How to vote in St. Peter and The Waterfront

Registration, photo ID and postal votes all have deadlines weeks before polling day. Sorting them now takes ten minutes; sorting them in the final week is often too late.

Make sure you are registered

You can register to vote online at gov.uk/register-to-vote. It takes about five minutes, and you need your National Insurance number if you have one.

Registration is not automatic and it does not follow you when you move. If you have changed address since the last election — very common in Stonehouse and Millbay, where a lot of people rent — you almost certainly need to register again.

The deadline is usually around twelve working days before polling day. Do not leave it until the week of the election.

You need photo ID to vote in person

Since 2023 you must show an accepted form of photo ID at the polling station in England. A UK passport, driving licence, Blue Badge, older person's bus pass and disabled person's bus pass are among the documents accepted. Expired ID can still be accepted if the photo still looks like you.

If you do not have any accepted ID, you can apply free of charge for a Voter Authority Certificate at gov.uk/apply-for-photo-id-voter-authority-certificate.

This is the most common reason people get turned away. Check before polling day rather than on it.

Postal and proxy votes

Anyone can apply for a postal vote and you do not need to give a reason. Apply at gov.uk/apply-for-postal-vote. It is worth doing if you work shifts, travel, have caring responsibilities, or find getting to a polling station difficult.

If you would rather someone you trust voted on your behalf, that is a proxy vote, applied for at gov.uk/apply-for-proxy-vote.

Postal vote applications have their own deadline, earlier than the registration deadline, and completed postal votes must reach the council by close of poll.

Voting in person

Polling stations open from 7am to 10pm. Your poll card tells you which station is yours, and you cannot use a different one. If you are in the queue at 10pm you are still entitled to vote.

Every polling station should have a low-level booth, a tactile voting device and a large-print ballot paper available on request. Staff can help you mark your ballot if you ask, and you may bring someone with you.

If a polling station in this ward is not accessible on the day, tell Jon. That is casework too, and it needs recording.

Who runs the election

Elections in this ward are run by Plymouth City Council's electoral services team, not by candidates. They handle the register, postal votes and polling station arrangements.

For anything else — including whether your address falls inside St. Peter and The Waterfront — Jon is happy to help.

Not sure if you live in this ward?

Send Jon your street name and he will tell you. You can also see the seven neighbourhoods the ward covers.

Ask Jon a question