respect is important Often out in social spaces such as bars, cinemas and shops Focus on key interests e.g. music, travel, technology providing

opportunities for awareness raising around these Move frequently and are often clustered in certain geographical areas Higher education students can register in more than one location

Media and communication use High internet use Regularly exposure to outdoor advertising such as bus stop posters Average attendance at cinemas Light exposure to TV, radio, newspapers and magazines

Resources to use with studentsOur website contains resources that you can use in engaging students:

Public engagement resources: http://www.electoralcommission.org.uk/i-am-a/electoral-administrator/running-electoral-registration/public-engagement-resources

Participation resources: http://www.electoralcommission.org.uk/i-am-a/electoral-administrator/participation-resources-for-local-authorities

Resources for partners: http://www.electoralcommission.org.uk/find-information-by-subject/electoral-registration/partnership-working/resources-for-partners?

Sharing good practiceA number of EROs liaise with universities in their area to include electoral registration in the student registration process. For information and practice examples of how some EROs are encouraging students to

register, see our sharing good practice resource ‘Reaching students’.

The government has also published guidance for the Office for Students (OfS) on student electoral registration. This guidance aims to facilitate the electoral registration of students by advising the OfS of the steps they should require Higher Education providers to take in relation to promoting electoral registration and electoral participation amongst their student populations.

Direct contactExample activities

Use available data – such as Council Tax data on the number of properties exempt from Council Tax due to occupation by students

Where possible, ensure that your correspondence and materials carry messages that are most likely to be resonant with students.

Realistically for many students, parents may previously have been the ones to register them, or deal with any communications on their behalf. Activity that targets parents could include messages on raising voter registration with their children including emphasising that students can register both at home and university.

Working with partnersExample activities

Build relationships with university so they can help identify where they may be able to help – there may be opportunities for them including registration information in enrolment documents, or introduce the topic at welcome briefings.

Work with halls of residence to register students when they arrive. An engaged halls monitor may also raise the message face-to-face with students

Contact the president of your local student’s union to help you identify opportunities for spreading the message

Engage large student landlords to include registration information with rental contracts

Example partners University student support services Student union representative Individual halls of residence Private student landlords

Raising awarenessStudents are a challenging audience and activities may be about raising awareness increasing the chance of them understanding the process and registering later on, if they don’t register in immediate response to the activity. You will need to think how to time awareness raising so that activities are co-ordinated and advertising has the maximum impact to be seen by as many people as many times as possible. Example activities

Contact the university to see what advertising opportunities they offer or would be willing to offer to reach students, and understand the associated costs. These may include:

o Banner advertising on the university intranet or student union site

o Including information or a form in a freshers’ fair goody bago Advertising on student paperwork o Advertising in student newspapers, magazines or enewsletterso Posting on their Twitter or Facebook accounto Advertising on university plasma screens, internal TV channels and

screensaverso Promotional stalls in main buildings outside the freshers’ period.o Flyer-ing on campus though the university’s structures or with

permission In large cities where students are reliant on public transport, consider

advertising on buses and at bus stops Hold a stall at a freshers’ fair – you will need to consider carefully how you

can incentivise students to take interest and the cost effectiveness of this activity. You will be competing with the beer society and similar distractions. It may be that you introduce a competition, give away freebies.

Consider outdoor advertising on the main routes to universities and in student areas. This could be paid for billboards or sites owned by the council.

SLooked after children and children in secure accommodationIn Scotland, those under 16 years old who are, or have been, looked after children, or are currently being kept in secure accommodation, are entitled to register by making a declaration of local connection.Local authorities in Scotland have a duty to promote awareness of how these children (who can be up to 18 years old) can register as local government electors and provide assistance to help such young people to register. EROs will need to engage actively with other departments and staff in local authorities and other bodies with responsibilities of care to promote awareness of these arrangements. Further information on registering by making a declaration of local connection is contained in Part 2: Registration framework, and Part 4: Maintaining the register throughout the year.

Sharing good practiceA number of EROs liaise with universities in their area to include electoral registration in the student registration process. For information and practice examples of how some EROs are encouraging students to

register, see our sharing good practice resource ‘Reaching students’.

Reaching homemovers

See also: Mobile populations, private renters and communal residencies

Key factsii

2 million at current address for under 12 months 1.3 million lived at current address for 1-2 years 35% or private renters been at current address for under one year

Research has shown that those who have recently moved are among the most at risk of being absent from the register. Opportunities to raise awareness include direct contact, working with partners, and advertising and media.

