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NALC publishes new report on the 2021 local elections
The National Association of Local Councils (NALC) has published its report on the 2021 local (parish and town) council elections.
This report aimed to gather insightful data to provide an overview of the 2021 local elections. This data captured will assist NALC’s future campaigns (e.g. Make A Change) and help to shape the range of resources available for local councils and county associations.
The research found that the number of councillors elected through contested elections has significantly increased from 29% in 2019 to 38% in 2021. Despite this positive change, 44% of local councils reported the need to co-opt seats. The data also showed that local councils require further support from county associations and principal authorities in raising awareness of local elections.
Ongoing COVID-19 restrictions hindered local elections in 2021. Broader social contact rules prevented many candidates from campaigning in person and decreased voter turnout in several councils. However, moving to virtual meetings positively affected council meeting attendance, expressions of interest, and council diversity.
The report makes several recommendations to the local council sector and external stakeholders to improve the election process. These include increasing election coverage through regional and national media, working with principal authorities to capture election data, and encouraging people to run for election through talent spotting. NALC commits to providing county associations with access to media training and lobbying the government to simplify and digitalise local council elections.
NALC collected data from councillors, local councils and county associations across England between July and September 2021. The surveys collectively received 1,004 responses.