Start a petition

We have developed an online petitions portal that will allow community members to create, submit and sign petitions online from late October 2026.

The portal will improve accessibility by providing an additional way to submit petitions and helping petitioners reach a wider audience. Petitioners can also share a direct link through their personal networks and communication channels to gather support for their petitions.

Paper-based petitions will continue to be accepted. Once a paper petition is lodged with us, details will be published on the portal, creating a central location for all petitions.

Community members can view and sign any open petitions, but only petitions lodged online can be signed online. 

Current method

You may submit a petition to Council to request action or ask that action not be taken. Submitted petitions must:

  • be on the appropriate Council petition template(DOCX, 16KB)
  • be in legible and permanent writing
  • be clear, with the relevant matter and action sought from Council stated on each page
  • not be derogatory, defamatory, or objectionable in language or nature
  • not relate to matters outside the powers of Council
  • include the names, addresses and original signatures of at least 10 people.

Section 69 (page 34) of our governance rules provides all relevant information on how to submit a petition and the petition process.

What happens to the petition once submitted

Petitions with fewer than 10 signatures will be treated as a joint letter and referred to the appropriate Council department for action. These petitions will not be presented at a Council meeting.

We will send an acknowledgment to the person who submitted the petition, or the first named petitioner listed on the petition.

Where possible, petitions submitted within the required timeframes will be presented at the next ordinary Council meeting.

A report about the petition will be included in the meeting agenda. The report will include:

  • petition request in full
  • number of signatures received
  • any actions taken or recommended.

The person who submitted the petition will be advised of the outcome after the meeting.

When a petition is listed on a Council meeting agenda, an option to request to speak on the item will be available.

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