Characteristics that affect engagement Unaware of need to re-register or update details May assume that council records are automatically updated Concentrating on other priorities related to moving home May have contact with other council services over address change May be setting up new services such as broadband May be using local businesses to set up home May not have redirected mail from old address

Resources to use with homemoversOur website contains resources that you can use in engaging homemovers:

Public engagement resources: http://www.electoralcommission.org.uk/i-am-a/electoral-administrator/running-electoral-registration/public-engagement-resources

Participation resources: http://www.electoralcommission.org.uk/i-am-a/electoral-administrator/participation-resources-for-local-authorities

Resources for partners: http://www.electoralcommission.org.uk/find-information-by-subject/electoral-registration/partnership-working/resources-for-partners?

Sharing good practice

For information and practice examples of how some EROs are targeting and communicating with potential electors, see our sharing

good practice resource ‘Communications’.

Direct contactExample activities

Household enquiry forms will help to identify residents at properties for which you have no details

Frontline council staff that deal with public enquiries about address changes could be briefed to highlight the need to register to vote at a new address. These enquiries could be on any council service, such as:

o Council taxo Parking permitso Schoolso Waste and recycling collection dates

Your website may have a ‘change of address notification, which sends details to different departments of where someone has moved

Other departments, service providers and frontline staff may be in contact with new residents to the area – and may be sending communications in which information could be provided

Working with partnersExample activities

It may be possible to engage local estate agents and large landlords – including social housing – to include information with rental agreements or provide leaflets when keys are handed over

People who have just moved are likely to make use of certain businesses – local DIY stores and household goods shops may be able to display posters or place flyers on noticeboards

Local businesses who deliver may be willing to include leaflets with their deliveries to new customers

Local area groups, residents associations and online community forums could be contacted about putting posts on their websites or blogs, displaying posters on notice boards

These partners may also be interested in raising the issue at meetings, or even running engagement workshops, which could potentially spark further opportunities for engaging residents

Political party volunteers who canvass door-to-door may help with spreading the registration message

Example partners Estate agents Private and social landlords DIY and home improvement stores Local businesses that deliver Community forums, resident’s associations and other local groups Local businesses with websites that may be visited by homemovers, such

as those that provide information on the local area Other departments and service providers Utilities companies

Raising awarenessYou will need to think how to time awareness raising so that activities are co-ordinated and advertising has the maximum impact to be seen by as many people as many times as possible. Think also about ways to calculate the number of residents reached by the activity. Example activities

Advertisements could be located in places that are likely to be visited by homemovers. New residents may for example join leisure centres, register at doctors surgeries and leaflets, posters or registration packs could be provided at these locations.

Online advertisements could be displayed on areas of the website likely to visited by homemovers.

Relevant local businesses and community organisations may be willing to post banner advertisements on their websites

Reaching young people

See also: Students, attainers, mobile populations

Key factsiii

16.7m 18-34-year-olds in UK 124k 16-17-year-olds in Scotland 2.96m live with parents 5.6m live as a couple in their own

household 958,000 live alone 672,000 live as lone parents 128,000 are in student halls of residence

‘Young people’ is a very diverse group – it may include students, parents of young children, those in employment or looking for work. In Scotland, 14-15 year olds are eligible to register so this target group could also include school pupils, and those who are particularly reliant on parents and guardians. As a whole, the group tend to be under-registered, particularly when they fall into other categories of under-registration. They are also less likely to be engaged with the party political process and traditional ‘politics’, but may be interested in single issue politics.

Characteristics that affect engagement Less likely to be engaged with politics Potentially engaged with politics over particular issues Influenced by peers and/or family Previous reliance on being registered by family Unaware of need to register to vote Other priorities such as studying, socializing, searching for work, raising

young children

Media consumption Heavy exposure to internet and social media High smart phone and text message use Heavy exposure to outdoor advertising such as bus stop posters Medium exposure to cinema Light exposure to ‘traditional media’ – TV, radio, newspapers and

magazines

Resources to use with young peopleOur website contains resources that you can use in engaging young people:

Public engagement resources: http://www.electoralcommission.org.uk/i-am-a/electoral-administrator/running-electoral-registration/public-engagement-resources

Participation resources: http://www.electoralcommission.org.uk/i-am-a/electoral-administrator/participation-resources-for-local-authorities

Resources for partners: http://www.electoralcommission.org.uk/find-information-by-subject/electoral-registration/partnership-working/resources-for-partners?

