Petitions

We will accept petitions from anyone who has an interest in the future of Wollongong. This includes:

• Residents
• Ratepayers
• Visitors
• Community Groups
• Businesses.

Each petition must clearly identify the name, address, phone number and email for the person lodging the petition with Council. This person is called the main petition contact. They should also be the first name listed on the petition.

You should use one of the templates below for a petition to Council:

• Electronic Petition Template  DOCX, 46.72 KB
• Hard Copy Petition Template  DOCX, 51.45 KB

To be accepted by Council, a petition must:

• Be about a matter that Council can act on or influence.
• Contain a clear, brief statement explaining the subject and purpose of the petition, and the action the petitioners want Council to take.
• Include the full name, address and other contact details of the person lodging the petition. This person is called the main petition contact. They should also be the first person to sign the petition.
• Use one of the templates above, or a similar format.
• Be signed by at least four people from at least four different households. Residents of boarding houses will each be counted as individual households for petitions.
• Include the name and street or email address of each person signing the petition. Hard copy submissions must also show the original signature of each person listed.
• Use respectful language.
• Not be offensive, frivolous, vexatious, inappropriate or lacking in substance.
• Include a summary showing the total number of pages and the total number of people who signed the petition.

Petitions that don't meet these guidelines may not be considered by Council.

We will also not accept petitions that are:

• About a planning decision that has already been determined by Council staff, a Council committee, or a resolution of Council.
• About the same issue, or a similar issue, for which Council has considered another petition in the past 12 months. In these cases, we will notify the main petition contact person about the outcome of the earlier petition.

Petitions in languages other than English

If you are submitting a petition that is in a language other than English, you will need to include a certified translation written or typed in English. You must also include the contact details of the person who translated the petition into English.

There are four ways you can send a petition to Council.

1. By mail to the address shown in the footer of this page.
2. By email to council@wollongong.nsw.gov.au
3. In person at our Customer Service Centre at 41 Burelli Street, Wollongong during business hours.
4. Sent to a Councillor with a request that they consider tabling the petition at a Council meeting. You can find contact details for Councillors on the Your Council Officials page.

Petitions sent to Councillors

Councillors may choose to do one of the following:

• Table a petition at a Council meeting
• Forward it to the General Manager, or
• Advise the main petition contact to send it directly to Council.

If a Councillor gives the General Manager enough advanced notice that they intend to table a petition at a Council, the title of the petition will be included in the meeting agenda, and the main petition contact person will be notified.

Petitions are not subject to discussion or debate at Council meetings.

Responses to petitions

When we receive a petition, we will send a written acknowledgement to the main petition contact person. If the petition is tabled at a Council meeting, the acknowledgement will be sent after the meeting.

Petitions will be forwarded to the Manager responsible for the matter raised in the petition. They will investigate, consider the matter, and respond to the main petition contact person. If the petition was tabled at a Council meeting, a copy of the response will also be sent to Councillors.

If the petition is submitted as part of a formal engagement activity, it will be included in the Engagement Report to be considered by the relevant decision makers. The Engagement Report will include at least:

• The petition statement explaining its subject and purpose, and the action the petitioners want Council to take.
• Clarification that the submission was received as a petition.
• The number of signatures included in the petition.

Petitions received by Council are managed in accordance with the Government Information (Public Access) Act 2009.

Personal information provided to Council in a petition is protected by the Privacy and Personal Information Protection Act 1998. You can read more about privacy in Council’s Privacy Management Plan PDF, 374.46 KB.

Council officers will generally only use details of people signing a petition if they need to verify that the person has an interest in the Wollongong local government area.

If you have any questions or concerns about privacy and how your personal information is handled by Council, please call us on (02) 4227 7111.