RESIDENTS are urged to use their vote in May when Gloucestershire County Council elections take place. 

Elections on Thursday, May 4 will determine who will represent each of the 53 divisions in the county for the year four years. 

Within Cotswold District, there are eight county divisions which will each be represented by one councillor:

  • Cirencester Beeches - (currently represented by Cllr Nigel Robbins)
  • Cirencester Park (Cllr Joe Harris)
  • Fairford and Lechlade on Thames (Cllr Ray Theodoulou)
  • South Cerney (Cllr Shaun Parsons)
  • Tetbury (Cllr Anthony Hicks)
  • Stow-on-the-Wold (Cllr Nigel Moor)
  • Bourton-on-the-Water, Northleach (Cllr Paul Hodgkinson)
  • Campden-Vale (Cllr Lynden Stowe)

Residents are urged to make their voices heard by voting for the person who will represent them.

To be able to vote, you must:

  • be registered
  • be 18 or over on the day of the election
  • be a British, Commonwealth or EU citizen
  • be resident at an address in the area you wish to vote in
  • not be legally excluded from voting

If you are not registered already, you can register to vote at www.gov.uk/register-to-vote, but must do so by the April 13 to vote in the elections.

For those wishing to have a postal vote, postal proxy or to make changes to an existing postal vote for the elections, they must return their application form by 5pm on April 18.

Anyone wishing to apply for a proxy vote, where someone votes on your behalf, should return their application form by 5pm on April 25 to their district council.

The last county council elections took place in 2013. The make-up of the council is currently 25 Conservatives, 14 Liberal Democrats, nine Labour, two Independents, one Green, one UKIP and one vacant seat.

The turnout of the elections was 32.3 per cent, of 475,960 people who were eligible to vote.

Pete Bungard, county returning officer and chief executive of Gloucestershire County Council, said: “The county council has an impact on the lives of all Gloucestershire residents.

"Elected councillors are the public’s representatives on the county council so it is important that people use their vote on polling day”

“Voting is a privilege and responsibility. By using your vote, you have the power to make your voice heard. I know that some people say their vote doesn’t matter, but it really does."