Sharing good practice

For information and practice examples of how some EROs are targeting and communicating with potential electors, see our sharing

good practice resource ‘Communications’.

Direct contactExample activities

Where you can identify that young people are living at an address (such as via education data), direct communications can be tailored to that audience.

Communications to parents of young people can highlight the need to raise registration with family members

Consider direct communication in a format that young people may find most convenient, for example text messaging or social media.

Look into your processes for dealing with queries that come in via social media - it’s likely that responses will be expected quickly.

Your local authority may employ young people, including apprentices, who could advise on communicating with young people in your area

Targeted postcards or leaflets could be mailed directly to young people Other departments, service providers and frontline staff may be in contact

with young people in the area – and may be sending communications in which information could be provided

Data may be available to contact and work with young people directly, for example you could target young people in temporary housing.

Working with partnersExample activities

Contact organisations that provide services to young people, such as youth volunteering networks, sports groups and job and skills training providers. They may be willing to flag registration to members.

Local authority teams may have face-to-face contact with groups of young people and you could talk with them to identify opportunities for flagging registration.

If you have a young person’s council or similar network, it may be useful to seek their views on engaging young people in the area and encouraging them to register. They may also help by communicating through their own channels.

Other teams may also have information on individuals who have contact and influence with young people, and may be aware of existing communication mechanisms. So for example they may be in touch with community champions, volunteers, care services etc.

Engage with education providers to see if they can display materials or promote registration among their students.

Young people will fall into many other social categories so data could be used to identifying other opportunities for identifying appropriate partners. For example, young people in your area may be parents – and they could be reached by working with young parents groups, children’s centres, the Registration of Births, Deaths and Marriages etc.

There may be large employers in your area that employ high numbers of young people. They may be willing to flag registration through internal communication mechanisms, particularly if they are interested in building community relations or have a corporate social responsibility agenda

Similarly local businesses with young people as customers may be engaged to spread the message.

You may be willing to identify organisations that are interested in supporting you to run events for young people or who may be able to deliver activity themselves. For example you could contact Bite the Ballot for information.

Example partners Sport and young adult clubs Volunteering networks Education institutes Businesses and employers Parent support organisations Large local employers Faith groups Job and skills training providers

Raising awarenessYou will need to think how to time awareness raising so that activities are co-ordinated and advertising has the maximum impact to be seen by as many people as many times as possible. Think also about ways to calculate the number of young people reached by the activity. Example activities

Review data, where available, on the habits of local young people – and look at opportunities for advertising in these areas. For example public transport, gyms, shopping areas, cinemas, nightclubs.

Consider if local authority social media has a substantial audience of young people, and the extent to which it’s helpful to help awareness raising information.

Consider placing advertising on any online services used by young people Low cost media space may be available on commercial websites with a

young audience – listings site, bar guides etc.

SLooked after children and children in secure accommodationIn Scotland, those under 16 years old who are, or have been, looked after children, or are currently being kept in secure accommodation, are entitled to register by making a declaration of local connection.Local authorities in Scotland have a duty to promote awareness of how these children (who can be up to 18 years old) can register as local government electors and provide assistance to help such young people to register. EROs will need to engage actively with other departments and staff in local authorities and

other bodies with responsibilities of care to promote awareness of these arrangements. Further information on registering by making a declaration of local connection is contained in Part 2: Registration framework, and Part 4: Maintaining the register throughout the year.

Reaching attainers

See also: Young people

Key factsiv

16-18 in full time education 69% In part-time education 6% In work-based learning 6%

NEET (not in education employment or training) 9%

Like young people as a whole, attainers may be less likely to be engaged in party politics in the traditional sense, and may be unaware of the need to register to vote. In Scotland, 14-15 year olds are eligible to register, so this target group could also include school pupils, and those who are particularly reliant on parents and guardians.

