Submit a petition

Our petitions process allows members of the public and our local communities to raise issues that are important to them and help to improve services.

The information below gives a brief guide to our petitions process.  The full Petitions Scheme is also available to download as a pdf, and we recommend that you read the full scheme if you are considering submitting a petition.

What is a petition?

A petition is any communication, which is signed by, or sent to the council by more than 30 of the people who live, work or study within Tendring.  The petition must have a clear message or instruction asking the council to take action.

If we receive any communication signed by or sent to us by less than 30 people, we won't treat it as a petition.  However, we will still do our best to take action if we can.

Who can sign or submit a petition?

Anyone who lives, works or studies in Tendring can sign or organise a petition. There is no minimum age of a person who can submit or sign a petition.  However, we recommend that a teacher or parent would oversee a petition submitted by under 16 year olds.

What information should be included?

We ask that any petition contains the following information:

• The subject of the petition
• The area to which it relates
• What action the petitioners want the council to take
• Contact details of the petition's organiser
• For paper petitions: the name, address, postcode and signature of each supporter
• For electronic petitions: the name, postcode and email address of each supporter
• Date the petition was submitted

How to submit a petition

You can submit a petition in the following ways:

• On paper to: The Democratic Services Manager, Tendring District Council, Room 67, Town Hall, Station Road, Clacton-on-Sea, Essex, CO15 1SE
• By email to: democraticservices@tendringdc.gov.uk

Please follow this link to submit an e-Petition 

What happens when a petition is submitted?

The following information summarises the action we will take:

• We will acknowledge each petition to the petition's organiser, in writing, within five working days of receiving it.
• We may verify the signatures or investigate further if necessary.
• We will follow the process set out in the Petitions Scheme depending on the subject of the petition - this may include consideration by Cabinet or Council.

What happens after a petition has been considered?

There are several possible courses of action once a petition has been considered:

• No action
• Taking the action requested in the petition
• Undertaking research
• Referring the petition to an appropriate committee or future Cabinet or Council meeting
• Holding a public meeting or inquiry
• Calling for a referendum (subject to costs)

We will write to the petition's organiser informing them of any decision and also publishing the information on this website.