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The organisation behind FixMyStreet, TheyWorkForYou, WhatDoTheyKnow, WriteToThem — and other empowering online tools.


** New politicians!
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** What happens now?
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18 of the Senedd Members

Dear friend,

Last month, millions of people across the UK went out and exercised one of their democratic rights: voting for local and national representatives. Were you one of them?

In England, 5,066 councillors were elected across 136 of the 317 English authorities (local elections are stepped, so not everyone votes at the same time).

In Wales and Scotland, changes were national. The Senedd grew from 60 to 96 Members ([link removed]) , with six representing ([link removed]) each of the 16 reconfigured constituencies; and in Scotland, the people were asked to select all 129 MSPs ([link removed]) .

Many representatives returned; others are taking up positions for the first time. All in all, there’s been a lot of change.

So… what now?


** Democracy also happens between elections
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Whether you voted or not, your representatives are there for YOU... and mySociety’s services offer a number of different ways to engage with them.


** Follow the national parliaments on TheyWorkForYou
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We publish debates and votes from the UK Parliament and each of the devolved parliaments on TheyWorkForYou ([link removed]) . Enter your postcode to see your MP’s or devolved Members’ pages, rich with information about how they’ve voted and what they've said.

Or sign up for our free alerts service ([link removed]) and we’ll keep you up to date on your representatives' activities — with no effort required.


** Contact your representatives at every level
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A woman typing on a laptop

Wherever you are in the UK, WriteToThem ([link removed]) is the easy way to drop an email to your MP.

Plus, in Wales you can also use it to contact your Senedd Members; and in Scotland, your MSPs.

And of course, you can also email your councillors — though, please note, it always takes a few weeks for the new email addresses to come through from each council, so you can’t currently use WriteToThem to contact councillors in areas which had elections (other areas should work as usual).

We’re expecting the data any time now, so watch this space and we’ll let you know when everything’s ready for you to email your councillors — and how to decide which representative is the right recipient for your message.


** Your right to ask; your right to know
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One woman makes her point while another looks on, in a wood-panelled room

Many councils publish or even livestream their meetings as default; but some are (or have become) more closed.

All the same, you have the right to attend many council meetings in person, and submit questions. In our recent blog post ([link removed]) , climate campaigner Helen demystifies the process with some helpful tips.

Or, consider using your rights under the Freedom of Information Act. You could request meeting minutes, internal memos or emails that help cast light on local issues. Not sure where to begin? Our beginner’s guide to using FOI can be found here ([link removed]) .


** Something bugging you in the neighbourhood?
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Street bollards that have been knocked wonky by cars

While council staff won’t necessarily have changed, sometimes a new intake of councillors changes priorities — and perhaps you’ll find there’s finally an appetite to fill in those potholes, address barriers to accessibility, or mend that broken streetlight.

With that in mind, now is a great time to report such issues on FixMyStreet ([link removed]) .
mySociety is a charity - if you want to invest in making communities safer and fairer please consider donating.
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mySociety is a registered charity in England and Wales (1076346) and a limited company (03277032).
Through our trading subsidiary SocietyWorks (05798215) we also provide commercial services.

Photos: Eluned Morgan, Prif Weinidog | First Minister, AS | MS ** Senedd Cymru ([link removed])
** CC by/4.0/deed.en ([link removed])
; Woman at a laptop ** Vitaly Gariev ([link removed])
; Women speaking at a meeting ** Age Cymru ([link removed])
; Wonky bollards ** Henrik Bortels ([link removed])
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