Characteristics that affect engagement Disengagement with politics among some groups Influenced by peers and/or family Previous reliance on being registered by family Unaware of need to register a potential factor Some more likely to accept messages from peers than from authority

figures Other priorities such as studying, socializing, searching for work

Media consumption Heavy exposure to internet and social media High smart phone and text message use Heavy exposure to outdoor advertising such as bus stop posters Medium exposure to cinema Light exposure to ‘traditional media’ – TV, radio, newspapers and

magazines

Resources to use with attainersOur website contains resources that you can use in engaging attainers:

Public engagement resources: http://www.electoralcommission.org.uk/i-am-a/electoral-administrator/running-electoral-registration/public-engagement-resources

Participation resources: http://www.electoralcommission.org.uk/i-am-a/electoral-administrator/participation-resources-for-local-authorities

Resources for partners: http://www.electoralcommission.org.uk/find-information-by-subject/electoral-registration/partnership-working/resources-for-partners?

Sharing good practice

For information and practice examples of how some EROs are targeting and communicating with potential electors, see our sharing

good practice resource ‘Communications’.

Direct contactExample activities

Communications to parents of attainers can highlight the need to raise registration with family members

Existing communications sent directly to 16-17 year olds (14-17 in Scotland) could include information on registration.

Consider direct communication in a format that young people may find most convenient, for example text messaging or social media.

Look into your processes for dealing with queries that come in via social media - it’s likely that responses will be expected quickly.

Other departments, service providers and frontline staff may be in contact with new residents to the area – and may be sending communications in which information could be provided

Working with partnersExample activities

Contact organisations providing services to 16-17 year olds (14-17 in Scotland). These could include youth clubs, volunteering networks, sports groups and training providers. They may be willing to flag registration to members.

Local authority teams and their contacts may have face-to-face with 16-17 year olds (14-17 in Scotland) and you could talk with them to identify opportunities for flagging registration.

Other teams may also have information on individuals who have contact and influence with 16-17 year olds (14 to 17 in Scotland), and may be aware of existing communication mechanisms. So for example they may be in touch with community champions, volunteers, care services etc.

It may be possible to engage schools and youth groups – potentially to run registration focused sessions. External organisations that are interested in supporting you to run events for young people or who may be able to deliver activity themselves. For example you could contact Bite the Ballot for information.

Example partners Schools and colleges Young people’s volunteering networks Leisure, sports and social clubs Children’s homes Employees providing training schemes

Raising awarenessYou will need to think how to time awareness raising so that activities are co-ordinated and advertising has the maximum impact to be seen by as many people as many times as possible. Think also about ways to calculate the number of residents reached by the activity.

Example activities Review data, where available, on the habits of 16-17 year olds (14-17 in

Scotland) – and look at opportunities for advertising in these areas. For example public transport, leisure, shopping areas, cinemas.

Provide information on registration – and wherever possible – somebody to explain things in person as this group may be particularly unfamiliar with the process.

Consider if local authority social media has a substantial audience of young people, and the extent to which it’s helpful to help awareness raising information.

Consider placing advertising on any online services used by young people Low cost media space may be available on commercial websites with a

young audience – listings site, bar guides etc.

SLooked after children and children in secure accommodationIn Scotland, those under 16 years old who are, or have been, looked after children, or are currently being kept in secure accommodation, are entitled to register by making a declaration of local connection.Local authorities in Scotland have a duty to promote awareness of how these children (who can be up to 18 years old) can register as local government electors and provide assistance to help such young people to register. EROs will need to engage actively with other departments and staff in local authorities and other bodies with responsibilities of care to promote awareness of these arrangements. Further information on registering by making a declaration of local connection is contained in Part 2: Registration framework, and Part 4: Maintaining the register throughout the year.

What others have done to engage young peopleElectoral officers from Carmarthenshire County Council attended a local young farmers convention. Council officials were out among the young people at the Three Counties Showground in Carmarthen talking about the importance of the upcoming elections and distributing free information and giveaways.

The Renfrewshire Electoral Registration Office has been running registration and voting workshops in local schools for a number of years. In 2016 the ERO recruited and trained staff from the local authorities community education department to run the workshops jointly with the ERO. In 2017 the community education team started to run the workshops in local schools on their own. The ERO continues to provide advice and support where needed. This arrangement has the benefit of freeing up ERO resource while ensuring that voting and registration workshops are run by skilled group workers who are known and trusted by the young people in schools.

The Electoral Commission worked in partnership with local authorities, EROs and education bodies in Scotland to run a voter registration campaign targeting young

people in schools. The ReadyToVote campaign asked schools, colleges and youth organisations across Scotland to run registration and voting sessions with young people on 1 March 2017.

The Commission developed a toolkit to help schools, colleges and youth organisations participate. The toolkit included messages to promote the events, a step-by-step guide to registering online and discussion topics to get young people talking about the importance of voting.

