Every person should be able to register and vote without facing barriers. The following information is provided to assist you, or someone you support, through the voting process.
- Watch the Electoral Commission’s British Sign Language videos about voting.
- Read Mencap’s guides to voting.
- Read the Electoral Commission’s easy-read guide to filling out your ballot paper [PDF].
Registering to vote
You must make an application to register before you can vote in an election.
- Read more about registering to vote or an easy-read guide to registering to vote [PDF]
- Register to vote on the government website
- Contact us to request a printed copy of a large-scale registration form
Voting at an election
There are three different ways you can vote. You can vote in person at a polling station, by post, or by appointing someone you trust, known as a proxy, to vote on your behalf.
The method you use to vote is up to you. It might depend on what you find easiest or most convenient.
We will send you a poll card about five weeks before the election. It will confirm your chosen method of voting. We can provide personalised braille poll cards on request.
Voting in a polling station
To vote in person, you must be on the electoral register and bring a suitable form of photo ID to the polling station.
If you have chosen to vote in person, your poll card will tell you which polling station you can vote at.
- Read more about voting in person.
- Read more about voter ID in polling stations.
- Watch the Electoral Commission’s British Sign Language videos about voter ID.
- Find your polling station.
If you think you will need specific support in the polling station on election day, you can take somebody with you. If you contact us in advance, we can ensure polling station staff are able to help you if needed.
All our polling stations have step-free access. Staff will be available to provide help and information.
The following equipment is available at polling stations:
- An enlarged copy of the ballot paper that can be taken into the voting booth
- A large-scale high-contrast poster of the ballot paper
- A magnifying glass
- A ‘tactile voting device’ to help blind and partially sighted voters to vote independently. It has embossed numbers and tab windows and can be attached to a ballot paper.
- A low-level polling booth
- Pencil grips
- Seating for anyone who needs to rest for a brief time
Voting by post
Voting by post is an easy and convenient way of voting if you are not able to get to the polling station.
We will send you your ballot paper about two weeks before an election. You must return it to us by 10pm on the election day for it to be included in the count.
- Read more about voting by post or proxy.
We can provide personalised braille postal vote packs on request. The law requires that your ballot paper must be printed and cannot be provided in braille.
Voting by proxy
A proxy is someone you trust to attend your polling station and vote on your behalf.
Proxy votes are usually set up for one election at a time but can be set up for longer periods of time if you are disabled.
- Read more about voting by post or proxy.
