Petitions Scheme

Thanet District Council welcomes petitions and recognises that petitions are one way in which people can let us know of their concerns. All petitions sent or presented to the Council will receive an acknowledgement from the Council within 10 working days of receipt. This acknowledgement will set out what we plan to do with the petition. We will treat something as a petition if it is identified as being a petition, or if it seems to us that it is intended to be a petition.

Paper petitions can be sent to:

Democratic Services and Scrutiny Manager

Thanet District Council

PO Box 9

Cecil Street

CT9 1XZ

Petitions can also be presented to a meeting of the Council. Find dates and times

Petitions submitted to the Council must include:

• A clear and concise statement covering the subject of the petition. It should state what action the petitioners wish the Council to take.
• The name and address and signature of any person supporting the petition.

The Council has recently redesigned its petition scheme to make it easier for people to submit petitions.

• What are the guidelines for submitting a petition?

• What will the Council do when it receives my petition?

• How will the Council respond to petitions?

• Smaller Petitions?

• Officer evidence

• Full Council debates

• What can I do if I feel my petition has not been dealt with properly?

E Petitions

The council welcomes petitions which are created and submitted through our website. E-petitions must follow the same guidelines as paper petitions as outlined above. The petition organiser will need to provide us with their name and e-mail address. You will also need to decide how long you would like your petition to be open for signing.

When you create an e petition, it may take five working days before it is published online. This is because we have to check that the content of your petition is suitable before it is made available for the public to sign. If we feel we cannot publish your petition for some reason, we will contact you within this time to explain why. You will then be able to change and re-submit your petition if you wish.

When an e-petition has closed for signing, it will automatically be submitted to Democratic Services in the same way as a paper petition, you will receive an acknowledgement within 10 working days. It will let you know what we plan to do with the petition and when you can expect to hear from us again.

If you would like to present your e-petition to a meeting of the council, please contact Democratic Services and they will advise you how to do this.

How do I ‘sign’ an e petition?

You can see all the e-petitions currently available for signature

When you sign an e-petition you will be asked to provide your name and a valid e-mail address. You will be sent an e-mail to the address you have provided. This e-mail will include a link which you must click on in order to confirm the e-mail address is valid. Once this step is complete your ‘signature’ will be added to the petition. People visiting the e-petition will be able to see your name in the list of those who have signed it, but your contact details will not be visible.

If you would like to talk to someone about submitting a petition, please call the Democratic Services team on 01843 577500.

E-mail:

committee@thanet.gov.uk

Tel: 01843 577500