Electoral Roll

Searching electoral rolls is useful for finding people, family records, school friends and more. You can find a person in the United Kingdom from anywhere in the world by searching the electoral rolls.

Essential information

Tuesday, 19 April 2011 10:20

In case you are not making much headway even after repeated attempts, make sure to check out the following

Make sure that you are using the zipcode that corresponds to the latest address. Searching a person who might have relocated to another address is futile.
You will get only an abbreviated version of the roll for online search . Probably the person you are looking for might have opted out of the list.
Electoral rolls list out people according to the constituencies. Check the boundary commission report to make sure that the constituency has not changed over the years.
Having checked all the essentials, you have a fair chance of finding someone with whom you have long lost contact.

Why electoral rolls might not be the ultimate choice to find people?

Tuesday, 19 April 2011 10:19

Since 2002 the public have the right to choose whether or not they wanted to be recorded upon the public version of the electoral roll, which means that a majority of the current public record searches will be returned negative. Online sites are ONLY allowed by law to allow the public to access the restricted or edited electoral roll, so that is farthest you can reach in both free or paid sites . Historical Rolls date back to 1992, in which you run a better chance to come across people as the listing is comparatively comprehensive.

What if you don't know the new address ?

Tuesday, 19 April 2011 10:18

If you are clueless on the new address, the best way to start your search would be with the old known address for the missing person , because in some cases you might get a direct link from the old address to the new address or you may even find a living family member who still lives in the same address, who may be prepared to supply current information.

How to get started

Tuesday, 19 April 2011 10:14

The first step to access the electoral roll database would be to get registered with a valid e-mail address
You have to set up a profile of the individual whom you are looking for by including the name , location and if available the last known address and zipcode.
The more detailed the address information, the narrower the results of the search.
You can use more than one free directory site to find the one you are looking for as this would ensure better accuracy.
Now you can type the person's first and last name along with the location to get search results.
Use the person's past or current address to determine the constituency to search.
Make sure whether the boundaries of constituencies have changed over the years.
Searching the electoral registers for a person will not be an easy task if you do not know the constituency.
In case you are in doubt about the constituency, you can check the Boundary Commission reports, available in the British Library's Quick Reference Collection in the Social Sciences Reading Room, for the exact constituency.

Are there any specific lists of people that are customarily not carried in the electoral rolls

Tuesday, 19 April 2011 10:12

Electoral rolls do not feature certain specific categories that include the following
Members of the House of Lords
Foreign national residents in the UK (except Commonwealth citizens or citizens of the Irish Republic)
Patients detained under mental health legislation.
Sentenced prisoners and people convicted within the previous five years of corrupt or illegal election practices.
People who have requested that their details are not shown on the edited electoral roll
Those who are not registered to vote.

More Articles...

Electoral Roll

Essential information

Why electoral rolls might not be the ultimate choice to find people?

What if you don't know the new address ?

How to get started

Are there any specific lists of people that are customarily not carried in the electoral rolls

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