Election of Parish Councillors Explained...
29th of April, 2025
Election of Parish Councillors
Each Councillor every four years is eligible to stand again. If there are more nominations than places (In Broughton we have seven cllrs) an election is held.
The next election is due May 2026.
In between these elections “casual” vacancies occur when a Cllr. resigns.
The process to fill a casual vacancy is twofold.
- Initially an advert goes on the notice board/social media for a period of 10 working days during which if 10 electors wish to they can request an election. This election is paid for by the parish and the process takes approximately two months.
- If the election is not requested the Parish Council advertise the vacancy on their notice boards and ask interested parties to contact the clerk within two weeks. They will be asked to complete an application form. These forms will be circulated to the current Cllrs who will meet with the interested parties.
Dependent on the number of applicants the current cllrs will either accept or deny the interested party.
OR
Each have a single vote for an applicant and the applicant with most votes will be accepted.
Who can be a Parish Councillor: Eligibility & Disqualification Criteria
Anyone can be elected as a Councillor* if they are:
• A British, Commonwealth, Irish, or European Union citizen
• At least 18 years old
• Either on the list of electors for the parish, or during the whole of the previous twelve months has:
• Occupied land in the parish as an owner or tenant
• Had a principal place of work in the parish
• Resided in, or within three miles, of the parish
They are disqualified from being a Councillor if they:
a) hold any paid employment or office in that local authority that they seek election to or
b) are the subject of a ‘bankruptcy restrictions order’ or other interim order or
c) have, within five years before the day of election or since their election, been convicted of
any offence and has had passed on them a sentence of imprisonment of at least three months
(whether suspended or not) without the option of a fine or
d) has been found guilty of corrupt or illegal practices or responsible for incurring unlawful expenditure and the court ordered their disqualification