Local electoral services face significant economic, social and environmental challenges which risk impacting on their ability to deliver well-run elections and referendums. We will help local authorities and electoral administrators to respond to these pressures. We will work to support the consistent delivery of high-quality services for voters, and the development of resilient local electoral services by:

  • setting challenging performance standards for local electoral services
  • providing accessible guidance and support for electoral administrators
  • supporting increased resilience of local electoral services
  • ensuring the electoral system works effectively

Setting challenging performance standards for local electoral services

We will continue to support Returning Officers to deliver the elections scheduled to take place during the period of this Corporate Plan, and remain prepared to respond to unscheduled polls if required to do so. We will also support Electoral Registration Officers to deliver electoral registration services, including the annual canvass in England, Scotland and Wales, for each year of this Corporate Plan.

We will set and ensure compliance with challenging performance standards. We will provide guidance and advice to help electoral administrators meet the standards and challenge them when we identify areas for improvement. We will review the performance standards framework for Returning Officers to further enhance its role in identifying and driving performance improvements, and providing accountability for the elections they deliver.

Providing accessible guidance and support for electoral administrators

We published accessible digital guidance for Electoral Registration Officers in May 2021 to support the delivery of the first reformed annual canvass in Great Britain. We are working to ensure all guidance for Returning Officers, candidates and agents is published in this accessible format on our website, and we will continue to refresh this guidance on an election-by-election basis. We seek the views of electoral administrators after each set of elections, and over three-quarters of administrators that responded to our survey after the May 2021 elections told us they had found our guidance very or fairly useful. We will continue to seek feedback from and consult with electoral administrators to ensure our guidance meets their needs. We will continue to provide in person and telephone support, to help electoral administrators in their work.

Supporting increased resilience of local electoral services

Our research and the feedback we gather from electoral administrators after each set of elections tells us about the pressures on the electoral system that are currently being experienced at the local level. In response we will develop and deliver a programme of activity to support resilient electoral services. We will work collaboratively with electoral administrators to understand the challenges they face and identify solutions to address them. We will implement agreed measures to build resilience, working in partnership with local authorities and the wider electoral community to ensure maximum impact. We will also explore how data on the costs of electoral services can be collected and used to identify and drive efficiencies in the delivery of electoral processes.

Focus on England: Supporting electoral administrators

We will work closely with key partners across the electoral community to explore initiatives such as an induction and mentoring programme for new Returning Officers. We will also do more to identify, recognise and share examples of good practice, supporting the delivery of efficient and consistent electoral services. All of this will be underpinned by a review of the support and coordination structures that exist across England, to understand and realise the benefits that could be achieved through working collaboratively across local authority areas.

Ensuring the electoral system works effectively

Electoral administrators need confidence that the electoral system works effectively. We will continue to conduct research to report on how elections have been run, including to secure a detailed understanding of electoral administrators’ experiences. This will enable us to raise concerns and make evidence-based recommendations where appropriate, ensuring electoral administrators have confidence in the electoral system as a whole.

Focus on Scotland: Supporting the work of the Electoral Management Board

We will continue to engage closely with the Electoral Management Board, providing advice, support and challenge to maintain and drive forward the effective and efficient running of elections in Scotland. This will be particularly important in terms of the varied voting systems and franchises across the elections that will be held during the period of this Corporate Plan.

Focus on Wales: Developing the role of the Wales Electoral Coordination Board

We will continue to work closely with and support the work of the Wales Electoral Coordination Board which is in a key position to lead on the delivery of electoral events and activity in Wales. We continue to recommend that this group should become a statutory board similar to the Electoral Management Board in Scotland. This, we believe, will not only assist with the effective planning of electoral events in Wales but also will ensure greater resilience of the electoral system.