A total of 282 high schools participated across all 32 council areas in Scotland. This was nearly 80% of all high schools in Scotland.

Reaching under-registered black and ethnic minority groups

Key factsv

7m (14%) UK aged 18+ non-white

This is a hugely varied group that cannot be considered as a whole, so it’s especially important that you have access to demographical data on your area to fully understand the breakdown of residents and their geographical location. Some black and ethnic minority groups are more likely to be under-registered, and this also applies to individuals who have other nationalities. For example, research has shown that Eastern European nationals are under-registered.

Research

Our research has shown only 77% of people from BME communities were registered (compared with 86% of white people). The Ethnic Minority British Election Study found that 28% of Black African respondents were not registered compared with 17% of Black Caribbean and Indian respondents. However, the real difference in non-registration between these groups will be smaller as these estimates do not take account of eligibility and the research found that the Black African community included a greater proportion of ineligible people than other communities.

The Ethnic Minority British Election Study also found that nearly three in 10 BME respondents (28%) reported that they were not registered because they did not believe they were entitled to vote. While it is likely to have been true that certain respondents were not entitled to vote, others may have been unaware of eligibility for Commonwealth nationals.

Characteristics that affect engagement Hugely diverse making local statistics on demographics crucial 60% of ethnic minorities are second or third generation, and integrated

into British society In some groups, within the family ‘own’ culture may prevail Black/Caribbean trend – aging population Black/African trend – most youthful and fastest growing community (three

fifths came to the UK since 1990) Pakistani/Bangladeshi trend – youthful group, reflecting high fertility rates Other Asian trend – often highly economically active

Media consumption 18% of BMEs watch only mainstream TV 16% BMEs watch only ethnic TV Websites considered a useful channel by advertisers, also: Social media that involves discussion and participation Events such as those held at regional arenas

Resources to use with BME groupsOur website contains resources that you can use in engaging with BME groups:

Public engagement resources: http://www.electoralcommission.org.uk/i-am-a/electoral-administrator/running-electoral-registration/public-engagement-resources

Participation resources: http://www.electoralcommission.org.uk/i-am-a/electoral-administrator/participation-resources-for-local-authorities

Resources for partners: http://www.electoralcommission.org.uk/find-information-by-subject/electoral-registration/partnership-working/resources-for-partners?

Sharing good practice

For information and practice examples of how some EROs are targeting and communicating with potential electors, see our sharing

good practice resource ‘Communications’.

Direct contactExample activities

Front-line staff working with BME groups may be able to raise the registration message and be briefed to provide helpful information to support registration.

Working with partnersExample activities

Identify community groups and charities that work with or have members from the target group, who could help you to develop opportunities for spreading your message. These could include social groups, job and skills clubs, women’s groups.

Write to community champions and religious leaders to ask them to put registration on the agenda with their communities. Local area development and residents groups in target geographic areas may also be helpful. It’s important to set out why raising the subject and encouraging participation is so important for that group.

Work with facilities that have a high number of visitors from your target audience – you may have a cultural or education centre, or youth or older persons centre.

Involve umbrella voluntary organisations as they may be able to flag to relevant volunteers either directly or through newsletters – for example they could involve mentors working with recent immigrants or young people.

Local businesses such as ethnic food stores, restaurants and venues may be able to assist in spreading the message to customers by providing notice board information or leaflets.

Raising awarenessYou will need to think how to time awareness raising so that activities are co-ordinated and advertising has the maximum impact to be seen by as many people as many times as possible. Think also about ways to calculate the number of residents reached by the activity.

Community events and festivals held in areas with clusters of target BME groups – or aimed at groups specifically – could provide an opportunity to reach certain communities. For example you may be able to set up a stand, provide information on a stand for another service, or you may be able to display posters.

Identify local authority channels that reach a large number of the target group and can be used to provide information. These may be contact centres, libraries, leisure facilities, and community centres.

Local community environments or media channels that encourage discussion may be useful spaces for raising awareness among BME groups – for example local residents forums and community centres.

Paid-for advertising could be located in geographical locations with high concentrations of the target group. Alternatively, you could arrange to have a stall or undertake street marketing in a shopping area.

