Use your chance to vote in Lincolnshire County Council elections and make it covid-secure

You will soon have the chance to have your say about how things are done in Lincolnshire with the local council elections approaching on May 6, writes Lincolnshire county councillor Sue Woolley.

Using our right to vote is one of the most important things we can do, to show what matters to us and our community.

With that in mind and concerns you may have about Covid-19, I want to tell you about some of the ways you can vote without having to go to a polling station.

Voting by post is a straightforward and easy process. You can apply to vote by post by completing an online form from South Kesteven District Council or by giving them a ring on 01476 406080, alternatively you can visit www.gov.uk/how-to-vote. The deadline for applications to vote by post is Tuesday, April 20, though, so you will need to apply soon.

Under certain circumstances you can ask someone to vote on your behalf. This is called proxy voting and again this application can be completed online or by ringing SKDC. The deadline to apply for a proxy vote is 5pm on Tuesday, April 27.

For those who are still keen to make their vote personally, there have been some changes to the polling station venues for parts of the Bourne area this year. Those who have in the past gone to Westfield School or Manor Court will now be directed to Bourne Baptist Chapel in West Street and those residents in the east and south of the town together with residents of Twenty will be directed to the Corn Exchange or Elsea Park Community Centre.

The main reasons for the changes are so that, quite rightly, children can remain in school and that the new venues all have separate entrances and exits. However, please be assured all of the venues will be covid safe and compliant.

So much of the last year has been out of our control. Now though we can start to focus on making decisions for our local area again, and it’s up to every one of us to choose who does this on our behalf. So, as they say, use it or lose it!