Fees and expenses for local elections

We publish details about the fees and expenses involved with running an election, in the interest of openness and transparency.

In accordance with the Representation of the People Act 1983, the cost of local elections is met from the local authority's budgets.

The local authority is required to appoint a Returning Officer to conduct these elections on their behalf. The officer is personally (not corporately) responsible for the management of elections.

Each local authority is required to place the services of its staff at the disposal of the Returning Officer to help run the election.

In New Forest, the Returning Officer is Kate Ryan, our Chief Executive. Even though the Returning Officer is also an employee of the council, at the time of an election their responsibility is completely separate.

In order to run a local election, the Returning Officer in New Forest needs to employ and pay over 600 additional staff with different levels of responsibility. It is important that this is done fairly and transparently.

In order to achieve this, Returning Officers across Hampshire and the Isle of Wight review and agree a schedule of fees which they all use to pay staff. This ensures that there is a consistent approach for everyone.

Current schedules of fees can be downloaded below.

Schedule of election fees 2024 (PDF) [239KB] (opens new window)

Contact us

For more information, contact the electoral services team.

Electoral Services
New Forest District Council
Appletree Court
Beaulieu Road
Lyndhurst
SO43 7PA

Email: electoralservices@nfdc.gov.uk

Phone: 023 8028 5445