Reaching transient populations and multiple occupancy homes

See also: Homemovers, disengaged residents, young people, students

Key factsvi

2 million at current address for under 12 months 35% or private renters been at current address for under one year Made-up of diverse sub-groups particular to area, for example young

professional, students, those in poverty, isolated individuals

Those who have recently moved are more likely to be under-registered, and this includes those who move frequently. This group includes people in very different social situations – from young professionals who rent with friends, to new immigrant families establishing where to live, to isolated individuals who live in multi-occupational properties without the income for longer-term accommodation. They may be unaware of the need to register, or they may be disengaged with the political process, but frequent movers have in common the fact that they need to re-register when they move. Transient adults may also have under-18s living with them who are also eligible to register.

Characteristics that affect engagement Unaware of need to re-register or update details May assume that council records are automatically updated Likely to be clustered in particular geographic locations, especially urban

areas Different sub-groups (recent immigrants, young professionals, isolated

individuals in poverty etc.) have very different lifestyles motivated by very different things so segmenting the group is important

Concentrating on other priorities such as settling in the UK, living in a new city, looking for work etc.

May be isolated or living with strangers that are unlikely to flag need to register and may not pass on post or messages

May have contact with other council services over address change May not have redirected mail from old address

Resources to use with mobile populationsOur website contains resources that you can use in engaging with mobile populations:

Public engagement resources: http://www.electoralcommission.org.uk/i-am-a/electoral-administrator/running-electoral-registration/public-engagement-resources

Participation resources: http://www.electoralcommission.org.uk/i-am-a/electoral-administrator/participation-resources-for-local-authorities

Resources for partners: http://www.electoralcommission.org.uk/find-information-by-subject/electoral-registration/partnership-working/resources-for-partners?

Sharing good practice

For information and practice examples of how some EROs are targeting and communicating with potential electors, see our sharing

good practice resource ‘Communications’.

Direct contactExample activities

Data such as census information or other local authority data, can help you to understand the incidence of mobility and the nature of mobility in your registration area.

Segmenting the group into sub-groups based on their characteristics may help you to identify appropriate ways to reach them. For example it may be that in your area many private renters are students, or that in one location there are many low-cost houses in multiple occupation.

Household enquiry forms will help to identify residents at properties for which you have no details

Frontline council staff that deal with public enquiries about address changes could be briefed to highlight the need to register to vote at a new address. These enquiries could be on any council service.

Your website may have a ‘change of address notification, which sends details to different departments of where someone has moved

Other departments, service providers and frontline staff may be in contact with new residents to the area – and may be sending communications in which information could be provided

Information could be provided directly through the door in rental areas if the town or city.

Working with partnersExample activities

One way to reach people who move regularly is via the other services and agencies that they deal with when they move, for example schools, council tax, housing benefit etc.

Other charities and services may work with some of these groups and you may be able to build relationships with them. For example those living in multiple occupancy housing may be looking for social housing, may receive mental health support, or may have been recently released from prison.

Look also to engage charities that work with homeless people and groups that have contact with traveller communities

It may be possible to engage landlords – including social housing – to provide information to tenants.

Larger multiple occupancy residencies such as hostels could be engaged directly.

Local area groups, residents associations and online community forums could be contacted about putting posts on their websites or blogs, displaying posters on notice boards

Political party volunteers who canvass door-to-door may help with spreading the registration message

Example partners Private and social landlords Local businesses that deliver Charities and support organisations and services Community forums, resident’s associations and other local groups Other departments and service providers

Raising awarenessYou will need to think how to time awareness raising so that activities are co-ordinated and advertising has the maximum impact to be seen by as many people as many times as possible. Think also about ways to calculate the number of residents reached by the activity. Example activities

Consider transient populations in any advertising you undertake – for example you may be able to advertise in rental area, or around public transport hubs.

A mobile advertising van could be used to visit particular areas of the town or city to promote the message

Leeds electoral services make sure they use in-house expertise for targeting harder to reach audiences. They have also developed an excellent relationship with the Big Issue Foundation to encourage voter registration among homeless people.

Reaching disabled people and residents with additional communication needs

Key factsvii

Over 11m people with a limiting long term illness, impairment or disability in GB

The prevalence of disability rises with age - 15 per cent of working age adults and 45 per cent of adults over State Pension age in Great Britain are disabled

Direct contactExample activities

Produce communications in alternative formats such as large print, Braille, easy read and audio.

Where possible ask residents about their communication requirements so that assumptions are not made about their preferred format.

Ensure websites and online communication meets accessibility requirements

Ensure written documents are produced in Plain English (or Welsh) with reasonable font size and good colour contrast to make them readable to as many people as possible.

