Job detail for Door to Door Canvassers

The Service & Team:

The Elections Team covers the organisation of Elections and Electoral Registration for the whole of Cornwall.  We organise all types of elections such as UK Parliamentary General Elections, Local Unitary Council Elections, Town and Parish Elections, Neighbourhood Referenda and BID Ballots.

The team also compile the Electoral Register under the supervision of Cornwall’s Electoral Registration Officer.

It is a statutory duty for the team to organise an Annual Canvass of properties each year – each household receives their elector information and updates this information with additional residents and residents who have moved away.

The Role:

Each year, Cornwall Council appoints canvassers to assist the Electoral Registration Officer with producing a new electoral register, which is published on the 1st of December.

Canvassers carry out house-to-house visits or telephone householders to collect information from non responding households for the compilation of the new register.

Canvassers are required to complete all canvassing activity within set time frames which, for this year, will be from 1st October or four weeks. During these four weeks, canvassers will be expected to make one visit to non-responding properties.  This can be during the day, evening or weekend.  Canvassers should provide encouragement and assistance to residents to complete and return their form.

The pay will be £2.00 per form you receive plus £0.80 for each completed form returned to us.  Mileage will be paid at £0.55 per mile and you will also receive a fee of £25.00 for attending training.

Working Pattern:

Working hours are ad-hoc and can be carried out at any point in the four week window.  The time spent working will depend on the size of the area you are allocated and therefore it would be helpful to know how much work can be taken on.

What you’ll need to succeed:

Canvassers are required to have:

• good communication skills, and the ability to relate to people;
• awareness of, and sensitivity to, cultural diversity;
• the ability to work under pressure, and to meet deadlines; and
• a professional and politically neutral manner

Please read the role profile for the full details of this role attached below in this advert

What you’ll get in return:

Full training will be given at New County Hall, Truro on Wednesday 30th September.  There will be two sessions – 3pm to 5pm and 5pm to 7pm.

Cornwall Council’s ambition is to be an employer of choice, a high performing Council and a learning organisation. We commit to providing a reward and benefits package to attract, motivate and reward our employees. We offer a range of flexible working options to our staff. This helps provide our employees with a greater work/life balance. Whilst still ensuring that service needs are met.

Additional Information:

Cornwall Council is unable to offer visa sponsorship or transfer existing sponsorship for this role.

The full role profile is attached here

We recommend saving a copy of this to refer to if you are invited to an interview.

For more information or an informal chat about the role please contact Holly Gamble - Holly.Gamble@cornwall.gov.uk

Application Process

Please attach a supporting statement to your application. Remember to demonstrate why you are suitable against each of the points marked as ‘Application’ on the Role Profile using examples from your experience or transferable skills. Guidance on how to complete your application can be found here – The application process - Cornwall Council

Please note that applications cannot be edited after they have been submitted, please contact careers@cornwall.gov.uk if you have any queries or require assistance with your application.

Artificial Intelligence (AI) and your application

We recognise that you may choose to use AI tools when preparing your application. We ask that any information you include is an accurate reflection of your own skills, knowledge, experience and achievements. You may be asked to discuss the examples and evidence you provide during the selection process.

We may adapt our shortlisting approach where we receive a high volume of applications. Any shortlisting decisions will be based on the information provided in your application and the essential requirements of the role.

Existing employees must apply using their Cornwall Council email address through the Opportunity Marketplace on Oracle.