Residents in South Oxfordshire and the Vale of White Horse are being urged to check the details on a yellow letter which they will receive from their district council from the start of August.

South Oxfordshire and Vale of White Horse District Councils are sending a yellow ‘Canvass Communication Form’ to every home requiring the residents to check and confirm the details of everyone over the age of 16 that lives in their property. This is something many local authorities need to do by law each year in order to ensure the electoral register is up to date.

A change for 2020!

In previous years all homes received the same letter and had to respond accordingly, however this year the process has changed slightly.

The letter people receive this August will depend on whether or not records indicate that there has been a change in the registered voters living at their property – for instance, if a registered voter has moved into a property that address will receive a different letter from a home whose occupants have remained the same since the last election.

The letters explain exactly what occupants need to do – it is very important that residents read it carefully and follow the instructions to confirm any changes, by visiting housholdresponse.com/southandvale – they will need the two-part code on the yellow letter to do this.

By doing this as quickly as possible it will mean that the councils don’t have to send a reminder letter or try to contact people this Autumn to confirm the information.

Margaret Reed, Electoral Registration Officer for South Oxfordshire and Vale of White Horse District Councils, said: “We know most people will be quite familiar with the yellow letter procedure by now, however there have been some changes this year so it is especially important that people read the instructions to check whether they need to confirm any changes with us.

“If there have been changes to the people living in a property, we’re really keen for people to confirm these as quickly as possible. This will help us to avoid having to issue costly reminders later on.”