Communications and forms should carry prominent information on where blind and visually impaired can seek assistance

Ensure frontline staff and canvassers are briefed on how to communicate effectively with deaf and hearing impaired people

Be aware that some deaf electors may wish to communicate with staff by email, textphone or Typetalk.

Induction loops should also be considered in the office, if not already installed

Review your accessibility scheme, and ensure residents with reduced mobility and wheelchair users are able to access your office.

Working with partnersExample activities

Local authority service provides may be able to identify ways to contact disabled people who use particular services.

If your area contains residential accommodation catering for a particular impairment or condition, you could contact residents or managers to enquire about the preferred format for communications and then send forms and letters directly in that format.

Charities, support organisations and social groups may be willing to engage members on registration – or may be able to offer one-to-one help where needed.

Engage local talking newspapers

Raising awarenessExample activities

Ensure you awareness raising plans include a range of channels that will reach disabled electors. Relying on one channel only may exclude certain disabled people: for example, using posters only may not benefit many visually impaired electors.

Ensure publicity aimed at visually impaired people includes clear information on what registration information and forms they will receive and when, what the deadlines are, and where they can get help filling in the form.

Ensure that electoral services teams and support staff have available the factsheet for care homes in England and Wales and in Scotland, which can be adapted to reflect local circumstances. Additionally, there is some assisted applications guidance for England and Wales and for Scotland which details what one person can do to support another to register.

Sharing good practiceA number of EROs separate care homes from their other canvassing activity and engage with them on an individual basis to ensure care home residents are correctly registered. For more information on how

some EROs are engaging with care homes on an individual basis, see our resource ‘Reaching care home residents’.

Reaching Over-75s

See also: Reaching disabled people

Key factsviii

one in six people in the population are aged over 65

2,890,000 people over 80 in the UK 430,000 residents aged 90 and over 45% of adults over State Pension age in GB are disabled (Office of

Disability Issues)Older people are traditionally more likely to be registered. However, they may also require additional support to complete forms, and information about access and absent voting (including information about signature waivers where appropriate).

Direct contactExample activities

Ensure communications are produced in formats that reach as many people as possible – for example you may want to make information available in large print.

A significant minority of older people are likely to have a disability, so ensure frontline staff are briefed to communicate effectively with residents with visual and hearing impairments or mobility requirements.

Family members may be well placed to raise registration with their older relatives so consider flagging in other communications – particularly where individuals are identified as having caring responsibilities.

i Data from MEC (2013)ii Communities and Local Government, English Housing Survey 2010-11iii Census 2011iv Department of Education, Participation in education, training and employment by 16-18 year olds in Englandv Census 2011vi Communities and Local Government, English Housing Survey 2010-11

Working with partnersExample activities

Identify residential homes and sheltered accommodation in the area and engage these on registration

Local authority and partner services such as housing and transport may identify opportunities for reaching older people

Work with community organisations, charities and social groups to identify opportunities for spreading registration messages and supporting registration where needed.

Volunteers such as befrienders may be able to provide one-to-one support and could potentially be engaged through local volunteering structures.

Raising awarenessExample activities

Consider placing advertisements in locations that are visited by older people in your area – these may include clinics, libraries, community centres.

Ensure that electoral services teams and support staff have available the factsheet for care homes in England and Wales and in Scotland, which can be adapted to reflect local circumstances. Additionally, there is some assisted applications guidance for England and Wales and for Scotland which details what one person can do to support another to register.

Sharing good practice

For information and practice examples of how some EROs are reaching those in care homes, see our sharing good practice resource

‘reaching care home residents’.

vii Office for Disability Issues, quoting Family Resources Survey 2010/11viii Census 2011

Reaching disengaged residents

Reaching disengaged individuals and young people if they are a target in

your area will involve using a combination of the approaches. This is a wide audience, and some members may be high users of social services and facing a wide variety of complex challenges such as debt, mental health problems, violent relationships, involvement with crime and family truancy. Disengaged adults may also have influence over the children and young people they live with who may also be eligible to register.

Characteristics that affect engagement Feel that messages are not for them Distrust of authority and the carrier of the message Difficult to motivate as may be disinterest or have other concerns Harder to get message through, so repetition and follow-up needed May have other priorities Spend lots of time at home Struggle with or have no access to technology or internet

Media consumption Heavy exposure to TV, newspapers and radio Medium exposure to magazines Light exposure to outdoor media and internet

Direct contactExample activities

Engage services that liaise directly with this audience to identify ways to reach individuals. It may be that some households only trust those who they have built up relationships with over time.

