This information relates to the 2026 annual electoral registration canvass. It is intended for people interested in working as canvassers and includes details about the role, training, timetable, and pay.
Contents:
- Your role
- Canvass timetable 2026
- Training
- Pay rates
- How to apply
Thank you for your interest in working on the annual canvass. Please read the information below carefully before completing the application form.
Your role
Each year, the Electoral Registration Officer (ERO) is legally required to check all households and publish an updated Register of Electors by 1 December.
The process begins by contacting every household in the district, either by post, by email or by phone, asking residents to confirm whether the details held for their address are correct.
Households must respond to tell us:
- if people need to be added or removed from the register, or
- if there are no changes to report.
If a household reports that someone needs to be added, we will contact that individual and ask them to register to vote. This can be done online or using a paper form.
When households or individuals do not respond to these initial requests, the ERO has a legal duty to make personal visits to obtain a response.
As a canvasser, you will be employed by the ERO to visit:
- households that have not responded, and
- individuals who have not completed individual registration forms.
You will help residents complete the required forms during these visits.
This role:
- is temporary and sessional, not full‑time
- requires working in your own time, including evenings and weekends
- is separate from normal council duties (for council staff)
If appointed to the visit stage, you must attend training in September 2026 (dates to be confirmed).
Skills and requirements
You must be able to demonstrate:
- availability to work evenings and weekends during a limited period
- good mobility, including carrying equipment and climbing stairs
- clear communication skills and accurate record‑keeping
- awareness of and sensitivity to cultural differences
- ability to work under pressure and meet deadlines
- good organisation and attention to detail
- a professional and politically neutral approach
- the ability to maintain confidentiality at all times
General information
- Canvassers may be allocated work anywhere within the district, so you must be willing to travel within council boundaries.
- All work will be checked. Deliberately falsifying information may lead to action being taken.
- You must have good literacy and numeracy skills.
- You must be 18 or over, as the role involves lone working.
Canvass timetable 2026
(Dates may change depending on printing schedules)
- Interviews: Mid August 2026
- Training (tablets, health & safety): 11 September 2026
- Household canvass (door knocking): 18 September – 25 October 2026
- Individual registration canvass: 26 October – 20 November 2026
Your main duties and responsibilities will be:
Your duties will include:
- Visiting households in your assigned area to collect information for updating the Register of Electors.
- Helping eligible residents register to vote.
- Leaving information at addresses where no contact is made.
- Recording all information securely using the tablet provided.
- Advising residents on how to complete household and individual registration forms.
- Attending the elections office as directed by your supervisor.
- Recording information about properties, including new or demolished properties.
- Maintaining accurate clerical records.
- Assisting in the office with opening and sorting forms if required.
- Attending all required training, including Data Protection and Health & Safety.
- Working to a set timetable and informing the office if delays occur.
- Following instructions at all times. Failure to do so may result in termination of employment.
Training – visit stage
If you have not previously worked as a canvasser for Dover District Council, you must attend a new canvassers’ training session for the visit stage.
This training will last approximately one hour.
Important information
Before applying to work as a canvasser, it is very important to read the following information:
- Canvassing involves making personal visits to all kinds of different properties in the Dover district.
- You will be expected to visit properties at early evenings and weekends.
- You will be speaking to the occupants of the properties you visit and asking them to complete voter registration forms with you on their doorsteps.
- You will be completing two different types of registration forms (household and individual). Some properties you visit will only have a household form, some will only have individual forms, some will have both.
- You will need to do a substantial amount of walking (whether that be between properties or up and down flights of stairs in blocks of flats).
- Because of the time of year that you will be making visits, it may be wet and cold when you are out making them.
- From time to time, you may visit properties where the occupants are unwilling to work with you. It is possible that some of the conversations you have with these people will be challenging.
- You will/could be required to visit any number of properties (maximum of 2000) over a period of 6 weeks in a mixture of rural and urban areas.
- We do not pay for parking costs.
- Please note that applications will not be acknowledged, and unsuccessful applicants will not be contacted.
- Successful canvassers will be invited for an interview in August. However, later applications may also be considered.
We may contact other councils’ Electoral Services offices regarding any previous employment you may have had and equally we may share your details where appropriate.
Pay rates
Based on Canvass 2025, on average you can earn up to £465 working a total of 26 hours during visit stage.
There is an hourly rate of £12.94 per hour. In addition, each canvass form response will earn canvassers an extra 30p. Timesheets are required to be completed each time you canvass and submitted to us at the end of each week via email.
Please note: the number of visits within an assignment can be fluid as people complete applications and new follow-up visits are added. Therefore, it is important to keep your tablet up-to-date.
Mileage claims may be submitted in respect of any visits to the Electoral Services team and travel to the areas being canvassed. Mileage will be worked out at 55p per mile (capped* at £35 (63 miles) per rural area & £20 (36 miles) per Town area).
*under extenuating circumstances, this cap may be waived.
How to apply
The job description can be found by clicking the following link: Canvassers Job Description.
After reading the full job description, complete the online application by clicking the following link: https://forms.office.com/e/c4YJNjxTmZ
You must:
- be 18 or over
- have the right to work in the UK
If successful, you must provide evidence of your right to work, such as:
- a valid passport, or
- a birth certificate plus proof of National Insurance number (e.g. P60, P45, payslip)
To contact us, use the following details:
Electoral Services
Council Offices
White Cliffs Business Park
Dover
CT16 3PJ
01304 872344
✉️ elections@dover.gov.uk
If you decide you no longer wish to be considered after applying, please contact Electoral Services immediately.