Submitting Petitions to the District Council

If you live, work or study within the District of North West Leicestershire and feel strongly about something that concerns a District Council service or relates to an issue the District Council may be able to help with, you can submit a petition to the Council.

How do I submit a petition?

Any person who lives, works or studies within the District may submit a petition to the Council.

The request to present a petition must be submitted in writing or electronic mail to the Petitions Officer.

Paper petitions should be sent to:

The Petitions Officer
North West Leicestershire District Council
Council Offices
Coalville
Leicestershire
LE67 3FJ

What are the Guidelines for Submitting a Petition?

Petitions submitted must:

1. include a clear and concise statement covering the subject of the petition. It should state what action the petitioners wish the Council to take; and
2. it should relate to an issue which affects the District and/or over which the Authority has some influence;
3. include the name and address and signature of every person supporting the petition. The address should be that at which you live, work or study in the District;
4. include the contact details, including an address and telephone number, for the petition organiser. This is the person the Council will contact to explain how it will respond to the petition. If the petition does not identify a petition organiser, the Council will contact the first signatory to the petition;
5. the Council will not accept petitions where there are no contact details for the petition organiser or the first signatory.

What will happen to my petition?

All petitions submitted to the Council will receive acknowledgement within 2 working days of receipt. We will aim to provide you with details about what the Council plans to do with your petition or the action which the Council will take within 10 working days of receipt of your petition.

For further information on the different types of petition and the manner in which the Council will deal with them, please see the full petitions scheme.

Frequently Asked Questions

Who can submit a petition?

Anyone who lives, works or studies in the North West Leicestershire can submit a petition to the Council.

What issues can my petition relate to?

Your petition should relate to an issue which affects the District and/or over which the Authority has some influence.

How should I set out my petition?

See below a blank template for your use. This template will ensure your petition is set out in the correct way and contains all the information required.

Petition Template (Word Document, 0.1 Mb)

Petitions should include a clear and concise statement covering the subject of the petition, and should state what action you would like the Council to take.

Petitions should include the name, address and telephone number of the petition organiser. This is the person the Council will contact to explain how it will respond to the petition.

Petitions should include the name, address and signature of every person supporting the petition.

How many signatures do I need?

There are number of types of petition, and each type requires a different number of signatures. The types of petition are:

Type of petition	Number of signatories required	Description
Ordinary petition	15	An opportunity to present a petition to full Council. Ordinary petitions may also be dealt with directly by officers or Cabinet members.
Petitions to hold an officer to account	1000	You can ask a senior officer to answer questions on the conduct of a particular matter, explain progress on an issue, or explain the advice given to members to enable them to make a particular decision.
Petitions for debate	2000	If you want the petition to be reported and debated at a full Council meeting by councillors.

When will the Council contact me about my petition?

All petitions submitted to the Council will receive acknowledgement within 2 working days of receipt. We will aim to provide you with details about what the Council plans to do with your petition or the action which the Council will take within 10 working days of receipt of your petition.

What will happen to my petition?

In the first instance, the Council will endeavour to resolve issues raised by a petition directly, where appropriate. How the Council responds to a petition will depend on what the petition asks for and how many people have signed it.

How can I find out what is happening with my petition?

We will aim to provide you with details about what the Council plans to do with your petition or the action which the Council will take within 10 working days of receipt of your petition.

The petitions website will also be updated through the process of consideration of the petition to ensure you can track progress.

Why has my petition been rejected?

The Petitions Officer may reject petitions which are, in his/her opinion:

not concerned with an issue which affects the District or do not raise matters over which the Authority has responsibility or has some influence;

• defamatory, illegal, scurrilous, frivolous, offensive, out of order or relates to a specific licensing or planning application;
• relates to substantially the same issue / subject as a petition which has been received by the Authority in the last 12 months;
• requests the Council to do something which conflicts with Council policy.

Please see the full petitions scheme for further information.