Ensure information within the local authority on what has been found to work on the doorstep and with individual households is shared with staff who make home visits. Some household for example may respond to incentives and sanctions, others may be open to persistence.

Consider a range of communication methods, for some a letter could be ignored while phone calls or visits in person may have more impact

Working with partnersExample activities

Engage charities that work with the target group – these could include groups supporting unemployed people, those in debt, with addictions or mental health issues, or those experiencing domestic violence.

Local neighbourhood shops may be willing to display posters and leaflets.

Reaching rural residents

Rural areas vary and whilst many are well connected and have a high number of nearby facilities, other areas are more isolated. Even connected areas may have residents who remain fairly isolated and may be harder to

engage. Communication approaches should ensure rural residents are considered, particularly those who may not be reached by city- and town-located advertising.

Working with partners

Example activities Small communities may rely on services such as volunteer medical

prescriptions delivery, care providers and health visitors Businesses such as grocery vans too may deliver to the area and these

may be willing to engage on registration. Structures such as Parish Councils and Neighbourhood Watch could be

engaged to provide information or identify opportunities for engaging residents

Residents themselves may be willing to spread the message to neighbours and friends and this may be worth flagging in communications.

Raising awareness

Example activities Poster advertisements could be placed near locations that are most likely

to be noticed by local residents – these could include notice boards, bus stops, village halls and post boxes.

Some rural communities may hold regular events such as exercise classes, concerts or history groups and leaflets could be provided at these.

Where hubs such as shops, pubs, Post Offices and surgeries exist, look at providing information in these locations

Local newsletters and village magazines may offer opportunities to provide details on registration. Some may offer low-cost advertising space.

Residents living in gated communities or caravan parksA number of your residents are likely to live in communities with strictly controlled entrances. These could be caravan parks, a community of houses with a ‘gatekeeper’, or high-rise blocks with entry-phones or security systems.

There can be particular challenges for canvassers in getting beyond the gatekeeper. Entry-phones, for example, have the potential to reduce the number of ‘successful’ contacts and thus increase the number of repeat visits (and therefore time) to gain access.Canvassers need to be confident, resourceful, and be armed with tried and tested strategies and ‘sales patter’ to gain access.

Letters addressed ‘to the occupier’ may not always reach the intended recipient living in these communities, leading to some residents being unaware that they have been sent, for example, a HEF. Equally, temporary residents at a caravan park may be unaware that they can register, or could be worried about the ramifications of appearing on formal documentation. Raising awareness and working with partners will help engage these residents and make them more likely to respond to a HEF and ITR.

Working with partnersExample activities

Build relationships with gatekeepers. These individuals are exposed to a large number of people trying to gain access and are often very protective of their residents. Building relationships takes time and persistence – often over years – but once trust has been established, the gatekeepers can be a significant source of information and help.

Site managers of caravan parks should be contacted as they may be able to provide Electoral Registration Officers with information on changes of residents.

It may be possible to engage local estate agents and large landlords to include information with rental agreements or provide leaflets when keys are handed over

Local area groups, residents associations and online community forums could be contacted about placing posts on their websites or blogs and displaying posters on notice boards.

Work with organisations such as the British Holiday & Home Parks Association, who may be willing to issue guidance to their managers/landlords.

Another way of reaching these residents is via the other services and agencies that they deal with, for example schools, council tax, housing benefit etc.

Travellers may settle at locations designated by the local authority. Officers at unitary and county councils will have responsibility for maintaining these designated sites and may be able to assist Electoral Registration Officers in identifying those who would be eligible to register.

Raising awarenessExample activities

Where hubs such as shops, pubs, Post Offices and surgeries exist for gated communities, look at providing information in these locations.

Poster advertisements could be placed near locations that are most likely to be noticed by residents of gated communities – these could include notice boards, bus stops, village halls and post boxes.

Local newsletters and village magazines may offer opportunities to provide details on registration. Some may offer low-cost advertising space

Issue guidance via organisations such as the British Holiday and Home Parks Association reminding landlords and managers of caravan parks of their responsibilities and the importance of voter registration.

Information could also be provided explaining why personal visits have to be undertaken, and why those visits are now throughout the year.

Other departments, service providers and frontline staff may be in contact and may be sending communications in which information could be included.