Who can register

Who can register?

You can register to vote if you are:

• 16 years old or over (although you can only vote when you turn 18)
• a British citizen
• a citizen of another European Union Country: EU citizens can vote at local government elections but you need to have resided continuously in the UK since 31 December 2020
• a qualifying Commonwealth citizen

A full list of eligible countries is available.

Residency

You must be resident at the address you are registered at or wish to register at. If we have reason to believe you are not resident there, we will begin a review into your registration. You should only register at your main address if you have more than one. You are not entitled to register at more than one address, regardless of ownership.

You can also register to vote at an address in the UK if you are a British citizen living overseas, a Crown Servant working away from your main residence, or if you are in the Armed Forces. More information on these types of registration can be found at the Gov.uk website.

If you are homeless, reside in a mental health facility, or you are a remand prisoner, you are entitled to register to vote using an address where you would be living if it were not for your current situation. If this is not possible for you, you may also provide an address where you spend a substantial part of your time, such as a homeless shelter.

How do I register?

The quickest and easiest way to register to vote is online at www.gov.uk/register-to-vote. Alternatively, you can call Electoral Services on 01784 444218, and one of our team will be happy to complete the application with you. You can also request a paper registration form if you prefer.

Please note, whichever way you choose to register, you will need to provide your National Insurance number. This can be found on official paperwork such as payslips, or letters regarding any benefits or tax credits you may have. If you have lost your National Insurance number, go to www.gov.uk/lost-national-insurance-number.

Electoral Register

There are two versions of the Electoral Register - the Full Register and the Open Register.

The full electoral register

The full Electoral Register includes every person who is fully registered to vote in Spelthorne. It is used mainly for electoral purposes, to ensure that anyone eligible to vote in the borough is registered. It is also used for other limited purposes as required by law, such as detecting fraud, contacting people regarding jury service and for checking credit applications.

A copy of the full register is held at the Council Offices. If you wish to view the Electoral Register, you must make an appointment with the Elections team. You will need to know the address you want to view, as the register is published in street name order, then by house number. It is not possible to search for a specific name of an elector if you do not know the correct address. Viewing of the Electoral Register is always supervised by a staff member and limited to 15 minutes only. During the busy election period, this may not be possible. No copying or photographing of this register is allowed and the information it contains cannot be used for marketing purposes. You may take handwritten notes.

The open register

The open register is an edited form of the Electoral Register, which is not used for electoral purposes. It can be purchased by any person, company or organisation and can be used for any purposes, including marketing.

When you register to vote, you have the option to opt-out of appearing on the open register. This will not affect your right to vote, or your credit score. You also have the option to opt-out, or opt-in if you wish, after your initial application to register. If you are not sure whether your name appears on the open register, you can contact our Electoral Services department on 01784 444218, to find out.

If you wish to have your name removed from the open register, please complete this 

and return it to:

Electoral Services
Spelthorne Borough Council
Knowle Green
Staines-upon-Thames
TW18 1XB

Moving house

Electoral registration does not transfer between properties when you move, so you must ensure that each person individually completes an application to register. This can be done online at www.gov.uk/register-to-vote, or you can contact your local Electoral Services department.

Registering to vote and payment of Council Tax are separate, as there are different criteria for each. Therefore, arranging your Council Tax payment will not automatically register you to vote, and vice versa. You will need to make arrangements with each department individually.

Change of name

If you have changed your name, you will need to complete a change of name form and provide documentary evidence, showing your previous name and your new name, for your record on the Electoral Register to be amended. Accepted documents are as follows:

• marriage certificate (UK or overseas)
• civil partnership certificate (UK or overseas)
• deed poll
• amended birth certificate

You can download a 

 or you can contact the Electoral Services' office to request a form to be sent to you.

We ask that you do not send original copies of your documentary evidence, only photocopies.

Searching the register

There is no official centralised register of electors that can be searched online. Only the current register is available for public inspection at the Council Offices, Knowle Green, Staines, TW18 1XB. This is carried out under  supervision by one of our team, so you will need to contact our office to make an appointment to ensure we have someone available. No photocopying is permitted, and only handwritten notes may be taken. The hard copy register is in order by polling district, street and house number. 

Historic electoral registers and family history

If you are researching family history and would like to see old copies of the register you will need to contact the Surrey History Centre (opens new window) by telephoning 01483 518737. Alternatively you can contact the British Library by telephoning 0843 208 1144.

Credit referencing and certificates of residence

If you have been told by a third party that your name does not appear on the Electoral Register at the address you are resident at, please contact the Electoral Services' office on 01784 444218, or by email at electoral.services@spelthorne.gov.uk. It is possible that the information held by the third party may not be as up-to-date as our records. If we find that you are registered, we can provide you with further information which may help the third party locate your entry on the Electoral Register. Alternatively, we can provide you with a letter confirming that you are registered. This letter does not give details of the length of your registration, only that you are currently registered.

Consumer contact details for Credit Reference Agencies

The Council is required by law to supply a copy of the Electoral Register to authorised credit reference agencies. This is supplied for prevention of credit fraud and helps companies to quickly confirm your name and address. It means that they can check that people live at the address they give when applying for credit. Please bear in mind that if the council adds you to the register, although the data is sent to credit reference agencies when the register is published, it may take a while for the credit reference agency to update their records. Before you make a possible duplicate application, please contact the Electoral Services department first, so that we may check the register for you.

The main credit referencing agencies in the UK that we deal with are Experian (opens new window), Equifax (opens new window), Crediva (opens new window), Transunion (opens new window) and CreditSafe (opens new window).

Annual Electoral Registration form

Every Autumn, each household will be sent a communication from the Electoral Services department, either by email, SMS, or post. It is important that you read this carefully and respond if necessary.

Please note, we address the annual canvass form to 'The Occupier'. This is because it is possible that the residents we have on our database may have changed address without advising us.

Not everyone paying council tax is eligible to register to vote, therefore, we cannot rely on these council records to ensure that the Electoral Register is correct.