Information for Voters with Disabilities

Registering to vote

Before you can vote, your name must be on the electoral register at your address.  To register to vote, you must complete an application form.  This can be done online.

An easy to read guide to registering to vote can be found here (Opens in a New Window).

If you can’t register to vote online, please call Electoral Services who will be able to help by taking your details over the phone. You will need your national insurance number so it would be helpful to have it with you when you call.

Voting in a polling station

We aim to make polling stations as accessible as possible by:

• Using venues that are accessible to all, wherever possible.
• Ensuring all polling stations have at least one low level polling booth.
• Providing 2 large print copies of the ballot papers, one placed on display and one for voters to look at before completing their own ballot paper.
• Providing an A5 magnifier to help with reading the ballot paper.
• Allowing electors to use text-to-speech apps or magnifying apps on their mobile phones that will assist them to vote independently. Using mobile phones for making calls or taking photographs or selfies in polling stations is not permitted.
• Providing a tactile voting device to help voters who are blind or partially sighted mark their own ballot paper with assistance, if needed.

Who can provide assistance to voters?

If you need help with voting, you can ask:

• A trusted companion who is over the age of 18.
• The Presiding Officer at your polling station.

More information about voting in a polling station can be found here (Opens in a New Window).

Voter ID

All electors voting in a polling station now need to show photo ID before they can be given a ballot paper.  If you do not have an acceptable form of voter ID, you can apply for a free voter ID document, which is known as a Voter Authority Certificate.

An easy read guide to applying for a Voter Authority Certificate is available here.

Voting by post

Voting by post means that the ballot paper for an election will be posted to you before the election date for you to fill in at home and post back to the Council rather than going to a polling station to vote.

More information is available about how to apply to vote by post (Opens in a New Window) and what happens when you receive your ballot paper (Opens in a New Window).

Voting by proxy

Voting by proxy means someone else you trust completing your ballot paper for you.  To vote like this, you must have a reason why you can’t go to the polling station yourself.

More information is available about how to apply to vote by proxy (Opens in a New Window) and what happens when you have applied to vote by proxy (Opens in a New Window).

Further Information

More easy to read information about registering to vote, elections and voting can be found on the My Vote My Voice website