Be a councillor

You do not have to be a member of the big three political parties to stand, you could stand for another party or be an Independent Councillor. If you'd like to find out more about being an Independent Councillor or standing for a smaller party that isn't Labour, Conservative or Liberal Democrats get in touch.


Be a Councillor virtual event series

Following the success of the 2021 virtual Candidate School, we are very excited to be holding the Programme again for candidates running in the 2022 local elections. To sign up for further information, please visit the Candidate School Programme page.

An introduction to Being a Councillor

This event for prospective candidates included a presentation covering an introduction to being a councillor and standing for election, followed by an opportunity for a Q&A session with a panel of experienced independent councillors.


The first thing to do is know the rules, which you can find on the Electoral Commission site, here for councillors in England and here for members in Wales. Part 2a is specifically designed for those standing as an Independent.

Find out more about standing as an Independent councillor in our publication, Stand for what you believe, Be an Independent councillor, which is full of useful tips and guidance. We also have free copies of Flatpack Democracy to share.

You may also find it useful to visit the pages of the Independent Network, Residents Association or Party.

If you’d like to stand as a Green Councillor you can find out more in our new Be a Councillor – Green Party booklet

Cllr Neil Prior from Pembrokeshire shares his experience of a year in the life of a County Councillor.

LGiU have produced a slimline Guide on personal safety for councillors which has a section on canvassing which may be of interest to you.

If you would like to hold a Be a Councillor event in your area, please do get in touch. We can help fund activity that promotes the Be a Councillor campaign and its aims to increase diversity within councils to ensure they are as representative as possible.

Recently, the Chase Independents hosted a virtual Be a Councillor event where viewers heard from a number of Independent Councillors from across the country and were able to submit questions as part of a Q&A. You can watch the full webinar below.

Local government touches the lives of everybody, every day

Find out about Local government and its structure and what types of local government there are.

For more details or contact us at [email protected]