Location

Scotland

Voting Passport

A voting passport is an A4 sheet of paper to hand to polling staff so they easily can understand the reasonable adjustments needed to enable the person to vote.

The voting passport also allows voters to write who they would like support from, their supporter’s name and whether the supporter is eligible to vote in the UK or not. If the supporter is not eligible to vote in the UK then they will need to work with the presiding officer to support the person to vote.

The back of the voting passport contains information on the law in order to debunk the myth a person can be prevented from voting on the grounds of a lack of mental capacity.

It’s important to know that the polling station and presiding officer have to make these reasonable adjustments by law. People voting and those supporting them have every right to ask for them and should stand firm if anyone says otherwise.

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What is the Democracy Box?

The Democracy Box is not about elections. It is not about party politics. The Democracy Box, just like democracy itself, is not simply about voting. If we live in a true democracy then surely everyone in the country needs to know and understand the basics of how that democracy works. In this episode Yvonne Murphy outlines The Democracy Box project’s vision and aims and we hear from four young guests about why we need to find new ways to intrigue and inspire people to play a part in, and shape the future of, our UK democracy. Lauren & Alex talk about their experience as young co-creators on the project which lead to this podcast series and Ieuan and Nirushan talk about why, as Youth Cymru Peer Leaders, they are supporting the project and their work on the ‘Power of your Vote’ and their own podcast series called YouthPod.

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Charities and campaigning ahead of a general election

This article provides information on rules and regulations surrounding charity campaigning during elections.

The vast majority of charities can campaign and engage in policy advocacy in the run up to elections, making the most of the opportunity that a pre-election period presents for furthering a charity’s purposes through policy and political work.

Provided that your governing document does not expressly restrict your charity from engaging in political activity (this is rare, but may be relevant in some cases, such as the terms of some charitable trusts), then charities can engage in advocacy and campaigning – your charity’s trustees just need to be aware of a few key limitations and regulatory regimes to navigate.

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Local Intelligence Hub

A collaborative effort between MySociety and The Climate Coalition, the Local Intelligence Hub is a new tool to find information on local MPs, public opinion and the nature and climate movement.

Using the Local Intelligence Hub, you can:
➯Build a national policy picture to explore and share constituency level data about people, politics, climate and nature
➯Deep dive into constituency level insights with statistics displayed against the national average
➯Explore new constituencies, how existing constituencies will be divided up and the impact this has on data
➯Export data as CSV to enable detailed analysis against your own datasets
➯Sign up to email alters when updates occur or new data is added

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Getting Heard: Engaging with decision-makers online

In this free training for educators (primary and secondary) we will explore who holds ‘the power’ locally, and nationally, including political and financial decision-makers, and other influential people such as the media and religious and community leaders.
We’ll look at what it is they can, and should, be doing to help community projects such as yours, where they are located, and how best to make contact.
Section 1: Who are the decision-makers?
Section 2: Political power – navigating the right path
Section 3: Financial power – money, money, money
Section 4: Decision-makers with social (or community) power
Section 5: Communicating with empathy
Section 6: Making the most of the moment
Section 7: Additional support and guidance
Along the way we’ll give you lots of tools and tips on how to approach people in power, activities to help your children and young people identify who’s best placed to support them, and case studies from other groups who have engaged with local decision-makers to make change in their community.

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What is Democracy?

This scheme of work consists of three lessons on democracy, helping young people better understand how decisions are made in their communities.

Votes at 16

This scheme of work consists of a 30 to 60 minute lesson for 7 to 11 year olds and a 15 minute tutor time resource for 11 to 16 year olds that presents the debate on whether the voting age should be set at 16.

UK Parliament Teaching Resources

A selection of resources from the UK Parliament Education and Engagement Team to support learning about the role and function of UK Parliament.

Who Runs The Country?

This scheme of work contains two lessons for KS1 pupils in which they explore what voting is, who runs the country and how they are elected.

UK Parliament Debating Resources

This scheme of work consists of a pack of resources to help students confidently debate. It includes teaching ideas and planning resources.

An Introduction to Democracy

This scheme of work consists of four packs of resources which have been designed to introduce students to the concept of democracy.

UK Parliament | General Election Assembly

This scheme of work consists of slide decks that can be presented in class or in an assembly to help primary or secondary school students to understand and discuss the upcoming election. The slide decks contain a fun and speedy video guide to how UK General Elections work, voiced by Rick Edwards.

Voting Systems

This scheme of work contains a table summarising the key points of voting systems used within the UK and in Europe, as well as ideas about how to encourage students to analyse their purpose, benefits and limitations.

Welcome to Your Vote | Assemblies

These assemblies, tailored to the four countries of the UK, introduce young people to democracy, politics and elections. They can also be used in form time.

Welcome to Your Vote | Lessons

Use the 5-15 minute activities in youth groups or form time to start to conversation about democracy and voting, or as lesson starters.

#ElectionCountdown May 2024: Local and Regional Elections

#ElectionCountdown is a campaign run in the lead up to elections - this scheme of work is for the local and regional elections on May 2nd.

#ElectionCountdown: Voter Registration

These resources are for 16+ students and are suitable to be delivered as a tutor time activity, or for a larger group ‘assembly’ style.

My Vote, My Voice Campaign

Ensuring everyone with a learning disability and autism know they have a right to vote, and making sure they have access to the information they need to do so.

#ElectionCountdown

The #ElectionCountdown programme supports young people to vote. These bitesize resources are designed for the run up to the 2024 local, regional and General Election.

Voter Registration Champion Scheme

The Voter Registration Champion scheme is an initiative of Citizens UK and is supported by the UK Democracy Fund. This scheme aims to mobilise a movement of civil society organisations, community groups and employers to make sure 300,000 at risk voters can exercise their right to vote at the next General Election. Voter Registration Champions will: - Register people to vote - Educate people about voter ID - Encourage people to exercise their right to vote.

Electoral Commission Voter Registration Campaign

The Electoral Commission Voter Registration campaign aims to encourage as many people as possible to register to vote. The campaign includes assets to be used on social media by partners, and accessible and translated resources to include as many people as possible.

#GetInvolved

The #GetInvolved programme enables under-represented communities to engage with mainstream politics. Patchwork Foundation will be running events for the local, mayoral and general elections in collaboration with the four main parties throughout the year. This will include canvassing, hustings, workshops and broader campaign opportunities across the country. #GetInvolved sessions are open to anyone, regardless of political knowledge or experience, but especially aim to connect with those who may not have engaged with politics before or who want to get involved but don’t know how. You can check out the website or email juliet@patchworkfoundation.org.uk for more information.