Delivering the annual canvass - England

Developing positive relationships with responsible persons

It is important that you develop and maintain positive relationships with responsible persons to ensure that your Route 3 canvass activity is successful.

You should consider how best to contact responsible persons in your area to ensure that the information is received, understood and acted upon in a timely way. For example, you may wish to make an informal phone call to your contact at the beginning of your Route 3 canvass to highlight that a formal request for information is forthcoming. 

You should be prepared to offer personal visits to Route 3 properties early in the canvass process if you consider that face to face communication is most appropriate for dealing with concerns or questions. In some instances, this may be the best way of engaging with responsible persons and gathering the information required.

Setting timescales

You should ask for the information to be provided within a reasonable period of time.1  When setting deadlines for the provision of the required information, you should ensure that they are realistic and achievable, and you should understand the different conditions in which your responsible persons are operating. For example, universities may not be able to provide information about students until the beginning of term.
 
Once you have agreed your deadline for responses, you should communicate how you will issue reminders or follow up with visits as necessary, to help manage expectations.

Issues with the supply of information

Some responsible persons, for example care home staff, may have concerns about supplying information about residents who may not have the mental capacity to vote. Ensuring that your communications with them are clear and comprehensive will help provide them with the confidence they need to work with you effectively. 

You should point out that the purpose of the annual canvass is simply to capture information on who lives at the property to establish who should be invited to register, and identifying people who are no longer resident.

Occasionally, responsible persons may have concerns about supplying the required information because they have doubts about sharing personal data. In these cases you should remind them of your right to request information and reassure them that providing the required information does not breach data protection legislation.