General election guidance for Locality members

Candidates may contact you to visit or engage with your community.

Make sure they know your impact, your community's needs, and tell them how they can help you build thriving neighbourhoods.

You can find a full list of your local candidates at whocanivotefor.co.uk. This often has candidate's contact details, or you can search online.

If you are in a marginal seat (a seat more likely to change political party), candidates will be keen to engage with you.

Check if your seat is marginal by entering your postcode on electoralcalculus.co.uk/newseatlookup and look at the chance of winning.

This is your opportunity to introduce your organisation as a vital part of your community and build a lasting relationship with candidates. Let them know what your community needs to thrive.

New candidates might not know who you are and will be looking for ways to connect with potential voters in your community. It is also good to contact MPs standing for re-election, as they will want to show they understand the needs of their community.

Unless you have a good reason not to, email all candidates to be politically independent and balanced.

Invite them to visit your organisation so you have a greater opportunity to tell them what you do and how you can work together. You could host a tour of your activities and create a photo opportunity of them with your community to use in the press and social media.

You could host a hustings with two or more candidates on relevant issues to your charity. The Electoral Commission has advice on complying with electoral law when hosting a hustings electoralcommission.org.uk/are-you-holding-a-hustings.

When you talk to your community about a candidate's visit or the hustings, make sure you say you have invited all candidates, even if all candidates don't attend. To follow charity law, your community must know you are not supporting the candidates visiting you.

Email templates

Locality have created some email templates to save you time:

• Template email invitation for candidate / MP to visit
• Template email for member to introduce your campaigning asks to a candidate / MP if you don't have time for a visit
• Template email to say congratulations to incoming MP post-election, introduce themselves and invite them for a visit

Make sure your charity and the candidate benefit from the visit. Don't let them leave without listening to your community's needs, your impact and how you can work together in the future.

Prepare

• Create a clear agenda for the visit and share it with the candidate and your colleagues in advance.
• Agree on how to promote the visit in advance so you can post about it quickly once it has happened. Get the candidate's social media details and make sure they have yours.
• Show your impact, passion and knowledge. Ensure the visit takes place at a time the candidate can see your activities and speak to participants where appropriate.
• Try to set time aside for a quiet/private conversation about your community's needs and ask about the candidate's policies.
• Know what you want to achieve from the conversation and prepare your questions and evidence in advance. This includes local needs, and promoting national asks such as those in Locality's Manifesto (we've created a one-page version you can give to your candidate).
• Try to get the candidate to commit to a follow up conversation or event after the election.
• Plan the photo opportunity. Choose a place that will showcase your work. Make sure you get relevant permissions from anyone in the photo.
• Let Locality know so we can help you prepare and promote your visits. Email members@locality.org.uk

After the visit

• Make a note of the candidates' answers to questions and what they were interested in so you can follow up in future emails and invitations.
• Email and thank them for their visit. Remind them of how you can work together. Ask them to join your mailing list or follow you on social media.
• Share any social media posts or local newspaper articles about their visits.
• If the candidate wins, congratulate them via email, remind them of their successful visit with you, update them about any new services or impact and invite them to engage with you again.

Tell your community about the visit and what the candidate said they would do on your social media, your newsletters, website etc.

• Send a press release about the visit or event to your local newspapers highlighting key parts of your discussion (as agreed with the candidate).
• Tell Locality so we can promote it to a wider audience and show your candidates you are part of a national network. Let us know via
  • email members@locality.org.uk
  • social posts using #PowerOfCommunity and tagging @localitynews (X/ Twitter) @localityUK (Facebook) @locality (LinkedIn).

While you can support individual policies and issues, make it clear that you don’t support the candidate or their party. Make sure you understand charity and electoral law.