Petitions to the Council

The Council has adopted a Petition Scheme that sets out the process for submitting petitions to the Council.  It also outlines how the Council will respond to petitions.  Petition organisers are encouraged to read the Petition Scheme Guidance (PDF) [108KB] (opens new window) prior to organising and submitting a petition.  

Submitting a Petition to the Council

Paper Petition 

If you are submitting a paper petition then you should ensure it is accompanied by contact details, including an address, for the person organising the petition ('the Lead Petitioner'). A Petition Template (PDF) [198KB] is available to assist you in preparing your petition. You should also state whether you live, work or study in the Borough. This is also a requirement of those who sign the petition. 

Completed paper petitions should be sent to: 

e-Petitions

Petitions can be prepared using the council's e-Petition facility or an external hosting platform. As is the case with paper petitions, you must ensure that the petition is accompanied by contact details, including an address, for the person organising the petition ('the Lead Petitioner'). 

If you wish to use the council's e-Petition facility to compile your petition you will need to register on the website and provide the Council with basic personal information so that we can contact you about your e-Petition. This information will only be used for this purpose, although we may need to pass your details to the relevant department to enable them to respond to the issues you raise. Should you wish to prepare a petition using an external hosting platform, the same e-Petition requirements apply. 

You can set up an electronic petition on the ePetition page (opens new window) of this website.

Signing an ePetition

All e-Petitions prepared using the Council's e-Petition facility appear on the petitions webpage for a period of eight weeks, that will also include a deadline for signatures. Once this deadline is met the completed petition will be automatically submitted to the Council. 

You can see the active electronic petitions on the ePetition page (opens new window) of this website.

Petition Guidelines

Petitions prepared and submitted to the Council must meet the following requirements:

• Include a clear and concise statement covering the subject of the petition and state what action the petitioners wish Basildon Borough Council to take.
• Include the name, address and signature of any person supporting the petition and whether they live, work or study in the Borough of Basildon area, including details of the Lead Petitioner. 
• Be a topic that relates to the functions or services delivered by the Council, or other public services for which the Council has shared delivery responsibilities (e.g. the police), through a partnership arrangement or which affects the Borough.
• Petitions should not disclose matters that are personal or confidential, be vexatious, abusive or otherwise inappropriate.
• Not be a duplication of a current petition that covers the same matter. If a duplicate petition is received, the Lead Petitioner will be notified and referred to the relevant current petition.

The scheme cannot accept:

• Petitions relating to Planning applications. 
• Petitions relating to a Licensing application or Notice. 
• Statutory petitions (for example requesting a referendum on having an elected Mayor). 
• A petition on a matter where there is already an existing right of appeal, such as council tax banding and non-domestic rates.